They are there to make sure you feel right back at home each time you come back after a trip overseas. They are comforting and can also give you a fuller sense of identity and culture every time you yearn for them. No, they are not just your cuddly pets or your close family members and friends. If you noticed the “fuller” word, then you kind of know we are talking about food, our Singapore food that roots us all. These are our Deliciously Singaporeans- a selection of 50 dishes- old, new, born, bred and evolved in Singapore flavours, that we call our own. It is time we gave them this Singapore “chop” of recognition and identity, especially in this SG50 year.

The Deliciously Singaporean campaign will be launched at the World Street Food Congress by Minister Lawrence Wong of MCCY ( Ministry of Community, Culture and Youth) on the 8th of April. Makansutra, the curators of the campaign will be rolling out a series of recipe videos and food history content throughout this year. The campaign is brought to us by the MCCY and NHB (National Heritage Board). A SG50 Delicious Singaporean Pavillion will installed at the World Street Food Jamboree feasting festival. The five stalls under this pavillion will offer up a collection of some of the most iconic and born-in-Singapore dishes. They will be a part of the 23 international food stalls at the Jamboree.

Think of the bites that make you go “ahhh!” and sigh with a smile- like bak chor mee, indian rojak, fried hokkien prawn mee, satay beehoon and even Katong Laksa, and you know what the campaign is all about. It’s like giving these old and new heritage makan a Singapore passport so the world knows where they are from. The stories behind them, like how they came about and what it that special edge and trick in making them, is so entertaining yet almost controversial. Like how satay beehoon is traced back to a stall still operating in Bukit Timah and defining the Malaysian and Singapore versions of Bak Kut Teh. The idea of the campaign is also to return this gift of our culinary heritage back to us. You can take this dishes wherever you are and cook them however you want it, now that you will understand it.

The 5 stalls under the Singapore SG50 Pavillion at the event, are:

Alhambra Satay (from Gluttons Bay)– they are offering a first of sorts halal Satay Beehoon and the wicked twist is how they blend the spicy peanut sauce with soto ayam, slather it over the noodles with seafood and sticks of satay.

Hong Kong Street Chun Kee: the took a Singapore classic , prawn paste chicken, and turned it into a burger using boneless chicken chop with slaw, sambal mayonnaise and sweet potato fries.

MA Deen Biasa: the unique reddish Mee Kuah (noodles with a mutton broth, sambal masala concoction, tomato paste and beetroot extract) sits under mince mutton, greens and pea plus a wobbly and beckoning ( poke the yoke) 64 degree poached egg.

Chey Sua: this family are the folks who created the flat pancake style frittata fried carrot cake. They way they let their own made cakes seared in the pan and then coat it with a layer of crispy and fragrant eggs flavours with preserved daikon bits, is an art.

Keng Eng Kee: in celebration of our “national” seafood dish Chilli Crabs, they created the mean fried soft shell crab seafood combo with squid and eggplants. This comes with 3 accomplices- the chilli crab, black pepper and salted egg yolk sauce dips.

25 cooking videos by us and top hawkers and chefs of some of these heritage dishes (difficult even to find online- like Indian Rojak) will be systematically release throughout the year. Five will be launched at the World Street Food Congress. Other dishes in the Deliciously Singaporean campaign include Teochew Bak Kut Teh, Roti John, White Pepper Crabs, Satay Beehoon and Kueh Tutu, among others.

The World Street Food Congress
April 8-12th 2015(Wednesday to Sunday)
5pm-11pm(weekdays), 2pm-11pm (weekends)
Open field opposite Bugis Junction by Tan Quee Lan St
Open to public, payment by Nets and cash coupons available on site