Recipe: Singaporean rice

To prepare:

•  Boil the rice and noodles beforehand.

•  Prepare a marinade for the chicken by mixing flour, cornflour, egg, salt, pepper and red chili flakes with water. Marinate the chicken chunks in the mixture and deep fry until they are cooked thoroughly.

•  In a separate pan, sauté the vegetables in vinegar, chili sauce and chili garlic and soya sauce, along with salt and white pepper. Fry the vegetables for about two minutes and once they are cooked, add the fried chicken cubes as well. 

To assemble:

•  Spread the rice on the bottom of a large dish and cover it with the mayonnaise dressing.


•  Prepare the second layer by spreading the noodles over the rice, followed by chicken and vegetable gravy.

•  Spread some more of the mayonnaise dressing for the third (top) layer and garnish it with chopped green onions. Serve warm.

Preventing noodles from sticking —  oil or no oil?

Cooking noodles is simple: Boil the water, toss in the noodles and cook them until they are chewy but firm enough to bite. However, when cooking is over and we proceed to drain the pot, some of the noodles clump together at the ends, forming a gnarly mess. Pulling them apart is virtually impossible, considering the moist pasta is too soft and tears easily. And of course, we can’t serve congealed noodles! So what does one do to prevent noodles from sticking?

Many people — even renowned chefs from around the world — utilise cooking oil for this purpose. It is commonly believed that a few drops of oil added to the boiling pasta will keep the noodles separate without compromising on its taste or texture. Little do they know that oil is not the answer — lots of water and vigorous stirring is!

Scientifically speaking, oil and water don’t mix. If we add even a little bit of oil to the pot, chances are that it will float to the top, barely fulfilling any purpose. Not to mention, when the noodles are poured out of the pot, the oil tends to stick which prevents the sauce or gravy from adhering. To put it simply, the oil will literally go down the drain so why waste it? Try increasing the quantity of water boiled instead. All pasta, especially the long varieties, needs water to cook properly. Also, water dilutes the starch and it is starch that makes the pasta stick together. On average, one pound of dry pasta requires at least four cups of water for effective boiling.

When boiling water, you must use a pot big enough to hold it and allow for stirring. Boil the water on high heat and once it is done, add about one tablespoon of salt to season the pasta. If you have ample time, it is advisable to slip the long strands of pasta into the water slowly; as the submerged portion softens, the remaining part of the noodle will slip in itself. Once the entire strand is in, stir the water continuously for about two minutes to get the noodles swimming around.

Published in The Express Tribune, Ms T, March 22^nd, 2015.