Mangosteen Mania

Mangosteens hailed originally from the Moluccas Isles and the Sunda Islands in Indonesia, but can be easily available now in the rest of south-east Asia, usually as whole fruits at retail. The fun commences with hand opening the rather hard outer skin layer to get at its inner fruit, and the pleasure is in the milky white , juicy and somewhat fibrous fruit. I was told that Queen Elizabeth II graciously receives gifts of such crated fruits at Buckingham Palace each year.

Europeans generally baulk at the thorny, football sized, green coloured durian, but in contrast, they love the mangosteen. Queen Victoria reputedly offered a hundred pound reward in the 19th century to anyone who could deliver to her the fresh fruit of the mangosteen. The mangosteen tree can be tall and reach anywhere from seven to 25 metres. In Australia, it is now grown on a commercial basis in Queensland and the Northern Territory.

The purple coloured fruit has an outer skin layer that discourages infestation by insects, fungi or plant viruses whilst it is ripening. The top of the fruit has a clover like arrangement in light green where attached to a stem. This is my favourite tropical fruit, but I am always careful when taking in the juice of the luscious white inner fruit - their stains have to be washed immediately from fabric or clothes, as they are rather strong and sticky. What is the best way of manually opening a mangosteen? I hold the single fruit with both hands, and gently apply pressure from the sides, so as to buckle the outer purple coloured layer. Once this layer cracks up, I see the target - the moist, ripened white segments, slightly aromatic, definitely delicious.

Sembawang Park, Singapore

Sembawang lies on the north-eastern corner of Singapore Island. It has been associated with a massive shipbuilding industry for many years and still is. Named after a native tree, it used to host rubber estates and then a British naval base. Sembawang is sited next to Woodlands, best know as the northern suburb of Singapore that is linked to Malaysia through the Causeway and Malayan Railway. Above image, day fishermen have a whale of a time at a wharf that juts out towards Johor in Malaysia.

Sembawang Park (above) is not far from the shipyard (picture below). Interesting enough, there are many examples of Australian flora in this park, the most famous of which is the Bottle Tree, originally from Queensland. I am told that this tree no longer exists as I write, but there is also the Cannon Ball Tree still on site. There is also a hot springs on location for visitors. This far corner of Singapore is also accessible by MRT to Sembawang Town. You may come across many National Servicemen in this area, as the Naval Diving Unit and the 1st and 3rd Transport Battalion of the Singapore Army are also based here.

A bungalow previously housing engineers and other technicians working for the Sembawang Shipyard has been turned into a restaurant in Sembawang Park - the Beaulieu House (picture above). You can dine on Chinese seafood and European cuisine, with a view to the Johor Straits, in surroundings I can only surmise as retro. Beaulieu House was built by the David family who were involved in the mining business and then acquired by the British Navy around 1910.

The Beaulieu House offers several private function rooms, one of which, the Alfresco A & B, can seat over 200 people.

You can enjoy both European and local reflections inside the Beaulieu House - a touch of old England (above) and a restored trishaw (below).

Sembawang does provide a refreshing hideaway from most of contemporary Singapore. Standing by its shore, I am reminded of schoooldays on another tropical island not far north - Penang. Both provide provdie the setting for lazy afternoons when we could still be conscious of the laps of the gentle waters of a sheltered straits and when the cares of the world were just borne by others. You can go cycling or running in Sembawang, far removed from the trials and tribulations of share market movements or strategic-politcal dramas. It also offers insights into what greeted Sir Stamford Raffles when he eyed upon this island of Singapore and made him negotiate with the then Sultan of Johor to take over the island.

Hainan Chicken Rice - Wee Nam Kee, Singapore

I had always aimed to eat at Wee Nam Kee, after hearing through the grapevine and on the internet regarding its extra special renditions of the classic Hainan chicken rice, perhaps the national dish of Singapore. A family business, Wee Nam Kee has been digging its fans in since 1987, and when Mui Na suggested the branch along Thompson Road in Novena, I did not protest. My first experience there lived up to my expectations. The chicken is moist, flavourful and addictive. The rice is pleasant, tasty and tender. Some of my Aussie mates flinch at chicken served on the bone, but in this case, this is essential for the optimal taste to come out.

By noon on a weekday, the crowds had gathered - office workers, families, tourists like me mates and more. Initially I was curious why there were so many staff at this Wee Nam Kee joint - for a two shopfront place. I soon understood fast, as the lunchers quickly occupied all available tables ad people started forming a standing queue. Customers were not averse to sharing tables with strangers, and the crowd was as cosmopolitan as Singapore gets. I got hooked on the mild but delectable "water dogs" (siau kow in Cantonese) - steamed dumplings with pork mince with shrimp and vegetable ingredients inside (picture below).

One of the curiosities in this business is the need for customers to be there on a timely basis. Some dishes are not available if you come too early or too late. Interesting enough, there is a viable delivery service operated by Wee Nam Kee within Singapore Island. Other signature dishes for consideration are crispy roast pork, deep fried tofu, crispy stir fried kai lan greens (picture below), cereal prawns and another national icon for Singapore, the curry fish head. Master Chef Loh has been heading the kitchens of Wee Nam Kee for twenty years now, and outlets include a franchised outlet in Manila.

The ToastBox, Singapore

There are several businesses in Malaysia and Singapore these days specialising in providing the kaya toast, poached eggs and selected street food like chicken curry laksa - but all at higher price and with a supposedly higher ambiance than those original kopitiams dotted across towns and suburbs in the two nations. I was impressed with the atmosphere and service experienced recently at the ToastBox outlet at Bugis Junction in Singapore. Quick, responsive and friendly, the staff went about their work at this busy and strategically located shop along the main strip. The test was in the signature offering, two fresh soft boiled eggs with an engrossing bread slice smothered with coconut-based kaya preserve and local coffee. (picture above)

Local fare offered by the ToastBox (clockwise from 12 noon in picture above) includes dainty layer cakes, Swiss jam rolls, the traditional nasi lemak (coconut milk steamed rice eaten with condiments of deep fried anchovies, hard boiled eggs, sambal and cucumber slices) packed above in take away triangle folded banana leaves, flat packed glutinous rice accompanied by sweet and savoury shrimp paste, deep fried chicken wings, egg custard and a whole chocolate cake.

Thee are various options available in how you can have your toast and eat them too - please refer to image above. I chose the toast with a spread of otak otak, the fish mousse found in most of South-east Asia from Chiengmai to Bali. (picture below) Other toppings used to spread on their thick toast bread are butter milk, spicy shrimp paste, ice cream, floss and tom yam flavoured garlic. ToastBox as a business has been operating for several years now and is associated with the owners of BreadTalk, another chain specialising in offering freshly baked pastries and tea time snacks. ToastBox also sells Nanyang coffee powder, their bottled kaya preserves ala Hainan style and peanut butter. They have outlets across most of East Asia, from China to Thailand and the Philippines.

Petaling Street, Sydney - Malaysian Street Food

Petaling Street, in the heart of Kuala Lumpur's Chinatown district and referred to colloquially as Chee Cheong Kai, evokes the hustle and bustle of commerce, street vendorship and hawker food. The name also refers to a chain of cafe restaurants in Melbourne city centre and its suburbs, specialising on the spectrum of fare fro breakfast, dinner, supper or any time ranging from Cantonese, South Indian, Thai, Indonesian, Malay, Straits Chinese to fusion varieties from south-east Asia. Charmaine and Cindy alerted me to the opening of Pet Street's branch along George Street in Sydney's CBD, opposite from the corner of Ultimo Street. I could hardly wait to try this out. Above image - ice kacang, or shaved ice with a mixture of palm sago, black jelly bits, creamy corn from the can, roasted peanuts and more, and all doused with pink rose syrup or green flavoured extras. Ice kacang is replicated in the Philippines and Indonesia, known there as ABC or ais batu campur. I must say the roasted peanuts gave me a kick in this ice kacang dish.

The ambiance is casual, crowded and busy. On first impressions, I wondered if they had only these several tables for customers in a narrow corridor at street level. Tables are squat and practical, with no backs but more like stools. It was only half an hour later when a visit to the washrooms in the basement opened my eyes to more spacious seating. Petaling Street's menu is extensive and they open late till 2 am from Thursday to Saturday nights, otherwise they open their doors at 11am every day and close at 11pm from Sundays to Wednesdays. Their drinks offered reflect the selections available in any Malaysian or Singaporean coffee shop (kopi tiam) - including not only hot or cold teh tarik, soya bean ice and cham ( a mixture of both tea and coffee in one serving), but also Ribena Sprite and ice Bandung. One of the dishes that caught my attention at the window display was the Thai nasi Pattaya, or fried rice all snugly wrapped in an egg omelette cover (picture above). When we observed other tables, steamed fish was ordered in a variety of styles - with tamarind sauce or chill or ginger and shallots.

The first dish I had at this George Street cafe was the yee mee in a claypot with shreds of marinated braised duck. (image above) My first thoughts on taking this were, hello, there are sharp bones with the duck and they should have been deboned, and secondly it tasted more salty than I preferred. Some people prefer boned duck as they are convinced that it adds tot he flavour, when compared with deboned duck meat. The yee mee are fat flat noodles that can also be served deep fried but in a claypot, I like it al dente.

Penang fried koay teow (flat rice noodles) and Mamak mee goreng ( stir fried Hokkien noodles with a mixture of tomato, chilli and bean paste based sauces) and rotis are also available here. I reckon one has to decide whether to order rice-accompanied dishes or straight hawker food if one does not have the numbers, but do go with the flow. The curry puffs and satay skewers serve as good snacks at mid afternoon, and nasi lemak is always a good bet for brunch . For late night drop ins, the congee is recommended. Service was fast, but one sits neck to neck with fellow diners, so be ready for a street food dimension.