Joreen・Chicken Rice・Singapore

Name： Ng Joreen Shu Ying

Faculty/Year：3rd year, FILA

Hometown： Singapore

Hobbies and Interests : Love to have dialogue with different people.

Q: Please share with us about Singapore's uniqueness or special culture!

A: Singapore is a multi-racial country with four main races which include Chinese, Malay, Indian, and Eurasian.

Eurasians are defined as Europeans who first come to Singapore and settle down in Singapore. Generally, Singaporeans could speak 4 different languages which are English, Mandarin, Malay, and Tamil. English is the main language that is taught at school. Hence, by including the mother tongue we speak, Singaporeans could at least be fluent in 2 languages. There is only one season in Singapore which is Summer all year long which is the same as Malaysia.

Q: What aspects of Singapore that you have pride in?

A: Singapore is safe and clean.

Besides, definitely amazing foods in my country such as chili crab, laksa, and my all-time favourite chicken rice.

Q:What's your favourite national holiday or festival in Singapore?

A: Chinese New Year!

Every family will have different New Year celebration traditional food. As for my family, we usually cook at home and eat hot pot also known as steamboat.

Q: How would you describe the cuisine, Chicken Rice?

A: As the name suggests, it is a dish of chicken and rice! What makes it special is that the rice is flavoured and the flavour mainly comes from the chicken!

There are many ways to cook Chicken Rice. Firstly, for the rice, traditionally, the flavour is mainly focusing on the essence which is the oil from the chicken, but now instant mixes are available too! For the chicken, traditional Hainanese Chicken Rice uses poached chicken, but in Singapore, Roast Chicken is also available. And Chicken Rice is not complete without special chicken rice chili and dark soya sauce! Actually, cooking chicken rice the traditional way is very tedious and time-consuming but my family uses a simple recipe that only requires the use of a rice cooker!

Generally, Singaporeans just go outside and buy Chicken Rice from restaurants instead of cooking by themselves. Interesting fact that I have concluded by myself that if the restaurant provided ground ginger sauce, then you could be certain that that Chicken Rice Restaurant is a good and high-quality one!

Q: What's your memory about Chicken rice?

A: It is very delicious! Currently, I am in Japan where I have fewer chances to eat this food. Therefore, I miss my mom and grandma very much who usually cook chicken rice for me.

Q: Are there any recommendations for the best way of eating this meal?

A: There is no specific drink to eat with this meal, personally I don't really drink with anything as it is served with soup. Most Singaporeans may like to drink milk tea while enjoying chicken rice.

Q: What were the biggest differences you have felt between Singapore and Japan?

A: The culture!

Japanese people are polite and friendly, for example in Singapore, when people go to a restaurant, the staff does not really greet you, people just pay and go. Besides, the weather in Japan is much more versatile than in Singapore! I particularly enjoy and love Spring and Autumn.

Q: Where are the places you would like to recommend to us if we visited Singapore?

A: Marina Bay Sands!

It is the iconic place of Singapore, it includes a shopping mall and casino. I had been inside once or twice, and it was pretty and luxurious. Next, there is a shopping place called Bugis street. They sell things cheaper and also street food with lots of my favourite snacks. The top of Marina Bay Sands is shaped like a boat! It is actually a rooftop garden where there is an infinity pool.