Places selling vegetarian food are aplenty in Singapore, as I mentioned in the previous post. Almost everywhere you go, you can find Chinese vegetarian eateries within walking distance. Chinese vegetarian food stalls (those at coffee shops* and hawker centres**) will usually have the option of rice/rice vermicelli/noodles and the choice of 3 different dishes (mix vegetables rice) to go with it. I usually like to try out their other local Chinese dishes, such as fried rice, fried hor fun (flat Chinese rice noodle), and won ton mee (noodles served usually with mock pork and mock meat dumplings).
Besides the local Chinese food, these stalls sometimes sell other traditional dishes inspired by the other ethnic groups. Some of these dishes include tom yam and mee siam (inspired by Thailand), mee rebus (Malay inspired), laksa peranakan (Chinese and Malay inspired)and curry (Indian inspired).
Unlike cuisines found in many non-Asian countries, many of the Chinese vegetarian outlets here do not use 5 kinds of plants in their cooking. These are mainly onions, garlic, leeks, chives, and scallions (spring onions). This, I think, is due to religious influence. Hence, you might find the food bland if you are a big fan of these five plants. However, some of the food does taste nice despite not using these plants in the dishes. I will talk more about vegetarian Chinese restaurants and individual eateries in my next post.
*Coffee shop does not refer to the usual coffee house or café - it refers to a shop which houses several food stalls and one drinks stall.
**Hawker centre is like a big coffee shop – it’s usually found near markets in an open, sheltered area. There are a lot more food stalls and more than one drinks stall
Hi Simon,
Veg here is seen as a healthier option as compared to meat dishes here. But in terms of taste it do suffer from some setbacks, perhaps due to the limited use of certain varieties of plant foods. Also some of the food sold at the veg food stalls are not particularly healthy and contain msg. But there are also healthier options and new trendy vegout places are springing up. They offer fusion cuisines, organic options etc.
Yes, there are a few communities (religious ones) that don't eat meat or avoid meat: the I-kuan-dao sect, Jain religion, and Buddhist religion.
Hi,
I would like to join your comment.
I use to go for vegetarian food at local coffee shops,hawker centres, food courts, restaurant. I notice quite a number of Chinese vegetarian food stalls in the food court, the price are not cheap, but the food serve there are poor in term the nutrition & healthy diet. Even if we ignore the nutrition & healthy factors, the test of the food also poor. The soup that they provide as good as plain water. Since they have the interest to go into vegetarian food, why don't they improve the food quality? In that way, the seller may have better sales, customers satisfied with the price that they paid for, lastly save the wastage (left behind a big portion of food by the customers), I guess due to the poor test of the food.
Hello!
I am an expat who just arrived to Singapore I would like to meet vegetarians or vegans to chat about the meaning of being vegetarian and to support vegetarianism.
Regards,
Marta.
agree with felicia comment on hawker center food stall, try eight immoral veg restaurant at jurong bird park, previously crocodile farm, miao yi at coronation plaza, lian xin at quality hotel, this places serve good tasty food, especially lian xin, they have buffet on saturday and sunday which cost about 18 dollar per person, and they have almost 100 kind of food, is on the 3 floor, but be sure to call then earlier to book a table,
Hi
Yes I agree with felicia and cindy too. Many stalls sell food that are oily and contains msg. The soup will depend. There are places that sell good soups especially places with non-chinese cuisine. If you are in a place with limited options, try avoiding the mock meat stir fries for a healthier option. :)
Hello,
I was searching for info on vegetarianism worldwide, and found your writing here very interesting. I'd love to hear more about vegetarianism in Singapore, and whether or not it is a popular option, and/or if there are any particular societies/communities who do not eat meat.
Cheers,
Simon
Posted by simon zonenblick | July 2, 2007 7:23 PM