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 Get
a good wrap…
Once upon a time, a concerned wife
was worried about her scholarly husband missing his
meals. He was pacing about, absorbed with the book in
hand and nodding up and down and cramming for the Chinese
Imperial exams.
He had no time for meals so the desperately
ingenious wife took the vegetables she whipped up for
him and wrapped it in to a thin dough flour skin and
gave him finger food on the go, hence popiah was born…so
a prominent Beijing chef once told me.
If it were a Singapore story, then,
the hungry students cramming at Changi Airport would
be yanked a dough and meat thingie, so we’d probably
claim invention to the ubiquitous hamburger, pizza,
French fries and cola.
Luckily we did not invent it otherwise
obese training in National Service will be compulsory
for males and females. Besides, how can you beat the
allure of a perfectly wrapped Popiah, encased in a thin,
soft and yet resilient dough skin. And as you bite into
it, the soft juicy stock stewed turnips would ooze its
flavour and the crispy bits of dough bits would provide
respite from the soft and tasty onslaught.
Making this Hokkien tacos is easier
than it looks.
The hawker slaps and spread some sweet
soy sauce, chilli and mashed garlic onto a soft Popiah
skin. Then comes a leaf of lettuce, some chopped hard
boiled eggs, bean sprouts, prawns, sprinkled with fried
crispy fish dough bits. The finale is a huge scoop of
stewed turnips with haebi and (dried shrimps) and mushrooms.
The ensemble is wrapped, sliced and ready for demolition.
It is not just about the ingredients
but the art of the wrap. The Popiah experts below will
show you why some others are mere mortals wrapped up
in a disguise.
1. Old Long House Popiah
Bk 22, Lor 7 Toa Payoh
01-03. 6am-11pm daily
Mr Ng Ann Kee’s grandfather has
been selling Popiah on a shoulder cart since pre war
days. He says a good Popiah should make a “tak
tak” sound as you eat it, which comes from the
shredded fresh bamboo shoots and some pee her( dried
flat fish bits), which they used to include way back
before fresh bamboo shoots and pee her became expensive,
rare and not profitable for his $1 Popiahs. But his
is still very tasty and with the soft julienne turnips
stewed in stock. The skin is not dry and it they wrap
it so tight to hold the ingredients firmly. The Popiah
remains damp and does not affect the skin texture. Their
crispy dough bits made of a “secret batter recipe’
is a delight in the mouth.
2. Qiji and Hock Heng Popiah
Hock Heng
Sim Lim Food Court
B1-18 Sim Lim Square
1 Rochor Canal Rd
9.30am-8.30pm daily
Qiji
160 Rochor Rd
9.30am-9.30pm duily
They used to pack the crowds in when
they sold Popiah with skin made fresh on the spot on
their little stall in Shaw Leisure Gallery in Beach
Road, some ten years ago. The skin was warm, softly
gummy and firm. When wrapped, the translucency of the
skin goes patchy and dark as the sweet soy and stock
sauce penetrate but does not seep through. It feels
very tightly wrapped, dry, firm and crunchy. Today,
both Qiji and Hock Heng (which are the same folks) has
a few oultlets touting their $1.60 Popiahs all over
the island. But the main shop is at Rochor Road where
the “chief’ Popiah maker resides. It has
a halal certification and uses the Hock Heng brand in
eateries that don’t have separate non halal utensils.
3. Glory
139 East Coast Road
8am-8.30 pm
closed on Mondays
The main draw here is the egg-y skin.
It has a lemak (rich) feel to it which suits the mainly
Peranakan regulars nearby. The ingredients are generous
and it has a garlicly flavour with slices of fresh prawns.
The turnip stew is dense, soft and tasty. This $2 Popiah
is tightly wrapped but the juice escapes and they don’t
use crispy dough bits for added contrast to the texture.
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