Unlike its other outlets, this one is in an air-conditioned space in a no-frills mall. A team of at least two staff steam the putu piring to order, while there is a rojak counter in another corner. “We sell rojak as well because it helps towards the rent and overheads of the store,” says fifth-generation lady boss Nooraisha Binte Mohammad Hashim, 35. There’s a small “table” jutting out from one wall, along with a few stools so you can eat your putu piring or rojak quickly or wait comfortably while your order is being prepared. Drinks like tea, coffee, bandung and chendol will also be sold here in the near future.  

While the other kopitiam outlets wrap their wares in waxed brown paper, this one serves its putu piring in posher paper boxes. Being in a mall means overheads are higher, so the putu piring here is correspondingly pricier.

For example, a box of four gula Melaka putu piring will set you back $3.20 here, compared to $2.50 at the other outlets. 

According to Nooraisha, the Chinese kueh tutu gets its name from its tutu-shaped mould. Piring means plate in Malay, which explains putu piring’s flat round shape. Kueh tutu is typically made of glutinous rice flour whereas the larger putu piring uses plain old rice flour, which is more tender and melts in the mouth. “Our putu piring is made of just three ingredients: rice flour, water and salt,” she said. Moreover, putu piring is filled with gula melaka while kueh tutu commonly contains grated coconut or peanuts. Both are served with salted grated coconut on the side.

This family-run business goes all the way back to 1930s, when Nooraisha’s great-great grandmother started pedalling putu piring along Lorong 1 Jalan Besar. She passed down her putu piring-making skills to her daughter, Mislama Binte Basri, who then sold the kueh at Kampong Kapur along Sungei Road after the Second World War.
 
Nooraisha’s grandmother, Zahra Binte Baba, now in her 80s, took over from her mother and moved the business again to Katong Roxy and later, to Lorong 41 Geylang. It was Zahra’s daughter Noorzeia Binte Zain, now 63, who turned it into a brick and mortar business with a stall in Bukit Batok in 1985. She sold the sweet treats there for a year before moving to another location in Clementi. Business was healthy until Clementi MRT was built in the 1990s, obstructing access to the stall. Once again, Noorzeia closed shop and moved to a kopitiam at the iconic block 12 Haig Road in 1994.

The family’s putu piring wasn’t always this popular. Nooraisha said the long queues only started forming in 1995. They can’t pinpoint a particular incident that began luring people to the stall, but evidently, word had gotten around that their putu piring was worth the wait. Fun fact: the name Haig Road Putu Piring was only registered in 2014. “Before that, we were just ‘Putu Piring’”, said Nooraisha, laughing. “But I wanted us to have the name because people associate us with the Haig Road location.”

Today, Nooraisha runs the business with her husband, Mohd Nizam Iskandar (above), 33. They have outlets in Geylang Serai Market, Ang Mo Kio and Onan Road. Her parents continue to run the Haig Road stall, which has since moved to block 14, where they only serve the original gula Melaka-filled putu piring. “My parents and their staff at that outlet are very traditional. They are not keen on new flavours,” she said. “My staff at the other outlets are from a younger generation, so they are open to new ideas and flavours.”
 
The couple will be opening another new outlet at Northpoint mall in Yishun early next year. And while they want to grow the business further, they are working on steadying operations before seeking out new opportunities. 

The putu piring flour mix is blended in a central kitchen in Bedok North and distributed to the outlets. While it looks easy, assembling putu piring is an art that takes time to hone. “Even I am still learning something new every time I make putu piring,” says Nooraisha, who boasts a degree in Pastry and Baking from Johnson and Wales University in Providence, Rhode Island. The process is broken down into stations, and each one takes about a month to master. 

The first involves correctly placing the right amount of flour mix and filling into the moulds while the second centres around properly positioning the square of muslin cloth before placing the kueh in the steamer. Last comes the delicate procedure of picking up the cooked putu piring and ferrying them to their boxes without them breaking up. “There are specific techniques to each step,” added Nooraisha. “If you don’t do it properly, the kueh won’t look nice, the fillings won’t dissolve, or the kueh will fall apart.”

Besides the original gula Melaka flavour, Nooraisha is now serving a few more. “We introduced the chocolate flavour because children always come to the stall saying, ‘I want chocolate, I want chocolate’,” she said. There’s also a durian-filled putu piring because, well, who doesn’t love durian? But she says gula Melaka remains the classic favourite among customers, with chocolate coming in a close second. 

Call us traditionalists, but this is still our favourite flavour. Although it’s labelled gula Melaka, they actually use top-grade palm sugar from Java, Indonesia, because of what they say is its superior flavour. The grated sugar is stuffed in the centre of the batter and melts during the steaming. We love its fine, gravelly texture that gives way in parts to oozy, mellow, caramelly sweetness. The putu piring is moist and melt in the mouth when eaten hot, with the distinct fragrance of steamed rice. 

Think of this as the coconut nonya kueh, pulut inti, in a different guise. Juicy threads of freshly grated coconut are saturated with gula Java, so there’s more “bite” to this filling. There’s a nice balance between the not-too-sweet coconut filling and the rice flour cake that encases it. Similar but superior to kueh tutu. 

Made by stuffing the putu piring with mini chocolate chips and then steaming them till their centres are good and molten. This works surprisingly well 'cos the choc melts nicely into the kueh and isn't as sweet as we thought it’d be. It’s easy to see why it's a hit with the kids.

Introduced earlier this year at the Singapore Heritage Festival, this rendition is filled with D24 durian paste cooked with gula Melaka. The warm filling tastes like kueh dodol (that sticky durian glutinous rice cake sold in rolls) — sweet, with a durian candy-like flavour. Not bad.

We didn't manage to try the rojak during our visit. A basic version containing just you tiao and tau pok costs $4, while one with that plus fruit costs $6. 

Putu piring used to be rare — it’s still harder to find than the more common (and less delicious) kueh tutu. So we’re pleased that Haig Road Putu Piring, which to us is the gold standard when it comes to this sedap Malay dessert, is expanding aggressively. We hope its shops will one day be available in most malls. While the newer flavours like chocolate and durian are fun and necessary to attract a younger generation of fans, our fave still remains the classic ooey-gooey gula Melaka one. 

Haig Road Putu Piring has five outlets, including #01-14 East Village mall, 430 Upper Changi Road. S487048. Tel: 6702-6125. Open daily. Sun-Thur 11am-9pm; Fri-Sat 11am-10pm. Last orders 8.45pm and 9.45pm. https://www.facebook.com/haigroadputupiring/
 
 
Photos: Aik Chen