6 Best Singaporean-Style Christmas Dishes

Skip predictable old ham and try this suckling pig from our fave American-style barbecue joint Meat Smith instead. The Telok Ayer restaurant recently opened a new outlet in Little India, offering delish Indian-kissed ’cue and other meat dishes. Like this whole porker stuffed with biryani rice. Long-grained basmati is seasoned with spices like cardamom, cinnamon, saffron and bay leaves, and par-cooked before being stuffed into the pig, which is then roasted for two hours on a spit. Other than rose water, Meat Smith’s head chef Andrew Baldus also spikes the rice with fragrant orange blossom water, raisins and chopped cashew nuts. The result? Fabulous texture and flavour for the mildly spicy al dente rice. Special mention must go to the skilfully roasted Spanish pig: it’s succulent and smoky with a satisfyingly crisp crackling reminiscent of Chinese suckling pig, but marinated with the same spices used for the biryani. The pork is served with a squeeze of lemon juice and refreshing yogurt dip. Order the whole beast for your bash­ — it’ll be epic.

Available all-year round; order at least three days in advance. Meat Smith Little India, 21 Campbell Ln, S209894. Tel: 9625-9056.

If you must have a Christmas with turkey, order this satay version. Nope, it’s not turkey meat on skewers; the bird is served majestically whole, along with ketupat on the side. The ‘satay’ bit refers to the bird having been massaged with satay marinade like lemongrass and turmeric before it’s roasted, then served in a shallow pool of satay-pineapple gravy crammed with sliced fresh pineapples, cucumbers and onions. The entire bird — including its breast meat, is juicy and flavourful. Get an extra heaping of the deliciously thick, chunky peanut sauce to pour over your turkey and chewy ketupat cubes. It's almost like eating satay, except you get to feast on way more meat than just dainty sticks. Shiok.

Available till Jan 1, 2018. Order at least three days in advance. Peony Jade, two outlets including L2 Clarke Quay, 3 River Valley Rd, S179020.

Norwegian seafood restaurant-market Fisk recently opened its doors at the new Novotel hotel on Stevens Road. Other than seafood-centric meals at the 44-seat casual diner owned by a seafood distributor, you can also hit up its retail shop which specialises in takeaway Norwegian seafood. Like this salmon, which is dry-cured and cold-smoked for 24 hours in a smoker. It comes in four Asian flavours including this otah one. Our 350g portion topped with a thin layer of otah paste arrives in a nifty chilled vacuum-sealed pack . We can’t really taste the lemak, coconutty flavour of otah in each bite, if only ’cos it’s completely overpowered by the tender, fat-streaked and smoke-tinged salmon. So don’t expect this to be like the otah from a nasi lemak stall; it’s more like regular smoked salmon with a flirty, spicy kick. Tasty — order a larger slab and slice it at the table for a more impressive presentation.


Available all-year round. Order at least two days in advance. Fisk Seafoodbar & Market, #01-01 Novotel Singapore on Stevens, 30 Stevens Rd, S257840. Tel: 6732-0711.

Turkey too much for your cosy gathering? Get a smaller chook instead. This roasted rendang rendition is marinated with herbs and spices like ginger, lemongrass, chilli and shallots, then roasted till the fork-tender chicken is soaked in its own spice-infused juices. The meat comes with a side of moreish turmeric-spiked rice studded with raisins and cashew nuts, plus piquant sambal goreng — cubes of tau pok, tempeh and long beans tossed in umami sambal. Good for a convenient, fuss-free feast.

Available till Dec 25. Order at least three days in advance. Gourmet Carousel at Royal Plaza on Scotts, 25 Scotts Rd, S228220. Tel: 6589-7788.

Cloyingly sweet, creamy log cakes may not be for everyone, but a rustic sugee cake is sure to be a crowd-pleaser, especially after a heavy meal. The comforting Eurasian bake made with chopped almonds, eggs and semolina flour is typically trotted out on special occasions such as Christmas. This number is from Eurasian-Peranakan chef Damian D’Silva’s popular Singapore heritage restaurant, Folklore. The square confection looks a tad plain (it comes unadorned, as it’s traditionally served), but it’s wickedly good. It has a rough texture thanks to the coarsely chopped almonds, so every bite is crunchy, and just buttery enough with a generous slosh of brandy. The cake is also not too sweet, so we find ourselves reaching out for another slice after stuffing ourselves with turkey.

Available till Dec 25. Order at least two days in advance. Folklore, L2 Destination Singapore Beach Road, 700 Beach Rd, S199598. Tel: 6679-2900.

The Hyatt group’s stylish new sister hotel Andaz has a takeaway mod Sin dessert counter adorably named Pandan. And it sells — no surprises here — pandan cakes, but in contemporary incarnations such as this pretty Christmas-themed one. Fluffy chiffon cake made with pandan essence (not real juice, sadly) is layered with a pink mousse flavoured with cherries, raspberries, lingonberries, strawberries, blueberries and blackberries. This is then draped in a tart, gelatinous glaze dyed a festive red and green. Kinda like eating a faintly pandan-spiked fruity ice cream cake. Rather refreshing and appropriately festive. It’s also packaged in an elegant silver-embossed white box that’s good for gifting.

Available till Dec 31. Order at least three days in advance. Pandan, L2 Andaz Singapore, 5 Fraser St, S189354. Tel: 6408-1288.