Long Live Hokkien Mee

A hawker centre favourite, Hokkien mee is making a comeback in Singapore, according to Dr Leslie Tay, author of the blog ieatishootipost. He talks about the dish was created, what it takes to make a good plate of Hokkien mee, and what is needed to ensure that hawker food continues to thrive in Singapore.

Leslie Tay and his wife, Lisa, are the people behind the blog ieatishootipost. Together, they cover the latest on the best hawker food, new discoveries, restaurants and recipes in Singapore and during their travels. As a home chef, Leslie enjoys re-creating his favourite hawker and classic dishes on their YouTube channel, coming up with recipes that are tried and tested and are suitable for home cooks. He has written The End of Char Kway Teow and Other Hawker Mysteries (2010) and Only the Best! (2014).

What Leslie Talked About02:42 – The origins of Hokkien mee08:52 – Why frying time matters in Hokkien mee10:46 – The dry and wet styles of Hokkien mee15:24 – Why young hawkers are selling Hokkien mee but not char kway teow18:31 – The return of pork lard20:25 – Key ingredients for Hokkien mee24:04 – Why Hokkien mee is served on opeh leaf28:49 – Leslie’s motivations for starting his food blog38:30 – Turning hawker knowledge into written recipes40:49 – Leslie’s recommendation on Hokkien mee42:20 – The future of hawker culture in Singapore46:54 – Leslie’s favourite hawker dish

Transcript and ResourcesRead the transcript: https://biblioasia.nlb.gov.sg/all-sections/podcast-long-live-hokkien-meeWatch Leslie cook Hokkien mee: https://biblioasia.nlb.gov.sg/all-sections/video-hokkien-mee

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This episode of BiblioAsia Podcast was hosted by Jimmy Yap and produced by Soh Gek Han. Sound engineering was done by Nookcha Films. The background music “Di Tanjong Katong” was composed by Ahmad Patek and performed by Chords Haven. Special thanks to Leslie for coming on the show.

Produced by the National Library Singapore, the BiblioAsia Podcast tells stories about Singapore history.