If you’re like me, you’ve always been listening to your Chinese friends go on and on about their Bak Kut Teh and Bak Chor Mee without any way of relating to their experiences.
It’s no great secret that Singapore is a food obsessive’s paradise. Over the years, the halal food scene has grown and now our Muslim friends can enjoy halal versions of authentic Chinese fare.
As much as I love my nasi padang and mee soto, having halal options to authentic Chinese hawker food makes me really happy.
Rejoice my Muslim friends, here’s a list of halal chinese food you can finally enjoy!
1. Bak Kut Teh (Habib Family Restaurant)
Yes, you read that right. There’s halal Bak Kut Teh in Singapore and you’re going to love it.
For the uninitiated, Bak Kut Teh directly translates to “meat bone tea” in Hokkien but it doesn’t actually have tea in it. Instead of pork ribs, the Bak Kut Teh is served with beef or lamb meat in a rich herbal broth.
The Malaysian-style Bak Kut Teh served at Habib Family Restaurant is made with a rich herbal broth and they’ve been making it for over 15 years now!
The restaurant’s Chinese chef keeps the flavours authentic by using traditional bak kut teh herbs, but substitutes the traditional pork with beef and lamb to keep it halal.
You can choose from either Beef ($6) or Lamb ($8.50) meat or opt for the set ($16) which comes with a plate of white rice, omelette, kang kong and sambal belacan.
Habib Famliy Restaurant
Address: 374 Bukit Batok Street 31, Singapore 650374
Opening Hours: 6am – 1am, Daily
Contact No.: 6561 6976
Website
2. Prawn Noodles (Deanna’s Kitchen)
Deanna’s Kitchen is one of my go-to place for real good comfort food.The owner is a Chinese convert who decided to make her own prawn mee when she couldn’t find anywhere to satisfy her cravings.
Halal prawn noodles in Singapore is not as common yet as they traditionally use pork bones to cook the broth.
This stall serves up real good halal prawn mee with luxurious add ons such as crayfish and giant prawns at relatively affordable prices.
The rich broth is made from boiling prawn shells, anchovies and other essentials for hours, which results in a decadent soup base that is briny with a natural sweetness.
Their Regular Prawn Noodles starts from $3.50. It comes with a generous amount of noodles, broth and peeled prawns.
If you’re feeling a little more fancy, get their most expensive item which is the Prawn Noodles With Crayfish ($12.50). This one comes with four crayfish halves and three regular prawns.
The amount of seafood in this bowl definitely does not lack.
Deanna’s Kitchen
Address: Block 127 Lorong 1 Toa Payoh #02-25 Singapore 310127
Opening Hours: Wed – Fri: 10am to 2pm, 5pm to 8pm, Sat: 9am – 5pm, Sun: 9am – 2pm. Closed on Mondays and Tuesdays.
Contact No.: 9424 5496
Website
3. Mala (Paya Lebar Square Cantine)
Mala hot pot has been all the rage for awhile now. Just like yong tau foo, you get to pick your own choice of ingredients – except that instead of clear soup, your taste buds will be met with spicy and numbing Szechuan sauce.
As with many other mala hot pot places, you get to choose from their range of ingredients – from meats to seafood, greens and mushrooms.
Inform the makcik your preferred spice level – mildly spicy, spicy, and extra spicy and you’re good to go!
Be warned, the mala is seasoned with a fiery mala paste that is bound to set your tastebuds on fire after a few mouthfuls.
Mala Hot Pot Stall
Address: 60 Paya Lebar Road, #B1-51 Paya Lebar Square, Singapore 409051
Opening Hours: 7am – 10pm, Daily
Contact No.: 6702 1877
4. Roasted Duck Rice (Selera Restaurant)
If there’s one dish i’ve always wanted to try, it would be roasted duck rice. Halal Duck Rice in Singapore is not common at all however Selera Restaurant serves up one of the best in town.
The duck meat is seasoned and well-caramelised with the sauce enveloping all over the thick duck meat and the skin. The end result: It gives your duck meat a charred, alluring look.
Best part, the duck meat is completely succulent, tender and juicy.
Selera Restaurant
Address: 15 Mackenzie Road, Singapore 228677
Contact No.: 6338 5687
5. Dim Sum (The Dim Sum Place)
Dim Sum lovers rejoice! If you’re longing for halal dim sum, then head on down to The Dim Sum Place that is conveniently located around Bugis.
This establishment serves up their rendition of Cantonese style cuisine with a localised twist to suit the locals.
You can find the usual “yum cha” staples such as Har Kow, Siew Mai, Chee Cheong Fan. While pork has been a key ingredient in mainstream Cantonese cuisine, The Dim Sum Place does not disappoint with their halal take on dim sum.
The Dim Sum Place
Address: 791 North Bridge Rd, Singapore 198759
Opening Hours: 11am – 2.30pm, 5.30pm – 11pm, daily
Contact No.: 6655 8787
Website
6. Zi Char (GLC Restaurant)
Some people have compared this eatery to the former Tong Seng.
GLC Restaurant offers a range of classic zi char dishes such as Hokkien Prawn Noodle ($4.50) and Hua Dan San Mee ($5).
The food at GLC will most definitely leave you feeling satisfied and happy. Do be warned that this place gets really packed during lunch hour and slightly stuffy especially on hotter days.
Pro-tip: If you don’t know what to get at GLC, the Chicken Rice ($3.50) never disappoints.
GLC Restaurant
Address: 121 Upper Paya Lebar Road, Singapore 534836
Opening Hours: Mon – Fri: 8am – 9pm, Sat: 9am – 9pm
Contact No.: 6581 9338
Website
7. Char Kway Teow (786 Char Kway Teow)
Halal char kway teow can be slightly tough to find because it usually has lard in it. The owner, Anis, is a Muslim convert and has been selling char kway teow for close to 6 years now.
The stall sells only Char Kway Teow and is available in two sizes – Regular ($3) and Big ($5). Similar to the traditional version, this dish consists of kway teow and yellow noodles stir fried in sweet black sauce and garlic.
You can expect a good amount of egg, chye sim and cockles thrown into this dish as well. You will definitely love his homemade chilli as well if you can take the heat.
786 Char Kway Teow
Address: 115 Bukit Merah View, #01-28, Singapore 151115
Opening Hours: 2.30pm – 10pm, daily. Closed on Thursdays.
8. Bak Chor Mee (Noodlelicious)
Bak Chor Mee, or minced meat noodle are blanched egg noodles tossed in oil, black vinegar, oyster sauce, fish sauce and chili paste.
The noodles are served with a variety of ingredients such as minced meat, meat balls, dumplings, stewed mushrooms, bean sprouts, and chopped spring onions.
I never really had bak chor mee in a typical hawker setting until Noodlelicious came by.
Noodlelicious serves familiar items such as Fishball Noodles and Minced Chicken Noodle.
The springy mee pok is served with a good amount of chilli and a generous serving of meat. This meal makes for the perfect filling lunch.
Noodlelicious
Address: Berseh Food Centre Stall 13, 166 Jalan Besar, Singapore 208877
Opening Hours: Mon – Sat: 9.30am — 9.30pm
9. Hand Pulled Beef Noodles (Yi Zun Noodle)
Rainy weather calls for a piping hot bowl of noodles for lunch. This quaint noodle place serves hand-pulled noodles by a Chinese-Muslim couple from China.
For just $7.80, you can expect a bowl of Hand Pulled Beef Noodles with generous servings of noodles and sliced beef.
The fresh handmade noodles are so fresh and light, you wont start to feel full until more than halfway through your bowl.
This eatery serves comfort Chinese food that’s not only halal but delicious too!
Yi Zun Noodle
Address: 45 Sam Leong Road Singapore 207935
Opening Hours: 11am – 10pm
Contact No.: 6291 6616
Website
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(Header Image Source: @where.is.karl, HalalFoodBlog Facebook, Deanna’s Kitchen Facebook )
