Discover Authentic Singaporean Food Producer, Super Shiok Eats

Singaporean food is chronically underrepresented in Aotearoa’s hospitality scene. But Adlena Wong is out to change that.

When Adlena Wong moved to New Zealand from Singapore in late 2018, she was surprised at the dearth of her home country’s cuisine here. “I kept wondering, why aren’t there any purely Singaporean food establishments?” she says. “It’s always Singaporean slash Malaysian, or a Malaysian restaurant serving Singaporean food.”

Rather like Australia and New Zealand tussling over who invented pavlova, Singapore and Malaysia argue about who invented many of the region’s best-known dishes. But Adlena says there are a few uniquely Singaporean dishes, and she hopes to share her home country’s unique food culture with Kiwis and expat Singaporeans alike. 

Opening Super Shiok Eats in May 2020 to bring Singaporean food to New Zealand was the fulfilment of a long-held dream: starting her own food business. Doing so during a pandemic may not seem like the most auspicious move – but Adlena says it’s actually encouraged customers. “I think people have supported me partly because they can’t go back to Singapore at the moment and I’m offering a taste of home, for Singaporeans, and travel, for Kiwis,” she says.

Inspired by mavericks like Roy Choi, whose food truck Kogi introduced LA to the pleasures of Korean food, Adlena hopes one day to have her own food truck. “Petrol prices are going up, everybody’s working from home and people might hesitate to travel across town just to pick up food from a place they like,” she says. “So it kind of makes sense to be mobile, to go where people are instead of expecting them to come to you.” 

But for the moment, customers can order Singaporean hawker-style food through her Facebook, Instagram or website, where rotating specials are posted each week. Adlena currently prepares food from her home kitchen in Auckland, for customer pick-up.

Since she started, she’s carved out a niche for herself, serving classic Singaporean dishes in generous portions. The first dish she offered, and a regular feature on the menu, is nasi lemak, a dish of jasmine rice cooked with fragrant coconut milk. “It’s a universal dish in Singapore, and everyone at some point has eaten it, whether for breakfast, lunch or dinner,” says Adlena. In multicultural Singapore, versions of nasi lemak are prepared by several ethnic groups, each with their own twist. Chinese cooks might add pandan and a side of luncheon meat or pot roast, says Adlena, while Malay Muslim cooks might favour fried chicken to keep things halal. The key difference between a Singaporean and a Malaysian nasi lemak is how the egg is cooked – and Adlena’s version, served with a fried rather than boiled egg, is Singaporean to the core.

Super Shiok Eats’ menu has now featured everything from mee rebus (a traditional hearty noodle soup) to fried carrot cake (stir-fried cubes of radish cake, a sinfully oily Singaporean comfort food) to spicy Singapore chilli crab with black pepper and salted egg variations. One of the most meaningful dishes to date has been the bak chor mee, a dish of savoury mincemeat on noodles, which Adlena has never seen offered in New Zealand. “It’s a simple but laborious dish, so you’re not making it at home,” she says. “And that just makes people miss it more, especially now they can’t travel to Singapore, so I think selling that really got people’s attention.” 

If you’re new to Singaporean food, she recommends trying either the chilli crab or her Hainanese chicken rice, when it’s on offer. “Chicken rice is a good foray into Singaporean food, because it’s just so easy to eat, light and delicious, and it’s not too spicy,” she says. “And chilli crab is just such a communal dish – you dig in with a group of your friends, you make a mess in front of everyone… it’s the kind of dish that makes you bond with people.” 

All Adlena’s food is made from scratch in her home kitchen, using family recipes she has tweaked for New Zealand produce and modern palates. “I’m lucky to have grown up in a family of phenomenal female cooks,” she says. “I grew up watching my mum and my grandma and my aunts doing their stuff, throwing ingredients into the pot, not using written recipes, cooking everything by feel. I’m not a qualified chef, but I’ve spent a lifetime learning how to cook.”

Adlena is proud to be cooking Singaporean food in New Zealand, hoping to bring a taste of hawker centre culture to her adopted country. And what’s so special about Singaporean food? “It’s not quite the food itself, it’s the people behind it,” she says. “When you walk into a hawker centre, you can have an Indian stall selling biryani next to a Malay stall selling nasi lemak next to a Chinese stall selling bak chor mee. What’s special is all those races and cuisines being represented in one small space, and brought together by food.”

Her own experience of running Super Shiok Eats has broadened her community through food, introducing her to Singaporeans of all backgrounds, as well as Kiwis, living in Auckland. “Through Super Shiok Eats, I’ve made a few good friends in the last two years,” she says. “It’s really nice that I’ve been able to build a community through my food.”

In particular, many of her Singaporean patrons have expressed their gratitude that she’s cooking their home cuisine while they can’t return home – a compliment that’s kept her going, even though it’s hard work. “It reminds me that I’m not here to cook the most delicious dish, I’m not here to cook the best version of nasi lemak in the world, I’m here to cook food that reminds people of an authentic Singapore experience,” says Adlena.

Keen for a taste? Keep an eye on Super Shiok Eats’ Facebook and Instagram pages for what dishes are on offer that week – or check out Adlena’s website. Currently available only in Auckland, but with a food truck in the works, watch this space!

supershiokeats.nz
@supershiokeats