FCE chapter 4

Question 1

What are the 4 main ethnic groups?

Answer 1

• Chinese
• Indian
• Malay
• Euroasian

Question 2

What are the examples of Traditional Chinese dishes?

Answer 2

Fishball noodles
Bak kut teh
Char siew
Suan pan zi
Kaya toast

Question 3

Elaborate on Fish ball noodles

Answer 3

Fishball noodles is a Teochew dish that is comonly found in food centres. Fish balls are served with noodles in soup or served dry with a blend of chili paste, vinegar, and sesame oil.

Question 4

Elaborate on Bak kut teh

Answer 4

Bak tut teh is prepared by boiling pork ribs with several herbs and spices. It is a nourishing dish that was created for early Chinese migrants who took on labour-intensive jobs. Both the Kokkiens and Teochews lay claim to different versions of this dish

Question 5

Elaborate on Char siew

Answer 5

Char siew is a type of Cantonese roasted meat that is commonly served with rice or noodles. In Cantonese, ´char´ means fork and ´siew´ means roast, which refers to the way that meat is skewered and barbequed

Question 6

Elaborate on Suan pan zi

Answer 6

Suan pan zi is a traditional Hakka dish where pieces of yam dough are stir-fried with dried cuttlefish, dried mushrooms and minced meat. The yam dough is shaped into round beads that resemble abacus beads which are a symbol of wealth

Question 7

Elaborate on Kaya toast.

Answer 7

Early Hainanese migrants combined Western toast with the local taste by replacing jams with kaya, which leads to the creation of kaya toast. Today, kaya toast with soft-boiled eggs and coffee or tea is a favourite breakfast set.

Question 8

What are the common ingredients of Chinese dishes?

Answer 8

The cooking of Chinese dishes commonly makes use of sauces, herbs, rice, wine, vinegar and sesame oils. A variety of sauces, such as soya sauce, oyster sauce and black bean sauce are used to marinate meat of flavour dishes. Herbs and spices such as spring onion, coriander leaves, garlic and ginger and often used to prepare Chinese dishes.

Question 9

How are Chinese dishes served?

Answer 9

Chinese dishes are served with carbohydrates such as rice, porridge or noodles. Rich is eaten plain or stir-fried with small cuts of meat and vegetables. Porridge is often flavoured with condiments such as soya sauce, pepper and sesame oil, and can be cooked with slices of meat such as pork and fish. Noodles are commonly eaten with soup or stir-fried.

Question 10

What are the methods of cooking of Chinese dishes?

Answer 10

Sitr-frying is a typical method used in Chinese cooking. Small cuts of meat or vegetables are stir-fried quickly in a hot wok with a combination of sauces and herbs to create flavourful dishes, Steaming is another common method used to cook meat, fish, and many dum sum dishes. Another popular method is boiling, which is used in the cooking of soups.

Question 11

What are the examples of festive food in Chinese dishes?

Answer 11

Steamboat and yusheng (raw fish salad) are two common dishes served during Chinese New Year. Yisheng consists of strips of raw fish mixed with shredded vegetables served with a variety of sauces and condiments. It is considered a symbol of abundance and prosperity.

Special dishes are also consumed during other festivals, such as mooncakes during the Mid-Autumn Festival and rice dumplings during the Dragon Boat Festival

Question 12

What is the Chinese Table Setting and Dining etiquette?

Answer 12

A full Chinese meal normally consists of many courses. These include an appetiser, a soup, a variety of main dishes such as meat and vegetables, carbohydrates such a noodles which is served near the end of a meal and a dessert. Chopsticks are commonly used.

For shared dishes, serving chopsticks and silverware are used to pick up the food. For hygiene purposes, do not use your own chopsticks to take food from shard dishes.

Noodle dishes are usually eaten using chopsticks. When not eating, rest the chopsticks on the bowl or chopstick rest. Do not stick chopsticks vertically into your food as they would look like joss sticks, which are offerings made to ancestors. This is considered inauspicious.

When eating noodles, chopsticks are held in one hand and the soup spoon in the other. It is considered inappropriate to slurp noodles

Question 13

How are Malay culinary traditions influenced and what are the traditional Malay dishes?

Answer 13

Malay culinary traditions are influenced by Indonesia and Malaysia. Traditional Malay dishes include nasi lemak, rendang, satay and soto ayam.

Question 14

Elaborate on Nasi lemak

Answer 14

nasi lemak is a fragrant rice dish cooked with coconut milk and pandan leaves, commonly served with fried ikan bilis, peanuts, eggs and sambal chili

Question 15

Elaborate on Rendang

Answer 15

Rendang is a spicy meat dish made by simmering the meat in coconut milk and spices for hours until the liquid has evaporated and the meat is tender

Question 16

Elaborate on Satay.

Answer 16

Satay is made of small pieces of seasoned meat that are skewered and grilled. It is served with peanut sauce, cucumber, onions and ketupat

Question 17

Elaborate on Soto ayam

Answer 17

Soto ayam is chicken soup with noodles or ketupat added to it. It is often eaten with kambal kicap (spicy sweet soya sace)

Question 18

What are the common ingredients of Malay dishes?

Answer 18

Malay dishes are commonly cooked with ingreidents such as coconut milk, spices and belacan (fermented shrimp paste). Coconut milk gives Malay dishes their rich taste and creamy texture. It is used in dishes such as chicken curry and rendang. Spices such as chili and turmeric powder provide the intense and spicy flavours common in Malay dishes. Belacan is a fermented shrimp paste used as a base for sambal sauce. Sambal is used in many Malay dishes such as sambal sotong (squid) to give a flavourful and spicy taste. It is also used as a condiment to be eaten with plain rice or nasi lemak.

Malay dishes are usually served with carbohydrates such as rice or glutinous rice. Rice is cooked in a number of different ways. For example, nasi lemak is rice cooked with coconut milk, while nasi kunyit is rice cooked with turmeric powder. Glutinous rice is also cooked in different manners such as pulut (glutinius ricewrapped in banana leaves and boiled) and lemang (glutinous rice cooked in hollowed bamboo sticks lined with banana leaves).

Question 19

What are the methods of cooking of Malay dishes?

Answer 19

Typical food preperation methods include frying, grilling and boiling. Chicken keropok(fish crackers) and tropical fruit such as bananas and cempedak are fried. Popular grilled meat dishes include satay and ayam panggang(grilled chicken). boiling is used to prepare dishes such as sup tulang (beef bone soup)

Most malays are muslims. They prepare food according to the Islamic rules. This means that no pork or alchohol is allowed, and all animal sources are processed according to Islamic practices.

Question 20

What are the festive food of Malay dishes?

Answer 20

Ketupat(rice wrapped in a woven palm leaf pouch and boiled) is a traditional dish consumed during Kari Ray8a Puasa. It is also commonly used as a decorative object during the festival. Other dishes such as rendang, sayur lodeh and different types of kuih are also served.

Question 21

What is the Malay table setting and dining etiquette?

Answer 21

All dishes for a Malay communal meal are presenhted at the same time. The main dish is rice, with other side dishes such as meat and vegetables. Dishes with gravy will have a spoon for scooping but for dry dishes such as grilled chicken, tear a piece of the food with your right hand.

remember to wash your hands before eating. usually, a teapot called teko is passed around for guests to wash their hands.

Malays traditionally eat with their right hand due to hygiene purposes.

Question 22

How are indian culinary traditions influenced?

Answer 22

Indian culinary traditions are influenced by the different regional cuisines from India. Traditional Indain dishes include roti prata, chicken curry, nasi briyani and vadai.

Question 23

Elaborate on roti prata

Answer 23

Roti prata is a flour-based pancake cooked over a flat grill. It is usually served with curry.

Question 24

Elaborate on chicken curry

Answer 24

chicken curry is prepared by simmering chicken in a variety of spices and coconut milk

Question 25

Elaborate on nasi bryani

Answer 25

Nasi briyani is a flavourful rice-based dish cooked with spices and served with different types of meat

Question 26

Elaborate on Vadai

Answer 26

Vadai is a savoury deep-fried fritter snack which originated from South India.

Question 27

What are the common ingredients used in Indian dishes?

Answer 27

Common ingredients used in Indian dishes include spices, pulses and ghee. Turmeric, cumin, coriander seeds and cayenne pepper powder are some of the most commonly used spices. Garam masala is a blend of ground spices used in cooking of many Indian dishes. Pulses such as chickpeas, black-eyed peas and kidney beans are commonly used to make dhal, which is a thick stew cooked from dehulled pulses. Ghee or clarified butter is used to prepare main dishes and sweets.

Most indians are Hindus. They believe that cows are sacred, hence no beef is used in their dishes. Vegetarianism is also common among certain Indian communities, which gave rise to a variety of Indian vegetarian dishes

Question 28

What are the methods of cooking Indian dishes?

Answer 28

Common methods of cooking include frying on flat iron pans, which is how roti prata and thousai are made. Deep-frying and stewing are also commong methods of cooking. The tandoor, a large clay pot that is built into the kitchen where hot coals and wood are placed are placed at the bottom as fuel, is also used to prepare dishes such as tandoori chicken and naan.

Question 29

What are the festive foods of indian dishes?

Answer 29

Many types of Indian sweets or mithai are served during Deepavali. They are usually made with flour, sugar and condensed milk, and cooked by frying. Popular sweets include laddu and jalebi. Laddu is made of flour, sugar, ghee and other ingredients shaped into a ball. Jalebi prepared by deep-frying flour batter in a circular shape before soaking them in sugar syrup.

Question 30

What is the indian table setting and dining etiquette?

Answer 30

Traditionally, Indian food is served on clean banana leaves. Individual servings of a variety of dishes including sauces are placed around some rice.

Indians use their right hand to eat for hygiene purposes. When eating roti, use the roti to dip the curry to prevent the gravy from touching your hand.

Fold the banana leaf in half after the meal to show that you have finished your meal. Make sure to wash your hands after the meal.

Question 31

What is a Euroasian and how are Euroasian culinary traditions derived?

Answer 31

A euroasian is a person of mixed European and Asian descent. Euroasians in Singapore descended from Europeans, mainly Portuguese, Dutch and British, who intermarried with local Asians. Eurasian culinary traditions are generally deprived from a blend of Portuguese, Dutch and British food cultures. Eurasian dishes are infused with local ingredients and influenced heavily by Malay, chinese and Indian cuisines. Popular dishes include devilś curry, Euroasian smore, vindaloo and sugee cake.

Question 32

Elaborate on Devilś curry

Answer 32

Devilś curry is a rich and fiery hot dish cooked with nustard poweder, turmeric poweder, vinegr, candlenuts and lots of chillies. Chicken is commonly used in this curry.

Question 33

Elaborate on Eurasian smore

Answer 33

Eurasian smore is a beef stew cooked with carrots, potatoes and dark soya sauce.

Question 34

elaborate on vindaloo

Answer 34

Vindaloo is a hot and tangy dish cooked with mustard seeds and vinegar. Chicken or pork is marinated in a blend of spices before cooking.

Question 35

Elaborate on Sugee cake

Answer 35

Sugee cake is a butter cake made with semolina or cornmeal flour mixed with sliced roasted almonds.

Question 36

What are the common ingredients used in Eurasian dishes?

Answer 36

Many Eurasian dishes are spicy and rich, and are eaten together with rice or bread. They are usually prepared using a variety of herbs and spices such as connammon, cloves, nutmeg, chillies, pepper, tamarind(assam), grated coconut, lemongrass and candlenuts (buah keras) for a distinct and sharp taste.

European ingredients such as Worcestershire sauce, mustard powder and vinegar are also added to flavour the dishes.

Semolina flour is used to make sugee cake. Semolina is a product of wheat. It becomes round and puffy after being boiled or baked, which gives sugee cake its unique texture.

Different types of meat, such as beef, pork and poultry, are used in the cooking or Eurasian dishes.

Question 37

What are the methods of cooking of Eurasian dishes?

Answer 37

Common methods of cooking used in Eurasian dishes are stewing and baking due to European influence. Both the devilś curry and Eurasian smore are dishes that are cooked on low heat for long periods of time to allow all the ingredients, herbs and spices to mix together to create a deep, rich flavour.

Question 38

What are the Festive food in Eurasian dishes?

Answer 38

The majority of Eurasians in Singapore are of Christian faith and celebrate Christian festivals such as Easter and Christmas. Hence, traditional festive food such as roasted turkey and Chirstmas pudding are consumed during the celebration, together with popular Eurasian dishes.

Question 39

What is the Eurasian table setting and dining etiquette?

Answer 39

Eurasian dishes are served in plates or bowls and are eaten using spoons, forks and knives. A variety of main dishes are eaten with rice.

Euroasian dining etiqutte is as follows:

1. Unfold the napkin and place it on your lap after being seated.
2. Place the napkin on the chair if you need to leave your seat temporarily.
3. Hold the fork with your left hand and knife with your right hand
4. When you are finished with a dish, place the cutlery together across the centre of the plate. If you are just taking a break, criss-cross the cutlery.