It was an odd admission to some: that I’d never tried Singapore chilli crab before. But if this was ever going to change, there was no better place for it than in
Singapore where I spent a few sweaty days in December last year.
I adore mud crabs, especially the meaty claws, although I tend to eat more blue swimmer crabs in Australia. My favourite eating style is, without doubt, Cantonese style ginger and shallot crab with
e-fu thick, soft egg noodles to soak up all the juices and sauces.
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| Singapore chilli crab from Jumbo Seafood Restaurant, The Riverwalk, Singapore |
We met an expat friend at one of the many Jumbo Seafood Restaurants across Singapore, which was in turn, recommended by one of his local workmates. Beers ordered, we got down to business with plastic bibs around our necks.
The market priced Singapore chilli crab arrived to the table in impressively quick time, with finger bowls and crab crackers. The large black pot held a whole crab, cracked and in pieces, with lots of the tomato-based chilli sauce.
It was all hands on deck with the mud crab a little smaller than its Queensland cousins. However, the depth of flavour in the sauce - not just sweetness and very mild chilli, but an array of spices - was most satisfying.
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| Deep fried man tou buns |
We had to get a few orders of the small, fluffy, steamed
man tou buns - both plain steamed and deep fried - to soak up the chilli crab sauce.
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| Steamed man tou buns |
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| Singapore black pepper crab |
For variety, we also ordered a crab in the other popular Singaporean cooking style: black pepper. With a much drier sauce of mostly cracked black pepper, this was a little surprising in its heat and spice - indeed, more spicy and lip burning than the chilli crab.
I'm a bit torn choosing a favourite of the Singapore chilli or black pepper crab, so I'll revert to ginger and shallot, which probably allows the true flavour of crab shine through better than the spicier options.
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| Jellyfish salad |
We also ordered a starter of jellyfish salad, which came heavily and appropriately dressed in lots of roasted sesame oil and raw coriander.
For those unfamiliar with jellyfish, it comes in translucent, light brown strips without any real trace of the sea but with a sometimes challenging texture of soft crispness.
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| Mee goreng - stir fried noodles |
Crab-fest as it was, we added some carbohydrates and vegetables to the dinner order for balance. The
mee goreng noodles were pretty unexciting in flavour with prawns, egg and bean sprouts tossed through. There was also a generous plate of
sambal kangkong water spinach - a Malaysian favourite.
I'm not sure Jumbo Seafood Restaurant was the best Singapore chilli crab available in Singapore, but there you have it - my first Singapore chilli crab.
