Fish soup bee hoon, also known as fish head bee hoon, is a Singaporean soup-based seafood dish served hot usually with bee hoon. The dish is viewed as a healthy food by Singaporeans.[1] Catherine Ling of CNN listed fish soup bee hoon as one of the "40 Singapore foods we can't live without".
 Fish soup bee hoon at Food Junction in Singapore | |
| Alternative names | Fish head bee hoon |
|---|---|
| Course | Soup |
| Place of origin | Singapore |
| Region or state | Maritime Southeast Asia |
| Serving temperature | Hot |
| Main ingredients | Fish (usually snakehead, also pomfret or batang), fish stock or bones, bee hoon, water, oil, yams, milk |
History
editFish soup bee hoon has been available since at least the 1920s;[2] one source credits Swee Kee Fish Head Noodle House with creating the "definitive version" of the dish in the 1970s.[3]
Ingredients
editSnakeheads are most commonly used for fish soup bee hoon.[4] Other stalls may offer pomfret, batang,[1] or garoupa.[5] While fish heads or the whole fish may be used, some diners prefer having just fish slices. The fish soup is made out of either fish stock[4] or actual bones,[6] water, oil, yam,[7] and milk,[8][a] with vegetables[4] and select fruits.[7]
The noodle in the soup is often bee hoon, although a healthier alternative except for irritable bowel syndrome sufferers would be spaghetti made from brown rice.[10] Another noodle variant would be fried noodles.[11] Additional ingredients include eggs,[9] anchovies, pepper, salt,[12] and alcoholic products such as brandy,[4] Chinese wine,[6] or cognac,[13] chilli slices, fried shallots, and fish roe.[5] For the vegetarian version of the dish, fish meat is substituted with tofu.[14]
Preparation
editThe fish is boiled and added to a bowl of fish soup.[4] The fish may also be fried.[4] The soup is boiled for about twenty minutes,[7] though a broth made from fish or pork bones boiled for several hours is sometimes used as a base.[1][12][6] The dish is served hot.[15]
Culture
editGrace Chen of The Star writes that fish soup bee hoon is "to Singaporeans what the char kway teow is to Penangites".[16] Catherine Ling of CNN describes fish soup bee hoon as one of the "40 Singapore foods we can't live without".[4] Jin Hua Fish Head Bee Hoon was named the best fish soup bee hoon store in Singapore by Time Out Singapore in 2012.[17]
See also
edit
Notes
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c Phoon, Audrey (December 19, 2009). "The best fish soup and fish head". AsiaOne. Archived from the original on December 30, 2012. Retrieved May 24, 2013.
- ^ Mobile 2007, p. 24.
- ^ Yan, Yee Yaw; Ebrahim, Naleeza (2006). Singapore. Marshall Cavendish. pp. 102–. ISBN 9789812329226.
- ^ a b c d e f g Ling, Catherine (April 14, 2010). "40 Singapore foods we can't live without". CNN.
- ^ a b Tay, Suan Chiang (November 26, 2012). "Spoilt for choice at Quan Xiang Fish Porridge". AsiaOne. Archived from the original on December 1, 2012. Retrieved May 24, 2013.
- ^ a b c Thng, Lay Teen (October 15, 2012). "Cheap and good fish-head beehoon at 21 Seafood". AsiaOne. Archived from the original on May 9, 2013. Retrieved May 24, 2013.
- ^ a b c Chen, Baoxing (2004). 土埚养生菜飘香 (in Chinese and English). Lingzi Media. p. 46. ISBN 9789814157339.
- ^ Gilbert, Jonathan P. (2010). Michelin MustSees Singapore. Michelin Travel. p. 126. ISBN 9781906261979.[permanent dead link]
- ^ a b Phoon, Audrey (December 19, 2009). "China Square fried fish soup keeps original taste". AsiaOne. Archived from the original on May 10, 2010. Retrieved May 24, 2013.
- ^ "Sliced Fish with Bee Hoon Soup". Health Promotion Board. Archived from the original on July 9, 2013. Retrieved May 24, 2013.
- ^ Thng, Lay Teen (February 21, 2010). "Delicious yee mee with fried fish meat at Goldhill Centre". AsiaOne. Archived from the original on April 1, 2010. Retrieved May 24, 2013.
- ^ a b Sun, David (September 26, 2011). "The best fish soups in Singapore". Archived from the original on June 20, 2012. Retrieved May 24, 2013.
- ^ Mobile 2007, p. 406.
- ^ "Living on the veg". Time Out. January 28, 2008.
- ^ Lewis, Mark (2000). The rough guide to Malaysia, Singapore & Brunei (3 ed.). Rough Guides. p. 183. ISBN 9781858285658.
- ^ Chen, Grace (August 17, 2010). "Foodie recommends the best budget eats in Singapore". AsiaOne. Archived from the original on April 4, 2013. Retrieved May 24, 2013.
- ^ "2012 Singapore's Best Dishes: Local cuisine". Time Out. June 11, 2012.
Bibliography
edit- MobileReference (2007). Travel Singapore: Illustrated Travel Guide, Phrasebook, and Maps. MobileReference. ISBN 9781605010151.[permanent dead link]