{"id":74,"date":"2023-03-23T16:56:56","date_gmt":"2023-03-23T16:56:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/maureenker.com\/?p=74"},"modified":"2023-03-23T22:00:51","modified_gmt":"2023-03-23T22:00:51","slug":"singapore-cuisine-history-what-is-a-kampong","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/maureenker.com\/index.php\/singapore-cuisine-history-what-is-a-kampong\/","title":{"rendered":"Singapore food history &#8212; what is a kampong?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Welcome to my kampong! This is a place where you&#8217;ll learn all about <strong>Singapore&#8217;s rich food history<\/strong> and it&#8217;s delectable <strong>cuisine<\/strong>!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To begin, we\u2019ll have to travel back in time, when Singapore was an island of <strong>rustic villages<\/strong> known as <strong>kampongs<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Singapore kampongs<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Back in the 19th century when Singapore island was a <strong>swampy backwater<\/strong>, its early settlers lived in settlements that ranged from small <strong>shantytowns<\/strong> with dirt roads to self-containing <strong>hamlets<\/strong> with <strong>small stores, schools and mosques<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>And it was in these kampongs where Singapore cuisine history first began.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How kampong life influenced Singapore cuisine history<\/h3>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/images.nypl.org\/index.php?id=4044493&amp;t=w\" alt=\"Index\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">&nbsp;Kampongs had open spaces for growing food and raising livestock.<br><dd class=\"wp-caption-dd\"><span style=\"color: #808080;\">Art and Picture Collection, The New York Public Library. &#8220;Cattle grazing amid piles of coconut shells, Singapore. The New York Public Library Digital Collections. http:\/\/digitalcollections.nypl.org\/items\/c2634d03-24a9-f238-e040-e00a18061845<\/span><\/dd><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>Unlike life in modern Singapore, kampong life was <strong>simple<\/strong> and <strong>idyllic<\/strong>. The pace of life was slower and less stressful, and it was impossible to walk around without nodding at a familiar face.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Large extended families<\/strong> lived together under one roof and everyone, including children, helped with household duties like laundry and feeding the chickens.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Kampong food<\/h3>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/redmondmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/Mi-Goreng-248x300.png\" alt=\"Mi Goreng\" class=\"wp-image-1335\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>With more space to maneuver about in the kampong, most kampong folks also <strong>raised chickens<\/strong> and <strong>pigs<\/strong>, and tended to <strong>vegetable beds<\/strong> and <strong>fruit trees<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Here&#8217;s a sample of what kampong folks ate:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Freshly caught <strong>fish<\/strong> and <strong>seafood, <\/strong>like <strong>sotong (squid),&nbsp;<\/strong><strong>cockles<\/strong> and <strong>prawns<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Homegrown <strong>vegetables<\/strong> and <strong>fruits<\/strong> grown without pesticides<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Rice<\/strong>, <strong>tea<\/strong> and <strong>biscuits<\/strong> bought from shops<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Treats like <strong>ice balls<\/strong> and <strong>cold drinks<\/strong>&nbsp;were bought from street vendors<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Homemade <strong>kueh<\/strong> (Malay cakes) were shared with family and neighbours<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Malay vs. Chinese kampongs<\/h3>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/images.nypl.org\/index.php?id=4044483&amp;t=w\" alt=\"Index\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Malay woman in a Malay kampong. Note the stilts and gabled roof.&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; <span style=\"color: #808080;\">Art and Picture Collection, The New York Public Library. &#8220;Malay woman, Singapore.&#8221; The New York Public Library Digital Collections. http:\/\/digitalcollections.nypl.org\/items\/c2634d03-249f-f238-e040-e00a18061845<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>Depending on the <strong>racial makeup<\/strong> of the kampong, the settlement could have different amenities and architecture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Generally speaking, in a <strong>Chinese kampong<\/strong>,&nbsp;there were:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Chinese stores like <strong>medicine shops<\/strong> and <strong>provision shops<\/strong> selling herbs and sundries<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Single-storey dwellings<\/strong> with <strong>zinc roofs<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Houses with <strong>fences<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Pigs<\/strong> raised by the home owners<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>In a <strong>Malay kampong<\/strong>, there were:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Mosques<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Houses built on <strong>stilts<\/strong> to keep out wild animals like snakes and tigers, and to provide <strong>ventilation<\/strong> and prevent <strong>flooding<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Houses with <strong>stairs<\/strong> to get to different floors<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Houses that are were <strong>fenced off<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Not always idyllic<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Life in the kampong might have been slower-paced but it wasn\u2019t without its difficulties. <strong>Flooding<\/strong> was a common occurrence for many rural kampongs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Sources of water<\/strong> for kampong folks:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>wells<\/strong> dug by homeowners<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>piped water to <strong>public standpipes<\/strong> (available in the 1950s after the government constructed a water supply system to provide running water to rural areas)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>piped water to <strong>individual homes<\/strong> (this was available around 1960s)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Queuing for water&nbsp;<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>In case you were wondering what a <strong>standpipe<\/strong> was, it\u2019s basically a <strong>faucet<\/strong> located in a <strong>public area<\/strong> like a town square that\u2019s open to the public. It provided <strong>running water<\/strong> to residents living in the area.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Public standpipes were the <strong>first form of running water<\/strong> available in the kampong and villagers had to <strong>queue up<\/strong> to fill their buckets. It was a laborious process to <strong>haul water<\/strong> home, so many villagers simply bathed, and washed their clothes and dishes by the standpipes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Hot sticky kampong nights<\/h3>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/e\/e5\/Mosquito%2Cnet%2CTamilNadu403.JPG\/800px-Mosquito%2Cnet%2CTamilNadu403.JPG\" alt=\"File:Mosquito,net,TamilNadu403.JPG\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">To get a good night&#8217;s sleep in the kampong, mosquito netting is a must.&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; <span style=\"color: #808080;\">https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Mosquito,net,TamilNadu403.JPG<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>If you cannot imagine living <strong>without air conditioning<\/strong> in tropical Singapore, just imagine how uncomfortable it must have been for the villagers on a hot sticky night in the kampong.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Most people in the kampong slept under <strong>mosquito netting<\/strong> for protection from the pesky bugs, and with <strong>no electricity to power fans, <\/strong>they simply laid as still as possible to stay cool. According to my mother who grew up in a kampong, restless nights were common, but somehow, they still managed to fall asleep.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Kampong spirit<\/h3>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/6\/6a\/Photo_Journal_%28Set%29_-_Young_explorers_%289719102704%29.jpg\/800px-Photo_Journal_%28Set%29_-_Young_explorers_%289719102704%29.jpg\" alt=\"File:Photo Journal (Set) - Young explorers (9719102704).jpg\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<h6 class=\"wp-block-heading\">https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Photo_Journal_(Set)_-_Young_explorers_(9719102704).jpg<\/h6>\n\n\n\n<p>If you are lucky enough to talk to a former kampong dweller, chances are you&#8217;ll hear about something called the \u201c<strong>kampong spirit<\/strong>\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Broadly speaking, the kampong spirit is about <strong>cooperation<\/strong> and <strong>sharing<\/strong> with people in your kampong. It is similar to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/uhwo\/clear\/home\/lawaloha.html\">Hawaiian aloha spirit<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Kampong folks were known for their <strong>kindness<\/strong> towards one another, as well as towards outsiders.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>One famous example of kampong spirit took place during <strong>WWII<\/strong>, when Singapore was occupied by the Japanese forces. British and Australian residents, as well as other foreigners living in Singapore were rounded up by the Japanese forces and were taken to <strong>POW camps<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>During the <strong>long hot march<\/strong> to the POW camp, the marchers passed through a few rural kampongs and eye-witnesses recalled that several brave kampong folks rushed out of their homes to hand the POWs <strong>water<\/strong> and <strong>coconut water<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Such <strong>selfless acts<\/strong> may be surprising to us but to a kampong dweller, it was just part and parcel of kampong life. It was simply the way things were done in the kampong.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/2\/20\/Jackfruit_tree_Singapore.jpg\/800px-Jackfruit_tree_Singapore.jpg\" alt=\"File:Jackfruit tree Singapore.jpg\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Jackfruit tree<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p><strong>Bartering<\/strong> was a way of life. A couple of eggs for one\u2019s neighbour yielded a gift of juicy mangoes next week; fixing a broken bicycle for a neighbour meant an extra hand was ready to help when it\u2019s time to repair the leaking roof.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>On and on, these <strong>little acts of kindness<\/strong> reinforced what it meant to live in a kampong, and <strong>fostered<\/strong> a cosy sense of belonging in every kampong resident.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Even <strong>luxuries<\/strong> were shared freely \u2013 it was common for neighbours to listen to the <strong>radio<\/strong> or watch <strong>TV<\/strong> together, as radio and television sets (black and white only) were&nbsp;affordable only to a lucky few.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If you grew up in a kampong, then you may recall sitting in a neighbour\u2019s living room or coffee shop listening to a radio program broadcast by <strong>Reddifusion<\/strong> (Singapore\u2019s first commercial radio station).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Kampong Kitchen \u2013 birthplace of Singapore cuisine<\/h3>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/redmondmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/ingredients-e1505599019124-300x300.png\" alt=\"ingredients\" class=\"wp-image-421\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>So there you have it, a tour of the rustic kampongs of Singapore where the now world-famous Singapore cuisine was born!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Peek into the <a href=\"https:\/\/maureenker.com\/index.php\/singapore-food-history-the-kampong-kitchen\/\">kampong kitchen<\/a> in our next post!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h6 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Top image credit:&nbsp;A Malay kampong in Singapore. Art and Picture Collection, The New York Public Library. &#8220;Malay &#8211; village Pulo Brani Singapore.&#8221; The New York Public Library Digital Collections. http:\/\/digitalcollections.nypl.org\/items\/c2634d03-24af-f238-e040-e00a18061845<\/h6>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Welcome to my kampong! This is a place where you&#8217;ll learn all about Singapore&#8217;s rich food history and it&#8217;s delectable cuisine! To begin, we\u2019ll have to travel back in time, when Singapore was an island of rustic villages known as kampongs. Singapore kampongs Back in the 19th century when Singapore island was a swampy backwater,&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-74","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-posts"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/maureenker.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/74","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/maureenker.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/maureenker.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/maureenker.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/maureenker.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=74"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/maureenker.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/74\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":112,"href":"https:\/\/maureenker.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/74\/revisions\/112"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/maureenker.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=74"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/maureenker.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=74"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/maureenker.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=74"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}