Apa Kitchen Rojak @ Marina Square

Remember that I asked if rojak is a uniquely Singapore dish.  Apparently it is not because or next-door neighbour also have rojak?  So how can we trace the origins of rojak?  Let us leave these questions to the anthropologist and just continue to enjoy the good food.

The winning rojak store that won the coveted spot of Singapore Favourite Food 2013 for the rojak category is Apa Kitchen Rojak.  Apa has two kitchens; one in Marina Square Shopping Mall and another at Great World City.  At Apa Kitchen, you can taste the more fruity variety of the chinese rojak in Singapore.

Would you consider Chinese rojak as a salad or side dish, or a main dish on its own?  For me, it has always been eaten as a side.  While the ingredients of the rojak are varied, none are heavy or substantial.  Unless of course you are those that have the dough fritters or you tiao neat. (That means just the you tiao and the shrimp paste rojak sauce).

Apparently, Apa Kitchen originates from Kota Tinggi in 1973.  That’s why it dispels the “myth” that rojak is a uniquely Singapore dish.  Their rojak sauce is so well liked by their patrons that they actually sell them in canned bottles!  So you can make rojak easily at home.

The ingredients are simple:  if you follow the recipes of Apa’s: pineapple slices, cucumber, Chinese turnip, rose apple, young mango, papaya, guava, torch ginger bud, dough fritters and ground peanuts tossed in their signature Apa Rojak Sauce.  Oh man, the logistics to get the ingredients are nightmarish to me.  I would pay to order a plate of rojak any time!

I really like Apa rojak because it is nicely crisp on the outside and has a lot of fruity stuff going on; not just the usual huge pieces of Chinese turnips and cucumber (which I didn’t quite like the formmer).  The pieces are also shredded to managable small pieces so you don’t have to have to chew too much on a single piece.  The ground peanut; which is roasted and grounded on their premise everyday; is very fragrant.  While we finished the rojak; those of us who shared the dish keeps digging up more of the grounded peanut from the little that’s left over.  Isn’t that quite a testament of how good it is?

You can savour the 20 voted favourite stores voted from the online polls at the Singapore Food Festival Village to be held from 12 to 21 July 2013 at Bayfront Avenue (near Bayfront train station, Circle Line).  This 10-day festival is organised by the Singapore Food & Beverage Alliance to celebrate Singapore’s unique food heritage and pays homage to local culinary heroes.

You can visit my Singapore Food Festival 2013 post for more information.

Apa Kitchen Rojak
6 Raffles Boulevard
#04-101/102, Marina Square Shopping Mall
Singapore 039594

Visit other Top Voted Stalls for Singapore Food Festival are the following links:

China Street Fritters @ Maxwell Food Centre for Ngoh Hiong category
Sakunthala’s Food Palace @ Race Course Road for Nasi Briyani category
Thondamans Indian Muslim Food @ Norris Road for Roti Prata category
Star Yong Kwang BBQ Seafood @ Alexandra Village Food Centre for Zi Char category
Jin Jin Hot/Cold Dessert @ ABC Brickworks Market for dessert category