Singapore Popiah is an appetizer made with prawns, jicama, vegetables, eggs, and crushed peanuts. These street food snacks are an all-time favorite of the locals.
Origin:
Spring rolls are a perennial favorite in the Far East and have become popular all over the world. It is generally acknowledged that spring rolls came from China. It is likely that the addition of fresh vegetables wrapped in a thin crepe signaled the beginning of spring and was a part of the Spring Festival.
According to tradition, the origin of the Spring Roll can be traced to the Tang Dynasty and spread through South East Asia. Whether it is the lumpia common to Indonesia and the Philippines, or the ‘popiah’ prevalent in Thailand, Malaysia, and Singapore, the essential features are the same. It is essentially a super fine crepe made from rice or wheat, that is filled with various fresh julienned vegetables and finely diced meat or shrimp.
What is the popiah skin?
As a street-food, the Singapore Popiah is essentially cooked and staged but assembled at the last minute to preserve the flavor of the ingredients. When I first tried the Singapore Popiah on Orchard Road several years ago on my husband’s insistence, I absolutely loved it.
In fact, I thought that this should be a piece of cake to make. After all, it tastes good and seems to be wrapped like a spring roll. But when I first tried making it with a batter of plain flour and water like crepes, the comment that I received was that the filling was great but not the popiah “skin”. The popiah skin was apparently the tricky part.
The popiah skin had to be translucent, thin as paper, and yet not sticky. I am familiar with a variety of French crêpes that I make for breakfast for my family but was not sure how I could make this one to meet the above checklist. However, my first attempt many years ago using all-purpose flour was only partially successful, as it was not translucent.
How to make the Singapore Popiah skin:
I added more water to make a batter of thin consistency of plain flour and water. Instead of using a ladle, I used a brush and ‘painted’ the batter onto a griddle per my husband’s suggestion based on how he has seen it done in Singapore. The result was thin, translucent, malleable wrappers that were not sticky.
You could use the spring roll wrappers, although I recommend making your own batter because it does not take that much time, and it is not that hard to make. The filling makes it a stand alone meal because it has veggies, prawns, and eggs. I always like to make a complete meal wherever possible by using a balance of ingredients. I have used jicama, carrots, radish, green onions, cucumber, beansprouts, along with diced prawns and boiled eggs.
A word on jicama:
Jicama (pronounced he-ka-ma) is an edible root that originated in Mexico and spread through Asia because of the Columbian Exchange. In India it is called ‘shankalu’ or ‘kesaru’ depending on where you are and is sometimes confused with the daikon. To some degree, daikon and jicama can be used interchangeably because the textures are similar, although jicama is on the sweeter side. In this recipe, I have used both jicama and radish.
The recipe below is the unfried Malay Peninsula version.
How to make the Singapore Popiah:
- How to make the popiah “skin”:
- Mix the flour, salt and water and beat using an egg beater or food processor for 10 minutes.
- Strain the mixture through a sieve to remove any lumps.
- Turn on a non-stick griddle on medium heat. Using a pastry brush, brush on the griddle in a crisscross manner to ensure that there are no holes in the skin.
- The skin or wrapper will get cooked in 2 minutes. Remove when the wrapper by lifting with your fingers.
2. How to make the filling:
- Heat oil in a pan and add the chili garlic sauce and saute the diced prawns that have been seasoned with salt and pepper for 5 minutes.
- Next, add the jicama, radish, and carrots and stir fry until the moisture evaporates for about 11-15 minutes.
- Finally, add the beansprouts, cucumber, and green onions with the oyster sauce, soy sauce, and salt and pepper and stir fry for 2 minutes. Turn off the heat.
- Sprinkle the crushed peanuts and keep aside.
- Mash the boiled eggs with salt and pepper.
3. How to assemble the Popiah:
- Take a wrapper and place it on a board. Spread the chili sauce.
2. Spread some hoisin sauce.
3. Spoon the filling in the center.
4. Put some crumbled boiled eggs on top.
5. Fold the two edges over the filling on either side. Then roll from one end to the other.
6. Ensure that the Popiah filling is tucked in the skin.
7. Cut the Popiah into 1.5” (length) pieces.
8. Serve warm.
- The filling must be consumed the same day. However, if you do not add prawns to it, then you can keep it for another day.
2. Popiah is eaten using chopsticks. It is a street food that is cut into small bite-size pieces which makes it easier to share.
3. Refrigeration makes the Singapore Popiah elastic and tough. So steam it gently in a steamer for a minute to reheat it.
How to store the Singapore Popiah wrappers:
The wrappers must be stored in a box covered with a moist cloth if used the same day. You can store the wrappers in an airtight box, after they have cooled, for a week.
Other Malaysian-Singaporean that dishes that you might like:
Singapore Popiah
Equipment
- Stovetop
Ingredients
For the skin
- 7 oz all-purpose flour
- 400 ml water
- 1 pinch salt
For the filling
- 12 pieces prawns diced
- 1 small jicama shredded
- 6 baby carrots shredded
- 2 cup beansprouts
- ¼ cup cucumber shredded
- 1 scallions sliced thin
- 1 radish shredded
- 4 tbsp peanut oil
- 1 tbsp chili garlic sauce
- 1 tbsp oyster sauce
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- salt to taste
- 1 tsp white pepper powdered
- ¾ cup crushed peanuts
- 2 eggs boiled
For assembly:
- hoisin sauce
- sweet chili sauce
Instructions
How to make popiah skin:
- Mix the flour, salt, and water and beat using a hand whisk or food processor for 10 minutes.
- Strain the mixture through a sieve to remove any lumps.
- Turn on a non-stick griddle to medium heat.
- Using a pastry brush, brush on the griddle in a crisscross manner to ensure that there are no holes in the skin.
- The skin or wrapper will get cooked in 2 minutes. Remove the wrapper by lifting with your fingers.
How to make the filling:
- Heat oil in a pan and add the chili garlic sauce and sauté the diced prawns that have been seasoned with garlic, salt, and pepper for 5 minutes.
- Next, add the jicama, radish, and carrots and stir fry until the moisture evaporates for about 11-15 minutes.
- Finally, add the beansprouts, cucumber, and green onions with the oyster sauce, soy sauce, salt, and pepper and stir fry for 2 minutes. Turn off the heat.
- Sprinkle the crushed peanuts and keep aside. Mash the boiled eggs with salt and pepper.
How to assemble the Singapore Popiah:
- Take a wrapper and place it on a board. Spread the chili sauce.
- Next, spread some hoisin sauce.
- Ladle the filling and top with mashed boiled eggs.
- Fold the two edges over the filling on either side.
- Then roll from one end to the other.
- Ensure that the popiah filling is tucked in the skin.
- Cut the popiah into 1.5” (length) pieces.
- Serve warm.
Notes
- Popiah skin or wrapper must be made and eaten fresh.
- The filling can be moist but not too moist so as to make the wrapper soggy.
Nutrition
Excellent, simply yummy!
Thanks!
thanks for showing how to make the skin!
one of my favorite recipes! this one is so easy to follow!
A good, traditional popiah recipe is hard to find. Thank you, Kanchan!
– Shen