‘Chicken Rice’ was the Oxford English Dictionary Word of the Day on our National Day yesterday (https://www.oed.com/view/Entry/82932046)
The first citation given by the OED for the phrase is from a 1950 Straits Times advertisement for Swee Kee Chicken Rice Restaurant. I remember Swee Kee fondly. It used to be at Middle Road, but sadly closed in 1997.
Hawker food is central to our multicultural identity and a big part of our everyday life. It was a proud moment for us all when Hawker Culture was inscribed as Singapore’s first element on the UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity on 16 December 2020.
Dining-in resumes today. I hope you continue to support our hawkers during this difficult period. If you are eating at a hawker centre, please remember to practise safe distancing and return your trays.
What is your chicken rice order? Skinless steamed breast meat is healthier, but I prefer the thigh meat and the spare parts! – LHL
(PMO Photo by Alex Qiu)
