Thursday, June 24, 2010
Food In Singapore 10: Ice Kachang

Today, I will be blogging about a desert, which is the famous Ice Kachang.

What is Ice Kachang
Ice Kachang is a sweet tasting desert that served with sweet flavoured syrup, jelly and ice. The name literarily translates to “red bean ice”, which already tells you the fact that traditionally, ice kachang was served with ice and red bean only. However, now Ice Kacang comes in different bright colours, and with different fruit cocktails and dressings.



What composes the Ice Kachang
As I have already mentioned, Ice Kachange was traditionally served with just ice and red bean. However, the Ice kachang today has a base in a bowl that is supporting an “ice mountain”, and the base comprises of attap chee, red beans, grass jelly, cubes of agar agar and chendol. The ice mountain is usually decorated with bright colouring syrups and evaporated milk and some sweet corn cream will be drizzled over the “ice mountain”.

Toppings of the Ice Kachang may vary, since different stalls may introduce new toppings such as durian, chocolate or even ice cream.



Personal Opinion
Personally, I have liked this desert the best since young, out of so many deserts. (I think that my opinion is similar to many other Singaporean children.) This is because I feel that in a hot and humid country like this, deserts should not only taste well but should cool down your body and refresh you during a warm day. Ice Kachang, with its “ice mountain”, serves the second purpose. Other than that, when I was a kid I have always liked Ice Kachang due to its colourful appearance.

My favourite topping for the Ice Kachang is the original topping with all the colourful syrups. Other than because of its “superior” outer appearance, I feel that the other toppings are, in a way, disgusting because of the taste of the colouring.

It may be an interesting fact to note that none of my parents share my views; my mother and father are fans of Cheng Teng and Chendol respectively. However, I still think that Ice Kachang rocks the most!

Food for Thought

There are so many ingredients that form the entire Ice Kachang, so which ingredient do you like the best?
Also, there are many different toppings nowadays for Ice Kachang. Which is your favourite topping and why?

Credits:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ice_kacang
http://www.flickr.com/photos/superlocal/93851975/
http://friends.myspacecreator.info/albums/userpics/10001/durian_ice_kachang~0.jpg
http://www.grampianspyreneespcp.org.au/Image/Agency%20Logos/Food%20For%20Thought%20Logo%20Reversed.jpg