We were tasked with a mission: Find the best hawker food pairings for 7Up.
The first order of business? Gathering a good, hungry pool of participants. 15 Burpplers, members of our community who enthusiastically share their reviews on Burpple, were enlisted to help us. Next, we chose one of Singapore's largest hawker centres to host this experiment, so that we could round up a substantial number of iconic hawker dishes. We filled two tables to the brim with 16 dishes, and served our participants with ice cold cups of 7Up. At the end of the night, with seven limes in hand, they voted for their favourite pairings. See how the night unfolded!
When it comes to hawker food, drinks with bright, citrus flavours tend to do really well to balance out all that oily lusciousness. Bonus points if it’s ice cold, especially if you’re slurping up your meal during scorching mid-day temperatures! (Years ago, the Burpple team was treated to a pairing session of zi char dishes with a variety of wines, and we were blown away by how well a cold Riesling went with lard-slathered dry hor fun. That’s a Pro Tip we use till this day, but that’s a story for another time!) As they tucked into the feast, it became clear that the "dry" (non-soupy), smoky and savoury dishes were gaining the most favour. It made sense, considering that the flavours of 7Up — sweet, lemon and lime — would balance them well. When you think about the drinks that we usually pair with hawker food, "sugarcane with lemon" probably popped into your head — kinda similar to 7Up. It wasn't surprising that it went so well with the lard-laden char kway teow. One hungry Burppler commented, "The 7Up actually cuts through all the oiliness and helps us to eat even more of it!". Yup, they've got their priorities straight.
As the meal moved on to dishes like bak kut teh, it seemed that the fizzy drink, while still refreshing, struggled against the soupy, peppery nature of BKT. Maybe not the most natural pairing. Some mentioned that a cold barley might go better. It also seemed that dishes with milder, less savoury flavours like popiah and seafood hor fun didn't gain as much from being paired with the lemon-lime notes. But when the zi char aunty came by and plonked down a large platter of piping hot har cheong gai on the table, the aroma alone told everyone this would be a winning pairing. Fried chicken and a bubbly drink? Already win. But when the umami flavour of the fermented prawn paste became even more distinct after a swig of the sweet yet lemony 7Up, it was clear this was a runaway winner. Yea, it also helped that the har cheong gai was so awesome, one of the Burpplers immediately went over to the stall to dabao a portion.
After thoughtful consideration and a round of intense lime-dropping voting, here are the seven hawker dishes Burpplers deem to be the right pair for an ice cold 7Up. We've also included recommended places to hunt down these hawker favourites. Enjoy!
The seven pairings made in seventh heaven (oh yes we went there):
1. Char Kway Teow + 7Up
Photo shared by Burppler Lionel Ong
Glossed in lard, flavoured with soy, studded with cockles, laced with egg and imbued with wok hei, this is one dish to save for Cheat Day. Remember the wise words — pair it with 7Up and you'll be able to eat even more.
Places To Get Your CKT Fix
For Lap Cheong & Cockles Galore: No.18 Zion Road Fried Kway Teow
For a Light & Smoky Plate: Dong Ji Fried Kway Teow
For Fragrant Sin: Hill Street Fried Kway Teow
2. Har Cheong Gai + 7Up
Photo shared by Burppler Alicia Ho
We'd like to believe that if the rest of the world had the chance to taste har cheong gai, it would become an instant worldwide hit. Every country has their own version of the humble fried chicken, but seriously, slathering it in fermented prawn paste and deep frying it is the right way to go.
Places To Get Your Har Cheong Gai Fix
For Crabs and Wings with the Family: Ban Leong Wah Hoe
For Rainy Day XO Fish Soup and Har Cheong Gai: Holland Village XO Fish Head Bee Hun
For Superb Late Night Wings and Drinks: No.5 Emerald Hill Cocktail Bar
3. Roast Meats + 7Up
Photo shared by Burppler Michelle Kayla Tey
Some like their char siew sweet and charred with a good degree of wobble, while others prefer them more savoury and with less fat. Whichever you prefer, it's no doubt that char siew is always better when sitting next to its best friend — sio bak.
Places To Get Your Roast Meats Fix
For Underrated Roast Meats in Outram: Chang Shun (Charcoal) HK Style Roasted
For Super Crisp Crackling and Fatty Char Siew: 88 Hong Kong Roast Meat Specialist
For an Affordable Favourite: New Rong Liang Ge
4. Satay + 7Up
Photo shared by Burppler Jason Wong
Almost everyone who voted for satay said that the smoky flavour became more pronounced when paired with 7Up. Interesting! Try this pairing the next time you're faced with a plate of satay.
Places To Get Your Satay Fix
For Stellar Pork Satay and Charcoal Hokkien Mee: Kwong's Satay
For Old School Mutton Satay: Haron Satay
For Sweet & Smoky Satay with Beer: Shi Xiang Satay
5. Carrot Cake + 7Up
Photo shared by Burppler Eatssentially
Black vs white. Sweet and saucy or savoury and crispy?? How y'all choose? This Teochew dish has us in a constant dilemma.
Places To Get Your Carrot Cake Fix
For White Carrot Cake with Tons of Chye Poh: 618 Sim Carrot Cake
For Black & White Carrot Cake with Curry Powder: Song Han Carrot Cake
For Super Crispy Carrot Cake Worth the Wait: Chey Sua Carrot Cake
*BONUS* (bcos why not) For Carrot Cake with Ikan Bilis: Golden City Carrot Cake
6. Orh Luak / Or Jian + 7Up
Photo shared by Burppler Xinyi Lim
A good orh luak should have crispy bits and just the right amount of potato starch. The chili's gotta have a good tang to balance all that oil, and hopefully the little oysters are plump and bursting with freshness.
Places To Get Your Orh Luak Fix
For Spicy Omelette with Plump Oysters: Lim's Fried Oyster (Berseh Food Centre)
For Crispy and Gooey Oyster Omelette: Simon Road Oyster Omelette
For a Perfectly Balanced Favourite: Hup Kee Fried Oyster Omelette (Newton Food Centre)
7. Sambal Stingray + 7Up
Photo shared by Burppler Terence Yeo
Not many might know this — sambal stingray originates from the Eurasians in Malacca of Portuguese descent. Stingray was cheap but not commonly eaten in Malacca as its flesh isn't flavourful, and only grew in popularity after the Eurasians smothered it in sambal paste. This was served accompanied by tasty cincalok, a condiment made from fermented small shrimps (cos many Portuguese Eurasians were fishermen), shallot, lime juice and chili. If you already knew this, good on ya!
Places To Get Your Sambal Stingray Fix
For a Consistent Favourite: Chan BBQ (Bedok 85)
For Cheap & Good Stingray: Macpherson BBQ Seafood
For Super Fresh Stingray: Hai Wei Yuan B.B.Q (Chomp Chomp)
Now you know, should any of these savoury / oily / smoky hawker dishes appear before you, a lemony-limey, bubbly 7Up might just be the right drink to wash it all down!
