The Indigenization and Hybridization of Food Cultures in Singapore

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-xxxi

   PDF

2. Part I

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 1-1

      PDF

   2. Introduction

      • Tai Wei Lim

      Pages 3-6

   3. Food Vessels: A Brief Historical Survey of Ceramics Use for Food Consumption in Singapore’s Hawker Centres and Coffee Shops (kopitiams)

      • Tai Wei Lim

      Pages 7-20

   4. Diversity in Southeast Asian Serving Vessels

      • Tai Wei Lim

      Pages 21-48

   5. Late Modernity: Food-Serving Vessels Used in the Mid-Twentieth Century

      • Tai Wei Lim

      Pages 49-70

3. Part II

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 71-71

      PDF

   2. Promoting Singapore-Japan Ties Through the Soft Cultural Power of Food Diplomacy: The Hybridization, Cross-Pollination and Indigenization of Contemporary Japanese Food Culture in Singapore

      • Tai Wei Lim

      Pages 73-88

   3. The Korean Wave in Singapore’s Multi-cultural Food Scene: Indigenization, Localization, Hybridization and Cross-Pollination

      • Tai Wei Lim

      Pages 89-105

4. Part III

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 107-107

      PDF

   2. Conclusion

      • Tai Wei Lim

      Pages 109-111

This pivot considers the use of porcelain vessels within multi-dialect cultural spaces in the consumption of cooked food in Singapore. In a place of ubiquitous hawker centres and kopitiams (coffee shops), the potteries used to serve hawker foods have a strong presence in the culinary culture of Singaporeans. The book looks at the relationship between those utensils, the food/drinks that are served as well as the symbolic, historical, socio-cultural and socioeconomic implications of using different kinds of porcelain/pottery wares. It also examines the indigenization of foreign foods in Singapore, using two case studies of hipster food – Japanese and Korean. While authentic Japanese and Korean cuisines find resonance amongst the youths of East Asia, some of them have adapted hybrid local features in terms of sourcing for local ingredients due to costs and availability factors. The book considers how these foods are hybridized and indigenized to suit local tastes, fashion and trends, and offers a key read for East Asian specialists, anthropologists and sociologists interested in East Asian societies.

• Indigenization of Foreign Foods in Singapore
• Immigration and Culinary Culture
• Hybridization of Popular Culture
• Food History in South East Asia
• Diasporas and Food Culture in Singapore
• Food Culture and Soft Power in Asia

• Singapore University of Social Sciences, Singapore, Singapore

  Tai Wei Lim

Tai Wei Lim is a Senior Lecturer at the Singapore University of Social Sciences (SUSS) and a Senior Research Fellow adj. at the National University of Singapore (NUS) East Asian Institute (EAI). He teaches world history and East Asian history-related courses at the SUSS and researches on heritage issues as well as industrial technological changes. He has also done research on the ceramics industries and mass production in Jingdezhen (China), Arita (Japan), Yingge (Taiwan) and urban pottery clusters in Hong Kong. He has an interest in the history of export porcelain wares from Jingdezhen/Arita.

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