7 Fried Carrot Cakes In Singapore So Good, It Can Become Our National Dish
Speak to any Singaporean and ask them what the national dish of Singapore is and you’ll likely be bombarded with a whole list of hawker food delights, be it the humble chicken rice or char kway teow. While all these are surely considered to be Singaporeans’ fondest dishes, fried carrot cake—or better known as cai tow kuay amongst many—is undeniably a local favourite too.
Bearing no resemblance to the Western version of carrot cake, this hawker dish is essentially made with radish cake that is stir-fried with eggs, preserved radish, and other seasonings. Needless to say, there are plenty of stalls in Singapore serving this dish but here we have sussed out 7 of the best carrot cakes in Singapore just for you.
Photo Credit: foodforjoey
CHEY SUA CARROT CAKE
Listed in 2018’s Michelin Guide, Chey Sua Carrot Cake is a humble stall nestled in a small hawker centre and what they serve is one of the best versions of carrot cake around.
As the stall is extremely popular, be prepared to wait for around 45 minutes before laying your hands on a plate of their delectable carrot cake. Fried till crispy on the outside but soft and fluffy in the inside, it is no wonder that they have been listed in the Michelin guide for years now!
127 Lorong 1 Toa Payoh
Toa Payoh West Market & Food Centre #02-30
Singapore 310127
Tue to Sun: 6am – 1pm
(Closed on Mondays)
Nearest Station: Braddell
CHOMP CHOMP STALL 36
Chomp Chomp Food Centre is undisputedly a food haven where many flock to for the best of local delights.
Stingrays, hokkien noodles and char kway teow aside, Chomp Chomp is home to a stall that dishes out amazing fried carrot cake. What we’d highly recommend is the dark sauce version—a must-try for lovers of this popular breakfast item. The potent garlic flavour makes the dish extra fragrant but what truly makes it so unforgettable is the perfectly charred exterior of the carrot cake coupled with the sweet sauce.
20 Kensington Park Road
Chomp Chomp Food Centre#01-36
Singapore 557269
Daily: 5.30pm – 12am
Nearest Station: Serangoon
Perhaps one of the most famous carrot cake stalls in Singapore, do not be surprised to find a perpetual queue outside this stall.
Ghim Moh Carrot Cake serves both the traditional white and black versions—both of which are superbly tasty on its own. Their carrot is the epitome of wok hei—every mouthful fully embodies a pleasant charred aroma and while it is already flavourful on its own, add their homemade chilli sauce for an extra punch of flavours!
20 Ghim Moh Road #01-16
Singapore 270020
Mon: Closed
Tue to Sun: 7.45am – 7.45pm
Nearest Station: Buona Vista
GUAN SENG CARROT CAKE
Nestled within Telok Blangah Cresent Food Centre, Guan Seng Carrot Cake dishes out fried carrot cake that hits all the right spots.
Their Yuan Yang Carrot Cake (S$3) gives you a generous portion of both the sweet black version and the savoury white one. Soft, fluffy and boasting a heady aroma of wok hei, both the black and white version were done well!
Guan Seng Carrot Cake
11 Telok Blangah Crescent
Telok Blangah Crescent Food Centre
Stall #01-81
Singapore 090011
Tue to Sun: 5am – 1.30pm
(Closed on Mondays)
Nearest Station: Telok Blangah
Rarely do we find handmade, authentic local dishes these days but Hock Kee Fried Oyster at Serangoon Garden Market & Food Centre makes their carrot cake makes their carrot cake from scratch and shapes them right there and then.
Should you find yourself in a bit of pickle as we did, you may opt for a plate of half-white and half-black carrot cake (S$5) for a fair mix of both.
The white carrot cake comes stir-fried with a generous amount of eggs that which will accentuate the soft texture of the slabs of radish, while the black carrot cake is fried with a dark sauce that results in a slightly sweeter, caramelised taste.
49A Serangoon Garden Way
Serangoon Garden Market & Food Centre
Singapore 555945
Tue to Fri: 7.15am – 2pm, 6.15pm – 10pm
Sat & Sun: 7.15am – 3pm
(Closed on Mondays)
Nearest Station: Serangoon
This hidden gem in Yuhua Market & Food Centre serves up some pretty darn fantastic carrot cake that we reckon West-siders should try ASAP.
Jing Jing offers both White and Black Carrot Cake (S$2.50/S$3/S$4/S$5) and we opted for the S$2.50 portion of the black version. We were absolutely pleased to see each chunk of carrot cake evenly coated in a copious amount of sweet black sauce and fried with a generous helping of eggs.
Jing Jing
Yuhua Market & Hawker Centre
347 Jurong East Avenue 1, #01-226
Singapore 600347
Daily: 6am – 8.30pm
Nearest Station: Chinese Garden
JOO SENG CARROT CAKE
Nestled in a food court in a rather out-of-the-way location, this stall is definitely a hidden gem unknown to many.
They serve both traditional white and black carrot cake, but we suggest you get the Fried Combo Carrot Cake (S$4/S$5) version which will give you the best of both worlds—soft without being overly mushy, their carrot cake checks off all the boxes of what a good carrot cake should encompass.
1 Upper Aljunied Lane
Singapore 360001
Nearest Station: Tai Seng
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