As one who is addicted to savoury, sweet, spicy toasted crispy cuttlefish, I was glad for the opportunity to see how these are made at Tee Soon Seng in their little factory in Defu Lane, Singapore.
Mr 鄭 is the third generation owner of Tee Soon Seng. The business was started over 50 years ago by his uncle in Batu Pahat, Johor, Malaysia. Mr 鄭's uncle shifted to Singapore joining his dad and together they set up their crispy cuttlefish production and distribution business here. Mr 鄭 himself has run Tee Soon Seng for 30 years.
Today, the crispy cuttlefish are made with cuttlefish imported from Vietnam, sun dried, pressed and roasted.
Mdm 白, the lady boss dips the cuttlefish in a tub of marinade and rubs it into the cuttlefish's fibres.
The creamy milky marinade still uses the old recipe from Batu Pahat.
The marinaded cuttlefish is laid, stretched flat out on wire gauze.
The cuttlefish is lightly dusted with sugar.
The cuttlefish is then baked in big ovens.
The cuttlefish are done when they are golden brown. We can smell the characteristic aroma of toasted cuttlefish.
This is the most frenetic part of the production process as the cuttlefish have to be rolled and bagged while they are still hot.
Fresh out of the oven is also the best time to taste the crispy cuttlefish 😋
They are brittle like the caramelised sugar on top of a crème brûlée. Tee Soon Seng's crispy cuttlefish tastes savoury, sweet and spicy with a toasty flavour. Very addictive! I finished 200 grams of it in front of my lappy, all by myself while writing up this post.
Once rolled, the crispy cuttlefish are immediately bagged and double sealed to keep them fresh for as long as possible.
Grilled cuttlefish is often considered a Chinese New Year goody but it is good for anytime as a snack.
Each 300 gram pack of Tee Soon Seng crispy cuttlefish costs S$24 at their retail outlet in Telok Kurau.
There you will also find other TSS grilled cuttlefish products including their latest salted egg yolk cuttlefish which retails at S$16 for a 200 gram bottle.
818 Durian & Pastries (Retail / Distributor)
Address: 201 Telok Kurau, Singapore 423910
GPS: 1°18'43.7"N 103°54'40.4"E | 1.312129, 103.911227
Hours: 11:00am - 9:00pm daily
Tee & Son Manufacturing
Address: Blk 26, Defu Lane 10, #01-190, Singapore 539207
GPS: 1°21'13.7"N 103°53'34.2"E | 1.353795, 103.892832
Tel: 9457 2494 (wholesale enquiries)
Date: 13 Jan 2018
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Hi. Tks for the post as my mum loves cuttlefish. Very nice photos too. Stephen
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