British Legacy in Singapore Hainanese Beef Noodle 🇬🇧 Bovril & Marmite Connection

Many of us in Singapore grew up with Hwa Heng beef noodle, many more are fans today. Hwa Heng, Odean, Scotts Picnic, they are all part of the same beef noodle family and their story since 1948.

The thing that got many people hooked on Hwa Heng beef noodle is their gooey dark brown sauce. It has a unique flavour profile that you will not find in this type of beef noodle even in Hainan Island of China where the dish originally came from.

While researching the history of Hwa Heng Beef Noodle, I stumbled upon a part recipe of the dish in a Straits Times article from 1987.

There were the usual suspects of beef bones, soy sauce, sesame oil, Chinese herbs, and aromatics. Then, there were some other things that caught my eye - Bovril and Marmite.

These are quintessentially British things, as British as the Union Jack 🇬🇧

Bovril was invented in the 1870s by Scotsman John Lawson Johnston from Roslin (near Edinburg) to supply the French Army. The beef extract was supplied as Johnston's Fuild Beef.

Since then, it has become a staple in the British diet as a flavouring to make soup, sauces, spread over bread, etc.

Bovril is loved for its beefy umami savoury salty taste.

Then, what is Marmite?

Marmite has a similar though different taste profile from Bovril but it is made with yeast extract from beer brewing.

It was invented by German chemist Justus von Liebig in the late 1800s. The savoury salty paste was first commercially manufactured in 1902 at Burton upon Trent, a brewing town near Derby in England.

A good source of Vitamin B, Marmite was supplied to British troops during the First World War. It gained popularity and became a staple after the war. It remained a part of soldiers' rations till today.

But, what has all these got to do with Hainanese beef noodle in Singapore? How did Bovril and Marmite got into Hwa Heng beef noodles?

My theory is the Hainanese learned to use Bovril and Marmite from the British.

The Hainanese were late comers to British Malaya. By the time the Hainanese came to British Malaya in numbers in the late 1800s, almost all the jobs were taken by the other Chinese communities who arrived at least 50 years earlier.

Hence, many Hainanese men became cooks and domestic workers in the homes of merchants, colonial officials as well as in military bases, including onboard ships.

The Hainanese exposed to British ways and food became au fait with Bovril and Marmite which were essential to being British.

Indeed, it was at Tengah Officers Mess that I got my first taste of Western food as a greenhorn served by Hainanese Ah Ko dressed in white shirt, black bow tie and black pants.

Hence, it would not be surprising, indeed it would be rather natural for Bovril and Marmite to find their way into traditional Hainanese beef noodles.

But, we can't take that for grant. It's natural only because Singapore pioneers have certain traits that allowed such fusion to flourish.

These British elements in Hwa Heng beef noodle tells me about the adaptability and innovativeness of our Hainanese pioneers.

The wide popularity of Hwa Heng beef noodle reflect the open mindedness and ready acceptance of new ideas and new ways among the Singapore public. This Singapore trait has stood us well in many things, and not only in food.

This trait is very much alive and well today, so Singapore is an excellent "lab" for entrepreneurs from around the world to try new food concepts, and so they do.

Anyway, next time you taste Hwa Heng beef noodles remember, invisible inside the dark sauce is a legacy of our past and a testament of our readiness to adapt, and make the best of everything.

May this spirit stay in Singaporeans' blood.

So much history in a bowl of noodles.

Let's eat, appreciate and be merry!

I firmly believe that knowing the stories behind the food makes it taste better 😋

3 comments:

Stanley Ling21 June 2025 at 21:26
i was in uozu fish market and after lotsa shellfish and other seafood decided i needed some carbo and there was this lone ramen seller hawking beef broth ramen. i swear it tasted like bovril/marmite.
Aaron Ong21 June 2025 at 21:26
Maybe nowadays they no put bovril liao leh? That's why the sauce more diluted? Cut costs 🌚
Alex Kee22 June 2025 at 08:34
Stickiness to add volume mouth feel, most probably.

I prefer the JB Beef Noodles style: not sticky but dry with peanuts, kiam chye and dark soy sauce.

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