Lontong: Cooking for Breast Cancer Survivors Dragon Boaters

how do these aunties wake up at 6am every Saturday to dragon boat is the real question

Every Saturday morning, you will find a group of aunties and uncles in pink train by the Kallang river. Don't judge them by their age though! These pink paddlers (BCF Paddlers in the Pink) age like fine wine and are determined to keep active as they paddle to recovery. From breast cancer survivors to supporters, the team holds firm to the belief that exercise is the best medicine for breast cancer survivors.

It was a joy to cook lontong and bake blueberry muffins for the tight-knitted team. Lontong symbolises their camaraderie -- one pot, one team. As they savoured the warm bowl of savoury coconut stew with an accompaniment of spicy sambal and rice cakes, we began to understand their love for dragon boating, and how they remain strong as a team.

Irene, the captain of the team, emphasised how repetitive upper body movement reduces the risk of lymphedema. As such, the constant paddling motion increases lymph circulation. Dragon boat is not merely a sport; It is a symbol of hope, a support system, and a celebration of life.

Happy Dragon Boat Festival, everyone!

@nomies.coaunties rlly said “what’s your excuse” 🤡 check out the recipe in our website, link in bio! ❤️ #sgfood #sgfoodie #pinkpaddlers #bcf #bcfpip #lontong #blueberrymuffins #blueberry #lontongsayur #captain

Tiktok failed to load.

Enable 3rd party cookies or use another browser

Lontong Sayur Lodeh (Rice Cakes with Vegetable Stew)

Ingredients

spice paste:

• 8 shallots, peeled

• 4 cloves garlic, peeled

• 3 red chillies

• 20g turmeric root, peeled

• 3 candlenuts, soaked

• 30 g ginger, peeled

• 1/4 cup dried shrimp (haebee), soaked in hot water for 30 mins

• 1 tbsp coriander powder

• 2 tsp fennel powder

• 5 Indonesian bay leaf (daun salam)

• 1 turmeric leaf

• 2 lemongrass, bruised

• 30g galangal, bruised

• 1/2 cup oil

• 2 cups coconut milk

• 1.5 litres water

• Salt, to taste
  

• 200g jicama / yam bean (Sengkang), cut into matchsticks

• 150g carrots, cut into matchsticks

• 300g cabbage, diced

• 5-7 long beans, cut to 1 inch pieces

• 300g young unripe jackfruit, washed an parboiled until soft

• 2 blocks tempeh, cubed

• 2 blocks tau kwa (firm tofu), cubed and pre-fried

• 100g dried beancurd skin (fuchok), soaked briefly

• 150g bean vermicelli, soaked briefly
  

  to assemble:

• 4 eggs, boiled and peeled

• 1 log of lontong, cubed and steamed for 10 minutes to soften

• 1 cup serunding kelapa (spiced coconut floss)

• 1 cup sambal tumis
  

  directions:

• blend the spice paste ingredients until fine. heat a pot with oil. sauté the lemongrass, galangal, and spice paste until fragrant and the oil starts to separate. pound the dried shrimp into a coarse paste and add it in.

• add the water and half of the coconut milk. add the bay leaves and turmeric leaf and bring the gravy to a boil.

• add the vegetables which take a longer time to cook i.e. jicama and carrots. then, add the other vegetables, tempeh and tau kwa and simmer until fully cooked. add in the rest of the coconut milk, season with salt and bring it back to a boil. stir in the dried beancurd skin and bean vermicelli and turn off heat.

• to serve, assemble the lontong cubes in a bowl, pour over the vegetable stew (lodeh) and garnish with a boiled egg, serunding and sambal. enjoy!