{"id":4771,"date":"2018-10-08T21:00:14","date_gmt":"2018-10-08T13:00:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tembusu.nus.edu.sg\/treehouse\/?p=4771"},"modified":"2025-09-25T12:52:04","modified_gmt":"2025-09-25T04:52:04","slug":"food-project-prata","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tembusu3.nus.edu.sg\/treehouse\/2018\/10\/food-project-prata\/","title":{"rendered":"Food Project: Prata"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/tembusu.nus.edu.sg\/treehouse\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Picture1.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-4772 \" src=\"https:\/\/tembusu.nus.edu.sg\/treehouse\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Picture1.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"713\" height=\"400\" srcset=\"https:\/\/tembusu3.nus.edu.sg\/treehouse\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Picture1.png 939w, https:\/\/tembusu3.nus.edu.sg\/treehouse\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Picture1-300x168.png 300w, https:\/\/tembusu3.nus.edu.sg\/treehouse\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Picture1-768x431.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 713px) 100vw, 713px\" \/><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Singaporeans have a love-hate relationship with prata. This relationship can be compared to the Internet\u2019s love for pizza, which is something we guiltily but willingly indulge in. Many associate prata with Indian cuisine, though it does not actually exist in Indian cuisine. Because this dish has such mysterious beginnings, we decided to set it as the first food item for our project. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><b>History<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Here\u2019s a brief timeline of prata\u2019s origin: <\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Brought over to Malaysia by Indian Muslims<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Parathas in India are almost entirely different<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Made from wholemeal wheat flour <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">(atta)<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> instead of refined wheat flour <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">(maida)<\/span><\/i><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Stuffings are usually made from vegetables instead of cheese, egg etc.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Solely considered a savory dish; no sugar, etc.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Rolled thin instead of being repeatedly flipped in the air<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Origins unclear: closest relative (Malabar parotta) is from South India, but other sources say it came from the north<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Consequence of colonial-era migration, from the time when Malaya and India were both part of the British empire<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Despite its common association with Indian cuisine, the actual origin of the dish remains shrouded with mystery. Perhaps the most logical explanation is that it was a dish brought over by Indian Muslims during the colonial era, when both Malaya and India were part of the British Empire. However, that does not explain the metamorphosis the dish has undergone over the years.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Etymologically, prata is a direct reference to the Indian unleavened bread <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">paratha<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> (with a hard \u2018t\u2019 sound, not a \u2018th\u2019 sound). However, the two have little in common. On the one hand, paratha is considered a staple dish in many parts of India as it is usually made from an Indian variation of wholemeal wheat flour known as <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">atta<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. On the other hand, prata is generally considered a snack or a (high-calorie) meal across the ocean, as reflected by its ingredients. Our beloved supper-time dish is mainly composed of refined wheat flour (<\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">maida<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">) instead, with the quantity of oil being considerably more than the Indian counterpart. These differences lead to a significant alteration of taste and texture, from that of a healthy low-GI staple to that of a guilty 1am supper.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Interestingly, the focus on stuffins is an aspect of paratha that did survive through years of local integration. O<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">ne aspect of <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">paratha<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> that did survive through years of local integration would be the focus on stuffings. Both offer consumers a degree of customizability through the various different types of stuffings. While <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">parathas<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> are mainly stuffed with vegetables (e.g. mashed and spiced potatoes, <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">paneer<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> (cottage cheese), etc.), the list of <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">prata<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> stuffings seems to be expanding each year. Notable additions such as marshmallows and chocolates find themselves in the company of more traditional alternatives such as egg and cheese.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><b>Pratalogy<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Despite having mysterious origins, it has become one of the most well-known and popular dishes among all Singaporeans. Its versatility and flexibility allows space for creativity to prosper as a dish that people from all walks of life can enjoy. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">From its origins, it has exploded to a plethora of dishes. Many are inspired and became a fusion dish with Chinese and Western food. Some of the most popular dishes are infused with food of Western origin like cheese or chocolate. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Not constrained to merely the type of fillings, other variations include the shape and texture of the dough. Prata items, like tissue prata, alters the original fluffy texture to a thin and crispy prata that can be easily broken into pieces, or a bite-sized coin prata that is formed into a cutesy dough shape a.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For this first project, we decided to head down to Springleaf @ Sunset Way as it is one of the most well known prata shops. It dedicates itself to the creation of new and innovative pratas in Singapore. In addition, it is close to the campus so it is very accessible to NUS students.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/tembusu.nus.edu.sg\/treehouse\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Screen-Shot-2018-10-08-at-6.53.13-PM.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-4777 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/tembusu.nus.edu.sg\/treehouse\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Screen-Shot-2018-10-08-at-6.53.13-PM-1024x780.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"660\" height=\"503\" srcset=\"https:\/\/tembusu3.nus.edu.sg\/treehouse\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Screen-Shot-2018-10-08-at-6.53.13-PM-1024x780.png 1024w, https:\/\/tembusu3.nus.edu.sg\/treehouse\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Screen-Shot-2018-10-08-at-6.53.13-PM-300x229.png 300w, https:\/\/tembusu3.nus.edu.sg\/treehouse\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Screen-Shot-2018-10-08-at-6.53.13-PM-768x585.png 768w, https:\/\/tembusu3.nus.edu.sg\/treehouse\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Screen-Shot-2018-10-08-at-6.53.13-PM.png 1478w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 660px) 100vw, 660px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><b>Food Review<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Plain Prata<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/tembusu.nus.edu.sg\/treehouse\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Picture3.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-4778 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/tembusu.nus.edu.sg\/treehouse\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Picture3.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"692\" height=\"519\" srcset=\"https:\/\/tembusu3.nus.edu.sg\/treehouse\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Picture3.png 939w, https:\/\/tembusu3.nus.edu.sg\/treehouse\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Picture3-300x225.png 300w, https:\/\/tembusu3.nus.edu.sg\/treehouse\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Picture3-768x576.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 692px) 100vw, 692px\" \/><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Appropriately, we started with the quintessential <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">kosong<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> (plain) variation, paired with the free-flow self-service chicken and fish curries. Fortunately, the dish was exactly like how we expected it to be: crispy on the outside, fluffy on the inside. The two curries, while they initially looked rather watery, actually ended up being thick and flavorful, especially the chicken curry. The spices blended well together and the level of heat was just right, providing that right amount of kick. All in all, the plain prata was extremely satisfying, and it would be an appropriate benchmark for other pratas one can get in Singapore.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>8\/10<\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Prata Alfredo<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/tembusu.nus.edu.sg\/treehouse\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Picture4.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-4779 size-large aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/tembusu.nus.edu.sg\/treehouse\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Picture4-768x1024.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"853\" srcset=\"https:\/\/tembusu3.nus.edu.sg\/treehouse\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Picture4-768x1024.png 768w, https:\/\/tembusu3.nus.edu.sg\/treehouse\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Picture4-225x300.png 225w, https:\/\/tembusu3.nus.edu.sg\/treehouse\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Picture4.png 939w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Next, we ventured into one of their yearly prata creations\u00a0\u2013 Prata Alfredo. The prata alfredo was filled with <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">rosemary smoked chicken, fresh button mushroom, mozzarella cheese and creamy alfredo sauce. <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Both of us expected the typical alfredo spaghetti paste inside the prata which would have made it very overwhelming rich dish. However, to our surprise, it was such more appetising. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The rosemary chicken and mushroom complemented the sauce well \u2013 much lighter than a typical alfredo sauce\u00a0\u2013 which made every taste very satisfying. The alfredo sauce was mixed with another tomato and chili based sauce, and the other sauce enticed our curiosity to eat on. The perplexing sauce has an initial savoury flavour and a contrasting sweet and spicy aftertaste. In addition, at times, the filling overtook the taste of prata so there was (sadly) little balance between the filling to prata ratio. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">We did not particularly enjoy it but acknowledged the uniqueness of the mystery sauce that enhanced this mediocre prata dish.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>6\/10<\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Red Bean Prata<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/tembusu.nus.edu.sg\/treehouse\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Picture5.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-4780 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/tembusu.nus.edu.sg\/treehouse\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Picture5.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"665\" height=\"740\" srcset=\"https:\/\/tembusu3.nus.edu.sg\/treehouse\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Picture5.png 939w, https:\/\/tembusu3.nus.edu.sg\/treehouse\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Picture5-270x300.png 270w, https:\/\/tembusu3.nus.edu.sg\/treehouse\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Picture5-768x855.png 768w, https:\/\/tembusu3.nus.edu.sg\/treehouse\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Picture5-920x1024.png 920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 665px) 100vw, 665px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When deciding on which sweet variation of prata to try, we had some difficulty choosing between chocolate and red bean. After some thought, we decided that the red bean prata seemed to be the more interesting choice. The prata was large and rectangular but really thin. Its incredible crispiness was, reminiscent of thin wafers. Conveniently, it was pre-cut into squares, which made it feel more like a sinful snack than a way to round off a meal. Each square was filled with just the right amount of red bean paste, allowing some space for the slight saltiness of the crunchy prata shell. Out of curiosity, we dipped it in curry \u00a0and, surprisingly, the spicy savoriness of the curry did not conflict with the already present sweetness, leading to a peaceful coexistence of two distinct flavors. We reckoned this was probably because of the rich, oily nature of the curry, which compliments both the outer layer and the filling. Perhaps this dish is the most appropriate example of how distinctively Singaporean prata is, with the interesting fusion of different cuisines that provides satisfaction from not just its uniqueness, but also its genuine quality.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>8.5\/10<\/b><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>__<\/p>\n<p><em>About the authors<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Elaine is a Year 1 majoring in Project and Facilities Management in SDE. When she is not doing her school activities, she is busy trying out new recipes in the kitchen. She loves discovering new food and travelling around the world.<\/p>\n<p>Rohan is a Year 1 student majoring in Computer Engineering and Business. On more relaxed days, you can find him either searching the Internet for underground bands, or writing yet another personal poem. When given a choice, he&#8217;ll always pick the spiciest option, and smile through all the pain. He hopes that, once he graduates, he&#8217;ll still be hungry for knowledge (and sushi).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Prata is one of the most loved dishes in Singapore. In this article, we delve into the makings of the dish we know today and, at the same time, review Springleaf at Sunset Way.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":119,"featured_media":4784,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4771","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","publication_type-slice-of-life","theme-culture","scope-singapore","flavour-relaxed"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tembusu3.nus.edu.sg\/treehouse\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4771","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tembusu3.nus.edu.sg\/treehouse\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tembusu3.nus.edu.sg\/treehouse\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tembusu3.nus.edu.sg\/treehouse\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/119"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tembusu3.nus.edu.sg\/treehouse\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4771"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/tembusu3.nus.edu.sg\/treehouse\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4771\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4787,"href":"https:\/\/tembusu3.nus.edu.sg\/treehouse\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4771\/revisions\/4787"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tembusu3.nus.edu.sg\/treehouse\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4784"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tembusu3.nus.edu.sg\/treehouse\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4771"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tembusu3.nus.edu.sg\/treehouse\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4771"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tembusu3.nus.edu.sg\/treehouse\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4771"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}