SINGAPORE, Aug 21 — Husband and wife Yahya Ibrahim and Salama Salim avoid soft drinks and sugary foods. When they take tea or coffee, they go for the “kosong” option (Malay for “zero”, meaning without sugar). Yahya, 58, has ditched his beloved Coca-Cola entirely, and eats less white rice, opting for more vegetables or potatoes.
They watch their diet closely because they know it plays a big part in staving off diabetes.
Both of Salama’s parents developed the disease about two to three decades ago, and they are determined not to follow suit.
“We know about diabetes and we’re quite scared (of getting it), so we try to lessen our sugar intake,” said Salama, 52. For example, for breakfast or supper, she takes oats or sugar-free cereal, and she eats only wholemeal bread.
Yahya said he never used to be as health-conscious as his wife until four years ago, when he noticed he was putting on the pounds. Growing older, he also knew diabetes was a real danger — almost a third of those over 60 years old in Singapore have the disease. After altering his diet, he has dropped about 9kg, weighing 61kg now.
“When you’re a bit older and busier, you have to be more careful,” Yahya added, noting that regular exercise and medical screenings are also important.
It is no surprise that the couple sells a healthier version of soto ayam at their food stall at Our Tampines Hub. The recipe, passed down by Salama’s parents, uses ingredients that are boiled instead of sauteed, as is typically done. They also use less oil, less salt, and no preservatives in the dish.
In his National Day Rally speech in Malay yesterday, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong mentioned the couple’s food stall as he urged Singaporeans to watch what they eat. He addressed the dangers of diabetes as one of three areas with long-term implications that the government was paying attention to. Even when cooking with less sugar, he said, “we can still get a tasty result”. He added: “For example, curry is still delicious if we use evaporated milk instead of coconut milk.”
Yahya attested to that, saying their healthier version of soto ayam is popular among customers. In the previous three months, about half of the orders were for soto ayam, even though they offer six to seven other dishes, as well as nasi padang. Besides soto ayam, another lower-calorie dish they serve is mee hoon soto, where they replace the yellow noodles with vermicelli, which is less fatty.
Yahya attributes the healthy response to their soto ayam partly to people “being more health-conscious”.
“The younger generation is more educated and knows more about being healthy. With these healthy options, we get more people coming to eat here. It gives us good sales,” he added.
What keeps people coming also has to do with their success in keeping dishes tasty, though.
Referring to those who have been patronising their stall, which was opened by Salama’s parents about 30 years ago in Tanjong Pagar, but moved to Tampines at the beginning of this year, Yahya said: “Some previous customers who stay around Tampines will drop by to eat our food. They say our soto ayam is the best!” — TODAY
