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Independent Singapore

‘I survived on Indomie and cucumbers': When you're broke in Singapore, what do you eat?

SINGAPORE: It started with an unpretentious, level-headed question posted on Reddit: 'What should a Singaporean eat if they've gone broke?' The user who posted the question provided a rather miserable answer of his own — an 'endurance kit' comprising Indomie instant noodles, one cucumber split across three meals, some bread, and Milo. A little pathetic, a little tear-jerking — but it touched a nerve. The thread rapidly took off, becoming an unusually bolstering joint confessional. From frugal food hacks to community resources, fellow Singaporeans weighed in, providing guidance, compassion, and tales of resilience. Community before calories One suggestion didn't involve food from a store at all: 'Queue up at a Sikh temple for free meals. They have it 3x a day.' Langar, the practice of offering free meals at Sikh place of worship, has long been a silent pillar of support for the famished. In a country where 'dignity' and pride can occasionally stop people from asking for help, the idea that such support is present is both practical and profoundly sympathetic. Another commenter built on this spirit of kindness and genuine care: 'I think I would go to temples to get free meals, or look for soup kitchens. You need the nutrients and don't want to end up with medical conditions due to deficiencies and end up saddled with medical bills.' The message is clear: rudimentary nutrition is important, not just for endurance, but to evade a downhill spiral into health emergencies that can be more expensive than food. Hacks from the hungry However, not everyone who participated in the thread was penniless. Countless others knew what it felt like to stretch a dollar until it pleaded for mercy. And their imagination and resourcefulness were apparent. A user recommended: 'Get packet instead of cup instant noodles, and the extra saved can get cheap add-ons like eggs, imitation crab sticks, and some fresh veggies.' It's the type of logic born out of inexpensive grocery trips and hawker-centre economics. Another shared a time-tested and validated technique: 'I used to buy those red bean bun packets that had like 6 inside and tried to make it last for two days. I remember it was like $1.80 back then. Now don't know if $2 can cover.' Inflation has made these recollections feel like wistfulness from another age, but the approach — make small things stretch — still works. Others took a somewhat darker, more cynical attitude. One commenter, countering the cucumber idea, remarked flatly: 'Wa cucumber ah, I think I rather drink water and save the money to buy something else.' Broke in body, spirit, and energy Not all responses were firmly about financial difficulty. One predominantly touching response came from a student who depicted a different kind of destitution — emotional burnout: 'Wasn't 'broke' broke in terms of bank, but broke in terms of spirit and energy… I kept a container of instant oats in my dorm room… some weeks, almost the entire week.' Now and then, being broke isn't just about the wallet; it's about mental reserves, social investment, and the resolve to carry on. Their nourishment consisted of oats, hot water, the sporadic raisin or chocolate bar taken from school events, and a great deal of skipped mealtimes. The hidden economy of being poor Possibly, the most valuable observation to arise from this Reddit thread was not a suggested dish or food item, but a broader awareness — being broke calls for more than just being frugal. It requires imagination, community responsiveness, and frequently, a throbbing 'realignment' of pride. See also Singaporeans say S$2K monthly salary is considered poor One wise commenter condensed it seamlessly: 'Home-cooked food, well-planned and budgeted, far outstrips anything like cup noodles or low-nutrition food. This should be practised even on a normal budget, not just when you're poor.' More than just a meal Food has always been more than just nourishment. It's about individuality, well-being, and, for countless people, a device to gauge stability. What this thread disclosed was not just how Singaporeans feed themselves when times are hard, but how they care for one another. The penniless, the once-broke, and the still-financially-stressed all congregated around an online table to exchange recipes, recollections, and hard-fought wisdom. For sometimes, just to know that another person has made it through on raisins, noodles, oats, cucumber, and free grapes is enough to help another one get through one more day.