Singapore Recipe Plates — Chilli Crab, Laksa, Nasi Lemak & Kueh
NOM's recipe plates are melamine dinner plates printed with the full recipe of a Singapore dish — Chilli Crab, Nyonya Laksa, Nasi Lemak, Kueh Lapis Sagu, Ondeh Ondeh. You can actually cook from the plate (the recipe is complete), or hang it on a kitchen wall as a tribute to the dish. Either way, the plate acts as a reminder of the food culture of Singapore in a format that survives a flight home.
Six designs in the series so far, each illustrated in NOM's signature playful style. Direct-from-studio Singapore pricing, same-day hotel delivery.
Shop recipe plates in Singapore
Why recipe plates are a distinctive Singapore gift
A recipe you can actually cook
Every plate is printed with the full recipe — ingredients, quantities, and steps — for a signature Singapore dish. These aren't decorative plates with food doodles; they're usable reference cards that happen to be shaped like dinnerware.
Illustrated by a Singapore studio
NOM is a working Singapore design studio. The illustrations, recipe curation, and product design are all done locally. You're supporting an SG creative business directly.
Travel-friendly
Melamine, not ceramic — which means they survive being packed in a suitcase without bubble wrap. Dishwasher-safe, stackable, and priced so buying the full set of six doesn't break a gift budget.
What each recipe plate actually depicts
Chilli Crab is the Singapore national dish-by-acclamation — wok-fried crab in a thick tomato-sambal sauce with egg ribbons. The NOM Chilli Crab plate prints the full recipe (sambal base, the tomato-paste ratio, the cornstarch thickening trick) directly on the dinnerware so you can cook from it. Nyonya Laksa is the Peranakan coconut-curry noodle from Katong — rich, spicy, finished with cockles and prawns. The Nyonya Laksa plate carries the rempah recipe and the assembly order. Nasi Lemak is the Malay breakfast plate — coconut rice with sambal, fried anchovies, peanuts, cucumber, and either fried chicken or egg. The Nasi Lemak plate maps each component to a quadrant of the plate, recipe-card style.
Kueh Lapis Sagu is the stacked rainbow sago cake — the Peranakan dessert that looks impossibly photogenic and requires patience to layer. The plate carries the technique on the rim. Ondeh Ondeh is the pandan-coconut rice ball with a hidden palm-sugar centre that bursts when you bite it — the plate explains the dough ratio, the gula melaka filling, and the rolling technique. Each plate is both functional dinnerware and a portable cooking class — a Singapore food culture primer packed flat in a suitcase.
Why melamine (and why that matters for travel)
NOM chose food-grade melamine for the recipe plate series for three reasons. First, durability — melamine doesn't chip or shatter the way ceramic does in a suitcase, which solves the standard fragile-souvenir problem. You can stack the full six-plate set and pack them flat against a suitcase wall without bubble wrap. Second, weight — melamine is roughly a third the weight of equivalent ceramic, which keeps the gift under most airline weight-allowance ranges even when you're buying multiples. Third, print durability — the glossy top coat protects the recipe printing from dishwasher cycles and daily use, so the plates remain readable for years.
The trade-off is the microwave: like all melamine, the plates are not microwave-safe. Reheat food in a separate bowl and transfer to serve. Cleanup is dishwasher-safe top-rack, but abrasive scrubbing will eventually dull the finish — a soft sponge keeps the recipe readable.
Building a kitchen story with the full set
Buying the six-plate set as a single bundle is the most thoughtful version of this gift. The plates land together as a cohesive collection rather than a one-off, and the bundle price is lower than buying individually. Stacked, they tell a six-course Singapore food story: Chilli Crab and Nasi Lemak for the savoury hawker classics, Nyonya Laksa for the Peranakan main, Chicken Rice for the everyday lunch (when in stock), Kueh Lapis Sagu and Ondeh Ondeh for the sweet finish.
Recipients with their own kitchens use them as dinnerware that doubles as a cookbook. Recipients with smaller homes hang them on a kitchen wall as art. Both are valid uses — the plates were designed to function as either. For visiting family with a Singapore connection (grandparents in SG, parents who studied there, anyone with a documented food nostalgia), the full set lands as a complete cultural keepsake rather than a single-dish reference.
Frequently asked questions about NOM recipe plates
What dishes are in the series?+
The current lineup covers Chilli Crab, Nyonya Laksa, Nasi Lemak, Kueh Lapis Sagu, Ondeh Ondeh, and (when in stock) Chicken Rice. NOM also sells the full six-plate set as a single bundle at a discount vs. buying individually.
Can I actually cook from the plate?+
Yes — each plate is printed with the complete recipe: ingredients in quantities, prep steps, and cooking times. The printing is food-safe and the plate is dinner-use rated, so you can literally flip the plate over and cook from it.
What material are the plates made of?+
Food-grade melamine with a glossy top coat that protects the print. Dishwasher-safe on the top rack. Not microwave-safe — as with all melamine, heat in a separate dish and transfer to serve.
Will the print fade over time?+
The print is under a protective glaze, so it tolerates normal dishwashing and daily use. Like any printed dinnerware, abrasive scrubbing will eventually dull the finish, so use a soft sponge.
Which plate should I buy as a gift?+
Chilli Crab and Nasi Lemak are the most universally recognised Singapore dishes, so those are the safest gift picks for someone who has visited Singapore. Kueh Lapis Sagu and Ondeh Ondeh land best with visitors who've engaged with Peranakan food culture specifically. The full six-plate set is the standout housewarming gift.