The Underground Cooks of Singapore’s Prisons – Gastro Obscura

In the 1970s and 80s, when the guards stepped away, the pots and flames came out.
Shrimp sambal, reconstituted milk, and fried noodles bubble away in a pot, filling the air with the aroma of laksa, Singapore’s beloved noodle soup. For the cooks working in careful silence, the smell is a reminder of life outside of the prison they are stuck in, and it is hard-won: To make the dish, one…