Seventy-two years ago today, the British did a wonderfully horrendous job trying to prevent Singapore from falling into the clutches of the Imperial Japanese Army.

The Battle of Singapore took barely one week to wrap up in 1942, from Feb. 8 to 15, and -- as the Brits would say -- for everything to go tits up.

As a result of that foul-up, the Japanese Occupation ensued and lasted for more than three-and-a-half years.

The people of Singapore had it bad. But they still made the best of their food. Not to over-romanticise, but well, sort of.

A series that sheds light on the dietary habits of people coping in adverse conditions has been uploaded on YouTube.

So, if you're in the mood, here are 6 dishes you can recreate at home to mimic what people ate during and after WWII:

1. Tapioca vadae

How to make:

Mix grated tapioca + crushed turmeric with salt + finely-chopped chilies + sliced onion + diced curry leaves + grated coconut + a bit of tapioca flour (if mixture is too moist)

Roll into balls and deep fry

2. Lemak sweet potatoes and kang kong

You'd need to:

Stir fry chilies, shallots and dried shrimp (hei bee) that have been pounded into coarse paste

Add coconut milk to stir fried paste

Add sweet potatoes that have been peeled and cut into cubes into coconut milk

Left to simmer for 15 minutes and add kang kong and cook until done

3. Sotong with kiam chye

Shred the kiam chye and soak in water to remove excess salt

Stir fry diced garlic and chili and squid, remove from heat and stir fry kiam chye

Return stir fried garlic-chili-squid back into kiam chye and stir fry all together

4. Papaya soup

Boil everything:

Sliced semi-ripe papaya

Shallots (coarsely pounded)

Dried shrimp (coarsely pounded)

Two chilies

Belachan

Prawns

Pepper

5. Lobster ala bystander

*Note: No one actually had lobster to eat during WWII. This was a "fantasy" dish they craved, which they did consume during better years before the war.

Mix:

Flesh of young coconut

Lobster

Tomato sauce

Pepper

A bit of sherry

Salt

Put in baking bowl and bake

6. Gula melaka blancmange

Gula melaka + water + sugar

Combine with

Mung bean flour + thick coconut milk

Cook in

Thin coconut milk until thickened

Pour into mould and refrigerate

All images, recipes, GIFS can be found at this following links by the National Museum:

Eat to Live: Wartime Recipes (Episode 1: Food as Power & Control)

Eat to Live: Wartime Recipes (Episode 2: Living off the Land)

Eat to Live: Wartime Recipes (Episode 3: Fishing for Food)

Eat to Live: Wartime Recipes (Episode 4: Extreme Hunger)

Eat to Live: Wartime Recipes (Episode 5: Food of the Imagination)

Eat to Live: Wartime Recipes (Episode 6: Time to Celebrate)