Food Feuds: Cheng Mun Chee Kee vs Authentic Mun Chee Kee
In our new series Food Feuds, we visit competing local food stalls known for their rivalry and try to find out which one does it better.
Pig’s organ soup is one of those dishes that you either enjoy or don’t. Those who don’t eat pork , dislike porkier dishes, or barf at the thought of eating innards are clearly out.
Even then, there’s a much higher chance of stumbling across an average or even subpar bowl of the tangy offal soup at food courts and coffee shops, for two reasons.
One: This Teochew classic, which combines more ‘acceptable’ ingredients such as meat balls, pork belly, and liver with adventurous ones ranging from tripe and kidney to intestines, is not easy to master; and two: The better ones usually require a trip across the island.
Interestingly, two of the more famous pig’s organ soup in Singapore, Cheng Mun Chee Kee and Authentic Mun Chee Kee, sit within walking distance of each other in Jalan Besar.
The feud
Another family feud, it seems! There’s been a bit of debate as to which is the better one, and you might have guessed from similarities in their names, both originate from the same place but eventually parted ways.
The original recipe creator, Chow Mun Chee, started the business in 1973 with his family before the business was bought over in 2010 by David and Derek Tan, who hoped to ride on the eatery’s success.
While some of Uncle Chow’s family members continued running the Foch Road stall in the Cheng Mun Chee Kee brand, the main man himself moved on to help start Authentic Mun Chee Kee with the entrepreneurs.
A bunch of new dishes such as claypot liver and black vinegar pig trotters were also added to the new brand, while Cheng Mun Chee Kee kept to its pig’s organ mainstay along with a few extra sides.
Cheng Mun Chee Kee
24 Foch Road
Open: Sunday to Thursday (10am to 3.30am), Friday and Saturday (10am to 4am)
With queues pretty much every hour of the day, this popular stall has two units to themselves, one of them being a dedicated seating area — though I always prefer dining at the tables right next to the streets.
Remember to get a table before making your payment at the counter, as the staff will ask for it. Note that you can select your desired pork cuts or innards if you don’t feel up for trying everything.
The service is extremely fast, with both my pig’s organ soup and steamed minced pork (the signature staple at both brands) arriving almost immediately.
Soup: 4/5
I’ve had this soup plenty of times, mostly because it’s more closely situated to me. It’s darker, cloudier, and porkier than Authentic’s with a slight herbal and peppery flavour, and tanginess from generous amounts of salted mustard leaves.
It’s rich and robust, and not because it’s laden with MSG, but how long the soup has been simmered.
Ingredients: 3.5/5
What a delicious pork belly, which comes with a good proportion of fat to lean meat, sliced just thin enough to still provide a satisfying bite. The kidney was tender with a smooth, chewy texture, as were the stomach pieces.
However, not everything was exceptional. The meat balls were well-formed and firm, but not spectacular. While the liver was well-cleaned, the smaller pieces still had a bit of that undesirable powdery texture that comes with being a tad overcooked.
The lean meat, too, was on the tough side with a rough texture. The small intestine as well, had a bit of gaminess, though I can only imagine how difficult this part is to clean.
Chilli: 4.5/5
Fabulous, fabulous chilli — so good that there’s even a sign requesting customers not to bring their own containers to take it home. Cheng Mun Chee Kee’s chilli is not too spicy, but has strong sour notes with a hint of sweetness that also helps to cut off any lingering offal taste. One saucer isn’t enough!
Steamed minced pork with salted fish: 3.5/5
Both brands have their own version of this Teochew favourite, which goes great with rice. Cheng Mun Chee Kee’s take is wet and soft, bordering on the salty side because of the copious amount of salted fish.
The crunchy chestnuts and soft braised peanuts help balance this out, though. While very tasty, I find this version to be a bit weak texture-wise, and the wetness makes it a little mushy.
Value: 4/5
The large pig’s organ soup (S$7) comes chock-full of ingredients, and will definitely fill you up. It’s definitely good value for what you’re paying. The soup is refillable — simply bring your bowl to the side of the kitchen for a quick top up. The minced meat patty is cheaper than Authentic Mun Chee Kee’s at just S$3, but is smaller in size.
Final score: 78%
Authentic Mun Chee Kee
207 Jalan Besar Road
Open: Monday to Sunday (10.30am to 2am)
With Cheng Mun Chee Kee fresh in my mind, I took a mere 500m stroll to Authentic Mun Chee Kee for my second meal. Both stalls were equally packed with people, and I can understand why they each have a loyal following.
Each offers a relatively different bowl of pig’s organ soup, and this one also has an expanded menu of claypot dishes.
The stall is a tad more modernised than Cheng Mun Chee Kee, with photos of the original stall and Uncle Chow plastered as wallpaper at the sides. Efficiency-wise, they were just as fast, though the service is quite lacklustre — don’t be surprised if they’re a little rude and loud.
Plus, it’s cash terms only, so be sure to come prepared or like me, you’ll have to walk a few minutes down to Berseh Food Centre to withdraw money.
Soup: 4.5/5
Authentic Mun Chee Kee has a clearer and lighter soup that focuses on savouriness rather than a strong porky flavour. It has just the right amount of umami and tanginess from the crunchy mustard greens without burying the flavour of the pork meats or innards, which is refreshing.
It’s the kind of subtle, clean soup you can keep drinking without feeling jelak, and yes, I finished every drop.
Ingredients: 4.5/5
If Cheng Mun Chee Kee is good at removing the offal taste from the innards, Authentic is even better.
The liver was cooked perfectly (by that, I mean barely at all) with a very soft and slightly more bouncy texture — and none of the aggressive grainy taste. The sliced lean meat is cut larger and was very tender and juicy to the bite, while the belly was also soft and flavourful.
The stomach slices and intestines are also bigger, so I could taste their chewiness, which adds more dimension to the bowl of soup. The pork balls were firm and tasty but nothing too special. Otherwise, I much prefer the ingredients here.
Another thing — even though I had asked for all parts to be included in the soup, there was no kidney to be found inside, so I can’t comment on that.
Chilli: 3.5/5
Authentic has a more spicy chilli that’s quite balanced between savoury and sourness, and goes well with the meats. While still very good, I would say Cheng Mun Chee Kee has the better chilli.
Steamed minced pork with salted fish: 4/5
Authentic Mun Chee Kee does a very different version that has a higher ratio of pork to salted fish, as well as using leaner minced meat. The result is a dense patty that’s still full of moist and tender pork, the flavour balanced out by small bits of salted fish.
I like the consistency and mouthfeel of this version more, and even the braised peanuts seem to be done a little better — it provides a natural nutty flavour and is braised soft enough to chew with little effort.
Value: 4/5
Like Cheng Mun Chee Kee, the soup is refillable. The large pig organ’s soup (S$7) is very similar in size to Cheng Mun Chee Kee — only there seems to be more liver and less lean meat, which I like. The minced meat patty here is more expensive at S$5.50, but it’s almost twice the size as the one we had at Cheng Mun Chee Kee, justifying its price.
Final score: 82%
Our verdict
The winner: Authentic Mun Chee Kee
This was a hard one. Both places offer great value when you take into account portion sizes and quality, but Authentic Mun Chee Kee ultimately wins for having more consistency and a touch more finesse for all components.
It still boils down to your personal taste and preferences on what makes a good pig’s organ soup. I prefer a cleaner well-balanced broth, which together with their comparatively more tender meat, makes for a very satisfying bowl.
This was my conclusion, as full as I was from eating at Cheng Mun Chee Kee just 30 minutes earlier, though I know others will prefer the punchier, porkier, version there.
If you can get past the lack of service at Authentic Mun Chee Kee, then you’re in for a very satisfying and hearty bowl that won’t disappoint.
HungryGoWhere paid for its meals at both stalls for this article.
Cheng Mun Chee Kee and Authentic Mun Chee Kee are on the GrabFood delivery service and offer free delivery (up to S$3 off) with GrabUnlimited.
Alternatively, you can book a ride to Cheng Mun Chee Kee and Authentic Mun Chee Kee.
Do explore the new GrabFood Dine-in service for awesome deals.
Gary Lim
Author
Gary eats and knows things, which he attributes to over 30 years of eating and drinking — surely that must count for something, he surmises. He was previously the deputy editor at City Nomads and content lead at Burpple.
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