Food Feuds: Ji Xiang Ang Ku Kueh vs Poh Cheu Soon Kueh and Ang Ku Kueh
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.
Oftentimes when someone tells me they don’t like ang ku kueh, their reason is that it’s too sticky or oily, or overly sweet. This is when I reply: “You just haven’t tried the good stuff yet.”
A well-made ang ku kueh, named for its classic red skin and turtle shell shape, is smooth and delicate. Rather than sticky, it’s supposed to be soft and pleasantly chewy, opening up to reveal fillings that range from traditional peanut or sweet mung bean to more modern flavours such as durian and corn.
The best ang ku kuehs are, of course, made by hand to control the thickness, or rather thinness, of the dough, which are affected by daily fluctuations in temperature and humidity.
Machines can’t do that, which is why these two extremely popular ang ku kueh brands have been handcrafting their kueh for almost four decades now.
The feud
Nothing serious here — just a little friendly competition is all. Interestingly, both Ji Xiang Ang Ku Kueh and Poh Cheu Kitchen, while completely unrelated to each other, first started in 1985 during Singapore’s very first recession.
Both have since won plenty of awards and recognition, and are now always mentioned in the list of top ang ku kueh spots in the country. Queues throughout the day are almost guaranteed.
It’s hard to mistake one for the other though, because there are many fundamental differences between each brand’s kueh.
Ji Xiang Confectionery
235 Victoria Street
Open: Monday to Sunday (7am to 7pm)
Ji Xiang Confectionery is the brainchild of Toh Poh Seek, who started his business from his HDB flat at Everton peddling peanut and sweet bean paste ang ku kueh to provision shops and hawkers around the neighbourhood.
Its popularity soon led to the setup of a dedicated space at 1 Everton Park three years later in 1988 — a mainstay up till today that’s plainly known by regulars as “Everton Park ang ku kueh”.
Now, they have another seven outlets islandwide, with the bulk of operations shifting to the flagship store in Bugis. There, you’ll see multiple kueh makers rolling up 10 different fillings before shaping their kueh in pink plastic moulds.
Generally, Ji Xiang’s ang ku kueh are flatter and the skin thinner, easily sliced open to reveal a typically more compact filling than Po Cheu’s.
For this article, we try all of its classic flavours, as well as two premium ones (minus the almond and pistachio flavour) to match the flavours available from the other brand.
Peanut: 3.5/5
Ji Xiang’s peanut filling has a slightly bitter taste to it, like peanuts that have been roasted a tad too much. Still, it has a nice natural peanut flavour (it’s less sweet than Poh Cheu’s). It’s more loosely packed, and I like the texture better.
Sweet Bean: 4.5/5
The sweetened mung bean paste is smooth and moist, and sweetened just enough to bring out the desirable bean flavour. A very solid and classic ang ku kueh flavour.
Salted Bean: 3.5/5
In terms of texture, Ji Xiang’s salted bean paste is more compact and ground to a finer consistency. Flavour-wise, it’s a tad saltier than Poh Cheu and doesn’t seem to have quite the same finesse in terms of complexity. It’s still pretty well done though.
Corn: 2.5/5
This is a little weak on the corn flavour, and in fact not too much different from its regular sweet bean. Only the tiny bits of corn inside give any indication that it’s a corn ang ku kueh.
Coconut: 2.5/5
Ji Xiang’s coconut ang ku kueh, while very pretty, is a little on the wetter side with a light coconut taste. Not liking the texture too much, which feels almost soggy, but okay in a pinch.
Yam: 4/5
If you like the sort of yam paste that’s on the drier, more compact side, yet still full of pure yam flavour, this is a good choice for you. I personally like the oilier and smoother kind of paste (think orh nee), but it’s still a good one.
Black Sesame (S$3.50): 5/5
This costs more than two regular ang ku kuehs, but it’s so scrumptious. The charcoal grey skin is peppered with whole sesame seeds, and when you cut it open, it reveals a mass of coarse black sesame paste, like very chunky peanut butter, but grinded to a grainier consistency.
The black sesame flavour is very, very pure, sweetened just enough to bring out the flavour of the sesame. I’ve never given a full rating before, but this is just delightful.
Durian (S$3.50): 4.5/5
Another premium flavour, the black durian ang ku kueh is filled with top-quality mao shang wang durian pulp — no additional sweeteners and all natural. It’s hard to go wrong on this one because it’s all about the quality of durian flesh, which is rich and bittersweet with an aromatic aftertaste.
Value: 4/5
Ji Xiang offers very good value with most of its flavours going at S$1.50. The premium flavours, such as the black sesame and durian, are a tad pricey at S$3.50, but the execution is excellent.
Final score: 75.5%
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Poh Cheu Kitchen
127 Bukit Merah Lane 1, 01-222
Open: Tuesday to Saturday (8am to 6pm)
Poh Cheu was founded in 1985 by couple Neo Poh Cheu and Lim Kim Noi, and unlike Ji Xiang, they also started out selling other traditional handmade creations such as soon kueh and abacus seeds, alongside their ang ku kueh.
Poh Cheu was also awarded a Michelin Plate in 2019 — the first ang ku kueh shop to be awarded the honour. It has retained its original coffee-shop stall from the 80s, and remains the only outlet.
The stall offers 13 different flavours, with interesting new age ones such as coffee, pineapple, green tea, and mango. Poh Cheu’s kueh is rounder than Ji Xiang’s and the skin slightly thicker, with a more springy texture.
Peanut: 3.5/5
Poh Cheu’s peanut filling is fairly similar to Ji Xiang’s, except that it is a bit on the sweeter side, and the peanuts are more compact. A safe and solid option.
Sweet Bean: 3/5
The filling is sweeter and a bit on the chunky side, and I could taste clumpy bits as I chewed, compared to the relatively smooth sweet bean paste from Ji Xiang. Altogether decent, but would like to taste a bit more of the bean rather than too much sweetness.
Salted Bean: 4.5/5
The salted bean flavour is a classic, and Poh Cheu executes its version flawlessly. The pasty salted mung bean is reminiscent of a good tau sar piah from Hong Kong, with a touch of pepper to add a whole dimension of flavour.
Yam: 4.5/5
Now that’s what I’m talking about — a solid yam ang ku kueh oozing with soft and sweet yam paste, with a touch of lard inside like a good orh nee dessert. Creating fillings to replicate classic desserts seems to be a thing here (see black sesame flavour).
Black Sesame: 4/5
The skin is a pretty warm grey speckled with crushed sesame seeds. The filling is an oozy sesame paste — slightly thicker than what you’d get at the dessert stall, but just as rich and sweet. It’s not as premium as Ji Xiang’s, but done very well at a fraction of the price.
Coconut: 3.5/5
The coconut flavour from Poh Cheu is slightly better than Ji Xiang’s — crunchy, sweet and not as ‘moist’ in the mouth. If I had to choose between the two, it’d be this one.
Corn: 4.5/5
One of its newer flavours. I was prepared to be disappointed after tasting Ji Xiang’s corn flavour, but Poh Cheu does a very good rendition with larger pieces of sweet corn inside. There’s an instant fragrance of corn aroma on the first bite — this is sure to satisfy corn lovers.
Durian: 2.5/5
Poh Cheu’s durian can hardly be compared to Ji Xiang’s. They use a sweet bean paste flavoured with durian rather than actual durian pulp. As a result, there’s barely a hint of durian flavour when I compare both side by side. Not the best flavour Poh Cheu has come up with.
Value: 4.5/5
Final score: 76.5%
Our verdict
The winner: Poh Cheu Kitchen
It’s a single percentage point difference, but Poh Cheu Kitchen tops this by a hair.
Take this verdict with a pinch of salt, because as you’ve seen above, both brands have very different styles of ang ku kueh, which will be favoured by different groups of people.
Ji Xiang tends to rely on a similar kind of pasty filling and uses less sugar to let the natural flavours of the ingredients shine, while Poh Cheu’s kueh are on the sweeter side, and have a more varied type of filling (from chunky to pasty to absolutely smooth).
Comparing the same flavours from both brands side by side, we have favourites from each brand — and you probably will, too.
Either way, there’s no denying both stand out from those mass-produced ones in commercial factories. Now, let me head back to those leftovers in my kitchen…
HungryGoWhere paid for its meals at both stalls for this article.
Ji Xiang Ang Ku Kueh and Poh Cheu Kitchen are on the GrabMart delivery service and offer free delivery (up to S$3 off) with GrabUnlimited.
Alternatively, you can book a ride to Ji Xiang Ang Ku Kueh and Poh Cheu Kitchen.
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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