When we talk about Chinese pastries and desserts, we often think about red bean paste-filled buns and soft glutinous cakes. While they taste amazing, don’t you wish they come in other variations?
Thankfully, our local bakers never tire of tweaking and experimenting with traditional Chinese pastries and desserts for us. Here are some fresh takes to our favourite classic Chinese treats and where to find them:
Photo from Ang Ku Kueh Hut /Website
Otherwise known as the red tortoise cake, Ang Ku Kueh is a staple pastry in Chinese celebrations. Besides symbolising fortune, happiness, and longevity, this type of kueh is a mouthwatering delight that is especially popular among children for the perfect combination of its sweet and savoury taste.
Traditionally, Ang Ku Kueh is red in colour and filled with either mung bean paste or ground peanuts mixed with sugar and oil then pressed onto a tortoise-shaped mold and steamed on a piece of banana leaf. Today, it is available in fillings with the trendiest flavours such as hazelnut, yam, pistachio, and green bean. While the skin is still made of glutinous rice flour, wheat starch, and sweet potato, the colouring used for today’s ang ku kueh is not limited to red; rather, it depends on the colour of the ingredient added in the cake. It is also now sold during normal days in Chinese bakeries.
Try: The Ang Ku Kueh Hut
Min. order: $12.00
Delivery fee:Free Islandwide Delivery with Minimum Order of $96
Photo from 603 Tau Sar Piah /FB
Flaky and delicious, this famous Chinese-Malay pastry has gained a following throughout Southeast Asia for its sweet crust and salty filling. In Penang, it even earned the nickname Dragon Ball for its round and golden appearance.
Historically, Tau Sar Piah is also filled with savoury mung bean paste like the Ang Ku Kueh. Over time, bake shops have come up with more modern yet equally tasty flavours such as Coffee, Durian, Pineapple, and Green Tea Tau Sar Piah.
Try: 603 Tau Sar Piah
Min. order: No minimum order required.
Delivery fee: Free Islandwide Delivery with Minimum Order of $200
Photos from House of Soya Bean/Website
The refreshing soya beancurd has also been developed from a plain white pudding to something more exciting through the years. Before, this dessert is just topped with some sugar and clear syrup which is eventually stirred to add some flavour to the pudding. Some would add ginger or pandan for extra fragrance. Now, a couple more toppings can be included in the mix — from attap seeds to longan to pearls to grass jelly to other ingredients you can find in your boba!
Try: House of Soya Beans
Min. order: No minimum order required
Delivery fee: Islandwide Delivery Available
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