$5,000 chicken rice showdown: Taiwanese influencer picks her favourites after trying 100 stalls in Singapore

Chicken rice – who doesn't love this iconic dish? From the fragrant rice to the spicy chilli to the tender chicken, it's considered a culinary treasure amongst locals and even tourists.

But how far would you go to find the best version in Singapore? 

One woman went the extra mile by trying 100 chicken rice stalls in Singapore and even tabulated all her findings in a spreadsheet to boot. 

Content creator Angel Hsu uploaded a YouTube video last Saturday (June 3), documenting her search across the island for the best chicken rice. 

The criteria for the chosen stalls were based on Google reviews. 

They had to have at least more than 10 reviews and for brands with multiple outlets, she chose the one with the highest rating. 

For each stall, she would buy two sets of steamed chicken rice. One for tasting and another for testing food hygiene levels. She also ensured that she ordered breast meat from all the 100 stalls to make a fair comparison.

The result? After two months and spending $5,000, she recommends four chicken rice stalls.

The best soup 

Located in Block 158, Ang Mo Kio Avenue 4, Ah Five Hainanese Chicken Rice gets an overall rating of 8.75 out of 10.

Costing $3.50 per plate, the stall uses kampung chicken, which has a distinct yellow appearance. 

"This is how real kampung chicken should look like," Angel explained.

"Kampung chicken are free-range chicken that run around instead of being caged. Hence, their meat is sweeter and more expensive [sic]." 

Additionally, kampung chicken tends be leaner than regular chicken. 

While the meat was rated a solid 7.5, the soup beat out the chicken with a full score of 10. 

Curious to find out the secret behind the soup, she mentioned to the stall owner: "I tried the soup from all 99 other chicken rice stalls but no one could match your standard." 

The stall owner revealed that she uses 10 kampung chicken to make her soup, along with radishes and carrots to enhance the sweetness of the soup. 

The best chicken 

If you're into the poultry, then you might enjoy the chicken from Kampong Chicken Eating House, situated at 247 Outram Road. 

Angel mentioned that while kampung chicken meat is typically tough, the chicken served here is tender. She gave an overall rating of 8.25 out of 10 and the chicken got an eight out of 10 for its tenderness. 

Angel enjoyed the layer of jelly-like fat between the skin and the meat. The chilli also got a shoutout for bringing out the taste of the chicken and the rice. 

The cost of a plate here is slightly pricier at $5.30.

The best rice 

The rice is probably one of the important components of chicken rice. 

According to Angel, the best one is the Ah Boy Chicken Rice stall at Choa Chu Kang.

"After reviewing 100 chicken rice stalls, this rice turns out to be the best," Angel rated it 10 out of 10. The rice is fragrant, and Angel mentioned that the aroma of the herbs come through with every mouthful.

While it's not common, the chicken rice here also comes with pickled cabbage, and each plate costs only $3.60.

The stall got an overall score of nine out of 10. 

The best chicken rice overall 

Wee Kim Hainanese Chicken Rice is ranked best "for the combination of everything".

Over at this Yishun stall, you can help yourself to the soup and the chicken comes with crunchy bean sprouts. Not bad as a plate will set you back $4.50 only. 

Angel also pointed out that the ginger sauce is served up Hong Kong-style, which has a more herbal appearance than the usual ginger dip you will find at other chicken rice stalls. 

She gave the stall an 8.25 rating out of 10.  

The chicken rice list

If you're interested in the full list, she has tabulated all her research in a spreadsheet, complete with detailed ratings, from the rice to the chicken to the soup, and even the cost per gramme, for those keen to know which stall serves up more chicken per dollar. 

Angel also included her comments for every stall, so you can make a copy and save it. 

She covers all things lifestyle on her social channel, but on top of that, she's a public health master's graduate who has worked in labs at the World Health Organisation and the Communicable Disease Centre. 

This explains why she also went to test the chicken for E. coli levels, which is also included in her spreadsheet. 

ALSO READ: Chicken rice battle: Thai woman says Bangkok's version is better than Singapore's

venkat.gunasellan@asiaone.com

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