When you're standing in the snack aisle, or scrolling an online store, the sheer variety of Asian bean snacks and coated peanuts can be overwhelming. Do you want the light, airy shatter of a crispy broad bean? The substantial double-crunch of a fish skin peanut? Or something bold, spicy, or deeply savoury?

At MyAsianStore, four brands stand out for very different reasons: Yamata, Nice Choice, Six Fortune and Phong Kee. Each brings its own heritage, texture philosophy and flavour identity. Here's what makes each one special, and how to decide which to reach for.

Six Fortune: the bridge between two homes

The story

Six Fortune (六福) was founded in 1975 by Scholar Enterprises Co., Ltd., a Taiwanese company with a mission that went beyond selling snacks. As the founder travelled the world during the economic boom of the Asian Tigers, he saw a need: overseas Chinese communities were missing the flavours of home.

The name carries deep meaning. 六福 translates to "Six Fortunes," representing six blessings central to Chinese life: family, nurture, food for joy, reunion, gratitude and celebration. As the brand puts it, "whether you're on a park bench in San Francisco or at a London subway station, as long as you have Six Fortune, you have a taste of home."

For five decades Six Fortune has exported to North America, South America, Europe, Australia, Southeast Asia and Hong Kong, developing more than 200 own-brand products. The second generation of the founding family now leads the business.

What Six Fortune brings to the table

Six Fortune's strength is its broad bean (fava bean) snacks, which balance tradition with modern flavour innovation. The brand positions these beans as a traditional street food that predates Western snacks like potato chips in the region.

At MyAsianStore, Six Fortune offers four distinct broad bean flavours, all in 100g resealable bags:

• Original Flavour Broad Bean (六福原味蚕豆): the purest expression of the bean. Crunchy roasted broad beans in classic seasoning, with clean flavour and a substantial crunch.
• Cumin Seasoned Broad Bean (六福孜然蚕豆): roasted beans with warm, earthy cumin that draws out their natural nuttiness, finishing savoury and lightly smoky.
• Sichuan Spiced Broad Bean (六福椒麻蚕豆): coated in the iconic mala combination, the numbing tingle of Sichuan peppercorns layered with dried chilli heat. Bold, aromatic and addictively crunchy.
• Wasabi Broad Bean (六福芥末蚕豆): a fiery modern twist. The nutty, earthy bean gives way to sharp, clean wasabi heat that rushes through your nose and clears the palate.

All are plant-based, high in protein and fibre, and come in resealable zip bags to stay fresh between sessions. Product of Taiwan.

Six Fortune's identity: cultural heritage meets modern flavour innovation. If you want broad beans that honour tradition while delivering bold contemporary flavours, this is your brand.

Yamata: a century of Japanese-style coated nuts

The story

Yamata's roots stretch back to 1912, when the Yamada family opened its first workshop in Tokyo specialising in coated nuts. Over a century later that tradition lives on through Xiamen Yamata Foods, a Sino-Japanese joint venture under Matsukawa House Corporation.

In 1988 Matsukawa built its third factory in Xiamen, producing coated nuts exclusively for the Japanese market for nearly two decades. In 2006 the company restructured with Chinese partners, opening export channels to Southeast Asia, Europe and the Americas. Today Yamata operates a 40,000 square metre facility with capacity of 20,000 tons per year.

Yamata's approach is rooted in traditional Japanese snack-making: precision, clean ingredients, and bold layered flavours.

What Yamata brings to the table

Yamata's lineup focuses on broad beans, soybeans and peas with distinctive flavour profiles:

• Hei Ya Style Broad Beans (黑鴨風味蠶豆): inspired by Wuhan-style braised duck, with rich savoury-sweet five-spice depth.
• Seaweed Flavour Fried Broad Beans: split broad bean halves fried crisp and coated in savoury green seaweed seasoning.
• Salted Black Soybeans: carefully roasted black soybeans with a light touch of salt, nothing else.
• Crab Roe Flavour Broad Beans: rich, deeply savoury, umami-packed crab roe seasoning on large, meaty fava beans.
• Green Peas with Chilli Flavour: light, airy green peas with a bold Sichuan chilli kick.

Worth knowing about too: Garlic Flavour Green Peas, the Three Beans mix if you want variety in one bag, and Variety Coated Peanuts, which bridge the bean and peanut worlds.

Yamata's identity: heritage, precision, and clean bold flavours rooted in Japanese and Chinese snacking traditions.

Nice Choice: Taiwan's everyday snacking companion

The story

Nice Choice (九福) is the flagship brand of Hurng Fur Foods Factory Co., Ltd., established in 1971 in Taoyuan City, Taiwan. Guided by six principles, unity, practicality, innovation, quality, service and efficiency, the company has grown into one of Taiwan's most recognised snack manufacturers.

Hurng Fur now runs eight main production lines, distributing through major Taiwanese channels and reaching international markets wherever there is a Chinese community. The brand holds FSSC22000, ISO22000 and HACCP certifications.

Nice Choice is a Taiwanese household name, the kind of brand you grew up with and the one that's always in the pantry.

What Nice Choice brings to the table

Its strength is the Crisp Broad Bean (蚕豆酥) line:

• Crisp Broad Bean, Original (160g): light, airy and lightly savoury. The 酥 (sū) in the name signals a crispy, shattery texture quite different from dense roasted broad beans.
• Crisp Spicy Broad Bean (160g): bold, direct chilli heat over the same crispy base.

The key differentiator is texture. The 酥 preparation creates a lighter, more puffed structure, much like the difference between a dense roasted nut and a crispy cracker.

Nice Choice's identity: everyday Taiwanese snacking. Affordable, accessible and rooted in the crispy 蚕豆酥 tradition.

Phong Kee: the Hong Kong double-crunch classic

The story

Phong Kee's story began in 1982, when a family moved to Oakland, California, carrying little more than hopes, dreams and a delicious recipe. Over 40 years later Phong Kee is still a Bay Area family business, now operating out of Hayward, and stands as one of the most recognised Chinese-style roasted nut brands in North America.

Every batch is seasoned and roasted in-house, with bold flavours and fresh ingredients going straight from their kitchen to your home. A true diaspora success story.

What Phong Kee brings to the table

The specialty is coated peanuts, specifically Hong Kong-style fish skin peanuts (魚皮花生): whole peanuts encased in a thick, crispy savoury batter. The result is a double-crunch texture, a shatteringly crisp outer shell giving way to a roasted peanut centre.

The lineup at MyAsianStore includes:

• Crunchy Roasted Peanuts, Original (198g)
• Hot Crunchy Roasted Peanuts, spicy 香辣 (198g)
• Curry Crunchy Roasted Peanuts (198g)
• Garlic Coated Peanuts (198g)
• Roasted Garlic Peanuts (198g)
• Five Spice Roasted Peanuts (198g)
• HK Style Bean Curd Roasted Peanuts, 南乳 (198g)

Phong Kee's identity: bold, substantial and deeply savoury. If you want a peanut snack with serious crunch and flavour impact, Phong Kee is the gold standard.

Bean snacks vs coated peanuts: how to choose

Now the fundamental question: bean snacks or coated peanuts? They serve different needs.

Choose bean snacks if:

You prefer a lighter, airier crunch. Nice Choice's Crisp Broad Bean is the ultimate example, a puffed, shattery texture that feels almost delicate next to dense nuts. Six Fortune's Original Broad Bean sits in the middle: more substantial than 蚕豆酥, still lighter than a thick-coated peanut.

You want bold, complex flavours without the heaviness of a coating. Six Fortune's Sichuan Spiced and Cumin broad beans deliver street-food flavour with real cultural authenticity, and Yamata's Hei Ya Style Broad Beans bring braised-duck flavour with five-spice depth.

You're snacking with tea. The mild, clean flavours of Nice Choice's Original Crisp Broad Bean and Six Fortune's Original pair beautifully with oolong or jasmine.

You want something that feels clean or minimally processed. Yamata's Salted Black Soybeans are literally just roasted black soybeans and salt.

Choose coated peanuts if:

You want maximum crunch and substance. Phong Kee's fish skin peanuts deliver the double-crunch: crispy batter shell, then roasted peanut.

You're pairing with beer, whisky or cocktails. The thick coating holds up perfectly against cold drinks.

You want bold, assertive flavours. The spicy version brings fragrant heat, curry delivers aromatic warmth, and the garlic peanuts pack an intense punch.

You're hosting a game night or mahjong session. Coated peanuts are the ultimate one-handed, endlessly snackable companion.

The texture spectrum

A quick note on nutrition

Peanuts and beans are both rich in protein, fibre and healthy fats. Coated peanuts typically carry more calories and fat thanks to the batter and frying. If you're watching your intake, bean snacks, especially roasted varieties like Yamata's Salted Black Soybeans and Six Fortune's Original Broad Bean, tend to be the lighter option.

Flavour pairings: what to drink with what

• Nice Choice Crisp Broad Bean (original): Chinese tea such as oolong or jasmine, cold beer, or sparkling water
• Six Fortune Original Broad Bean: Chinese tea, cold beer, or on its own as a light snack
• Six Fortune Cumin Broad Bean: beer, Chinese tea, or a light lager
• Six Fortune Sichuan Spiced Broad Bean: cold beer, whisky, or sparkling water, since mala heat loves a cold drink
• Six Fortune Wasabi Broad Bean: cold beer, sake, or sparkling water
• Yamata Hei Ya Broad Beans: Chinese tea, whisky, or a dark beer
• Yamata Crab Roe Broad Beans: sake, light beer, or sparkling water
• Yamata Salted Black Soybeans: green tea, oolong, or on their own
• Phong Kee Fish Skin Peanuts (original): beer, whisky, or Chinese tea
• Phong Kee Hot Crunchy Peanuts: cold beer, whisky, or sparkling water
• Phong Kee Garlic Peanuts: beer, Chinese tea, or scattered over congee

The verdict: which brand for which occasion?

Choose Nice Choice when you want a light, everyday Taiwanese snack: airy, crispy and endlessly munchable. The perfect pantry staple for casual snacking and tea time.

Choose Six Fortune when you want traditional Taiwanese broad beans with bold, street-food-inspired flavours. Go Original if you're a purist, or explore cumin, mala and wasabi for a modern thrill.

Choose Yamata when you want bold, crafted flavours with a clean ingredient philosophy. The century-old Japanese coating tradition shines through, from umami-rich seaweed broad beans to the minimalist salted black soybeans.

Choose Phong Kee when you want maximum crunch and assertive flavour. The Hong Kong-style fish skin peanuts are a diaspora treasure, built for beer, game nights, and anyone who believes a snack should make a statement.

Can't decide? Get all four. A platter with Nice Choice Crisp Broad Beans, Six Fortune Sichuan Spiced Broad Beans, Yamata Hei Ya Broad Beans and Phong Kee Fish Skin Peanuts covers every texture and flavour profile: light, medium and heavy, mild, aromatic, spicy and bold.

Bring the crunch home

Explore the full range of Yamata, Nice Choice, Six Fortune and Phong Kee snacks at MyAsianStore and find your perfect crunch. Whether you're stocking up for a party, hunting for a tea-time companion, or just craving something bold, these four brands have you covered.