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Here’s one from the April offering of Box From Japan! This looks like one big bowl of tonkotsu! Let’s have a look inside! By the way – Box From Japan is a really great way to get some instant noodles you probably haven’t ever tried before, nor in a million years wouldn’t have access to here in the USA. With that, let’s crack this bog one open!
For a while now, Javier over at BoxFromJapan.com has been sending me sample boxes and they’ve been really out of this world. Box From Japan is a subscription service – you can get a new box every month to your door – it’s reasonably priced I think since you can’t find any of these in the USA, plus I’ve NEVER gotten a single instant ramen from him that I’ve ever reviewed before – and that’s definitely saying something. Not only that, he also has a candy box – all sorts of neat treats from Japan as well! Let’s look inside!
I’ve been getting a LOT of boxes lately! Here’s one I wasn’t expecting!
Two new varieties (click to enlarge)! I’ve reviewed the two on the top, their ghost pepper and xo sauce flavors. On the botton are the new tuna and seaweed flavors! Thank you – looking forward to checking these out!
Here’s the second variety I was sent by the folks at Oni Hot Pot of Taiwan – thanks again! The first variety was a spicy one – this sounds a little more on the seafood kick. Let’s have a look, shall we?
This one was sent by CarJEN of Malaysia – thanks! I did a Meet The Manufacturer with them a while back and since then, they’ve sent me products when they come out. I’m pretty sure this has been out for a little while, but today will be my first taste. Asam translates to sour (usually like tamarind) and pedas translates to spicy, hence, sour and spicy. Let’s give it a try!
My sister got these for my birthday up in Canada – thank you! I’ve wanted to review some Walmart branded instant noodles for years; just seems fitting that Walmart would have instant noodles. These were bought in Canada, however they’re made in the United States. However, I’ve never seen instant noodles with the Great Value brand inside the United States… Anyways, let’s crack this open and see how this one fares.
A while back, I was all but out of instant noodles and put out a call for some. One of the people who responded was Prima Taste – they sent some from Hong Kong and this is one of them – thank you! My wife is a big fan of Hello Kitty and we’ve tried the Curry flavor one in the past. Let’s have a look in this soy sauce flavor one!
This looks really interesting – some very new from Malaysia. I’ve found that I really like green curries- had a few green curry instants – however never seen a green curry bowl. Let’s see how this one fares!
The DHL guy is my new pal – I hook him up with extra instant noodles I’ve got. He’ll probably end up with a couple from this box too! Kind of neat – he bring me noodles and I share some of the ones he brought! Well, let’s have a look inside!
Another one sent by Jen from Australia – thanks again! So a favorite destination of Australian tourists is Bali and Borneo – pretty nearby and full of tasty fare. One such common food you’ll find in these places is mi goreng, or fried noodles. Usually a cooked and drain noodle is stir fried and condiments such as sweet chilli sauce and sweet soy sauce are added as well and vegetables and meats. Let’s see how this cup variety of mi goreng tastes.
Here’s yet another one from Colin – thanks! He’s sent me a ton of great stuff and here’s another one. I reviewed the bowl variety over 300 reviews ago – #1735! Looks like I liked that one – let’s see how the pack version does.
This one was sent to me by my cousins Mike and Adriana frequently visit Brazil and brought me some back! Thank you so much! After looking it up, I found that this is chicken and cream cheese flavor. i’m hoping the translation is right; figuring it is – I guess we’ll see! Let’s crack it open and check it out!
When I was asked by a new Malaysian company if I’d like to review their samples, you can guess my answer – and here they are!
Here’s another one from Wesley N. He sent a box in mid December that arrived mid February from Japan – we’d thought it might have been lost, but it showed up – and in immaculate condition! Thank you again!Tokushima prefecture is on Shikoku island in Japan, and these varieties from Tokushima Seifun aren’t widely known and very localized. Seifun literally means ‘manufactured powder,’ referring to the flour mill. This looks exceptionally good! Let’s have a look!
Here’s one my sister got me up in Canada for my birthday! Thanks! In 2015 when I went up to Canada, I saw this one but didn’t get it since I thought I had it in my hamper awaiting review. Well, I didn’t and luckily they still had it in stock at PriceSmart Foods up in Richmond, BC when my sister went. Vegetarian time! Let’s check it out.
Here’s an interesting one – this is a Korean product Colin brought cak from Mexico and sent my way – thanks again! This is unique; i don’t think I’ve ever had noodles in such an Easter egg pastel colored package before. Not only that; Hovenia – where is this place? Is it a place? I looked on wikipedia and maybe this is relevant –
Here’s another one that I haven’t had in an extremely long time. I remember I did like it, but that’s about all I remember. Just found it – review #101 – from August 8th, 2010! Yeah almost 6 years ago. I started reviewing instant noodle in 2002, but I only got to around the 60th review by June of 2010 – that’s when I really got back into it and started reviewing again. Let’s have a look!
Here’s the poll for the 2017 Reader’s Choice Top Ten Instant Noodles list! 2016 was the first go at this with over 250 votes counted (results here). Let’s make 2017 even better! Remember – if you don’t put the brand AND the variety, your vote will NOT be counted, so make sure to do so. Don’t forget to invite your friends to vote! The results will come out next year (probably May 1st 2017).
A-Sha’s noodle come in a few different gauges, this one being the thickest, Hakka style. They’re wide, flat and chewy. I looked in the hamper and immediately thought this sounded good today. Let’s check it out!
Another one from Javier over at Box From Japan! Thanks! So if you didn’t already know, BoxFromJapan.com is a subscription service. You can get 4 instant noodles from Japan a month. What’s amazing is that I not yet received a single on that I’d reviewed previously which is truly amazing. You can also get a monthly Japanese candy box! Pretty rad! Today, I’ll be checking out this Acecook curry udon cup. Let’s crack it open!
Here’s another one sent by Jen from Australia – thanks again! So this one’s an Australian brand. I’ve seen these around for a long time but never before have been able to get any to try. Today, it’ll be Oriental flavor. Okay, so what is Oriental flavor? Of course I should know; I’ve tried over 2,000 varieties! I’m The Ramen Rater! Well, hate to break it to you folks, but I haven’t the slightest idea what Oriental flavor is. My best guess would be a flavor that’s good, but not really definable. Another guess is a vegetarian accessible variety that shouldn’t make meat eaters say ‘eww – that’s for the plant eaters.’ What odd about this flavor is that the term Oriental evokes racist tones that offend some people from Asia. So, either the companies don’t know this or don’t care. Anyways I’m not a fan of offending people – if I ever start a noodle company this flavor won’t be on the menu. Alright enough with the pleasantries – let’s crack this cup open and see what we’ve got here.
I got an email a few weeks back from a reporter at Apple Daily News of Hong Kong asking if I’d like to do an interview. I said sure – and then she asked if I’d also review some Hong Kong varieties – which I agreed to as well. Over 4 days, I tried 11 different packs of noodles! This is the video from the news article and here’s the link to the story! Was a lot of fun! Special thanks to Winnie Wong for contacting me on this unique project! Here’s the unboxing of the samples, and the full reviews of each one will come in the next few weeks.
Another one from Colin – thanks again! I believe he picked these up at an Asian grocery in Mexico. What’s neat about these is that I’ve reviewed a lot of Wai Wai, but never any that are from India. Chicken and shrimp! Let’s get to it!
A couple of months ago, I experienced an instant noodle drought. I was looking in my hampers and there were maybe 10 varieties left! We hit 99 Ranch and I found about 10 or so varieties to review (later after putting a call out on the site, I ended up with people sending all sorts of varieties and now my hampers runneth over – my thanks!). Here’s one I found at 99 Ranch – let’s check it out.
Just to begin with – Happy Mother’s Day to all the moms out there!
Someone was commenting about the different between this one and a more recent review of a MAMA hot and spicy variety from Bangladesh. Then they said they ordered some on Amazon and got a different version from either of those – the Oriental Kitchen pack version! Wow – lots of different kinds. This one is more along the lines of ramyun in it’s noodles being much thicker (the kamaboko and peppers are also kind of a dead giveaway). Let’s check it out – last time I had it was for review #159!
As with some other varieties, CarJEN has recently kicked up their noodle game a skosh by changing the recipe. I’m not exactly sure what’s changed here – I’ll let my tastebuds let you know! Let’s check it out!
Here’s another one sent by Colin – thanks, man! I’m a big fan of tonkotsu ramen – I would say it probably my favorite variety of the Japanese dish. Rich pork bone broth with a creamy and milky look and mouthfeel. Ahhh… Let’s check this one out!
This one was sent to me by Jen from Australia – thanks again! So this is interesting; it’s made in Singapore for the Australian market. It boasts the use of 100% Australian wheat. Wheat is a big export for so many countries throughout the world; and of course instant noodles are a big part of why that is. Let’s open this one up and see what’s inside.
Here’s one I got from Paul S. – also got one from Colin. Thanks guys! What’s kind of crazy here is that this is the first Minstant noodle I’ve reviewed from Mexico (or at least made for the Mexican market). Instant noodles (fideos instantanea) are extremely popular in Mexico, as well as by the Latino population in the United States. Sopa means soup, sabor a camaron, limon y habanero means shrimp, lemon and habanero flavor. Anyways, let’s crack this sucker open!
Here’s one from the April Box From Japan. Box From Japan is a subscription service – you can have really fancy instant ramen from Japan shipped to your door every month! If you’re here for Japanese ramen, why not check ’em out? This variety we have here today is special for it’s extra nice miso paste. Let’s give it a look!
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First it was in packs. Then, rice vermicelli bowls and now cups! I’m really curious about a couple things in this one. How well will it translate to a ‘steeped cooking’ form? Also, what kind of noodles are in here? Easiest way to find out is to give it a try! Let’s tear this one open!
Today, we have the last of this Meet The Manufacturer. I’ve really enjoyed most of these quite a bit – I’ll say one thing – they’re not bland like some UK products I’ve had in the past! Today it’s chow mein – let’s give it a try!
Okay so here we go. Pad Thai. In an instant and quick prep scenario, pad thai has gone through the ringer. I’ve had pad thai that comes this way be pretty decent, however many I’ve had taste like peanut butter and black vinegar with some chopped nuts on top. It’s not a real tricky one to translate to a processed food, but it seems a lot of the time that companies will draw on certain flavorings and try to mimic the flavor but end up with something completely different. Let’s hit up this one and see how it goes!
I’m a little curious on this one. See, Jjajang is really popular in China and South Korea; basically noodles with a black bean sauce. I’m curious as to if this is leaning in that direction, or whether it’s something on the Caribbean side; maybe a little citrus going on? Well, one way to find out – let’s crack it open and cook it up!
This sounds like a good one! Red curry i sone I thoroughly enjoy; although I can’t think of a curry I’ve met that I’ve not enjoyed. When I think of curry and the UK, my thoughts immediately wander towards Red Dwarf episodes with Rimmer complaining about Lister reeking of last night’s vindaloo and stale lager. It also wanders to something I saw a couple years ago – in Britain, you can get takeaway boxes full of fried odd and ends – it looks like pure gut bomb amazingness. But I digress – red curry sounds good – let’s dig in!
To kick things off, we have the Satay variety. Satay is hugely popular, but I have a feeling most people don’t know the whole story – here’s what Wikipedia has to say about Satay:
Behold! The postman comes bearing gifts! Let’s see what’s inside, shall we?
All five varieties of Urban Noodle (click to enlarge)! I think this will be a fun Meet The Manufacturer!
After quite a few years, its looking more and more like Kang Shi Fu (Master Kong) is definitely getting their products distributed into the United States. This one was sent to me by a reader named Colin (thanks again!) and is definitely different from most of the Mang Shiu Fu stuff I’ve seen. First, there’s a lot of English on the package; something very new to me. Stewed beef sounds good – let’s have a look inside.
Here’s another one that was sent to me by Javier over at Box From Japan – thanks! Box From Japan is a subscription service – you can get a box sent to you every month with some great noodles within! Today, we have a nice little cup – pork tonkotsu! Let’s crack it open and see what is inside!
