Author: Hans "The Ramen Rater" Lienesch

Meet The Manufacturer: #1466: MAMA Oriental Style Instant Noodles Green Curry Flavour Jumbo Pack

8 comments

To start things off, I’m sure you have all heard of the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge. What it is for those of you who haven’t, is a campaign to increase awareness of ALS (Lou Gehrig’s Disease), a motor neuron disease which causes the connections between the mind and muscles to degrade. The challenge involves a person having a ton of icewater dumped on them, and then nominating three people to do the same. Yesterday, my sister nominated me after she was nominated. Usually, you have 24 hours to accept and carry out the challenge. Today, I’m going to be getting a lot of icewater dumped on me! At the bottom of this review will be my sister’s challenge, and tomorrow’s review will feature me getting drenched! If you want to help, please consider donating to ALSA.org. ...see full post

Meet The Manufacturer: #1465: Thai Chef Shrimp “Tom Yum” Instant Nudelsuppe

No comments

We’ll start the Thai President Foods Meet The Manufacturer off with one of their export products – Thai Chef –  sold in northern Europe. Looks like this one would do well in Germany with all the German writing on it. I’ve seen quite a few Thai companies making varieties for northern Europe – kind of a surprise, but in a way not really. Seafood is quite popular there and so this is kind of a twist on what they’re used to there I suppose. Excited to try this new one – let’s check it out! ...see full post

Meet The Manufacturer: Interview With Thai President Foods

No comments

Interview With Thai President Foods * Product Samples From Thai President Foods * Thai Chef Shrimp “Tom Yum” Instant Nudelsuppe * MAMA Oriental Style Instant Noodles Green Curry Flavour Jumbo Pack * – Ruski Creamy Tom Yam Instant Noodles * MAMA Instant Cup Noodles Seafood Pad Kee Mao Flavour * Bamee Oriental Style Instant Noodles Beef Flavour * MAMA Instant Cup Noodles Spicy Cheese Flavour * MAMA Instant Noodles Shrimp Creamy Tom Yum Flavour Jumbo Pack * Ruski Chicken Masala Flavour Instant Fried Noodles * MAMA Instant Cup Noodles Shrimp Tom Yum Flavour (Extreme) * MAMA Instant Noodles Yentafo Tom Yum Mohfai Flavour * MAMA Instant Noodle Shrimp (Tom Yum) Flavour Jumbo Pack * Bamee Cup Oriental Style Instant Noodles Chicken Flavour *  Thai Chef Shrimp Instant Nudelsuppe * MAMA Instant Noodles Moo Nam Tok Flavour *
 ...see full post

#1463: Maruchan Instant Lunch California Vegetable Ramen Noodles With Vegetables

9 comments

I want to send a special thank you to Craig Y. over at Maruchan for facilitating the process of getting Instant Lunch California Vegetable into my hands! Much appreciated! I hunted high and low for these and couldn’t find them! There are lots of products sold around the United States – and some do better in some areas than others. A good example would be the King Cake. Most people where I live don’t know what a King Cake is, however folks in Louisiana definitely do – it’s a special cake enjoyed around Mardi Gras. Here’s what Wikipedia has to say about King Cakes: ...see full post

#1462: Wei Lih Steam Instant Noodle Korean Salt & Rib Soup Flavor

1 comment

2014_8_21_1462_001

Today I opened up my big hamper of noodles and this one popped into view. To be honest, I don’t know exactly when I got this one – Canada trip I think. Definitely has an interesting name – Korean Salt & Rib Soup. The closest thing I can think of that they might be referring to would be galbitang, which is a South Korean soup with short ribs and made with ox bone broth. Sounds interesting – let’s see what we have here. ...see full post

The Ramen Rater’s Top Ten Instant Noodles Of All Time Made In The USA 2014 Edition

No comments

The instant noodle originated in 1958 in Japan, but since that time, they’ve expanded in popularity all over the world, including of course, the United States. Seeing this, instant noodle companies thought it wise to start building plants here in the 1970s. Since then, many brands operate factories here in the US, mostly in southern California. This is a list of my favorite varieties produced here, encompassing my 1,461 reviews to date. With that, here’s your top ten, America! ...see full post

Meet The Manufacturer: #1460: Nissin Premium Instant Noodles Spicy Beef Flavour

No comments

Today’s the next to last review of the Nissin Singapore Meet The Manufacturer. This is the 14th review! There have been an interesting array of different varieties that have been really quite good! Today, I’m trying the package version of their spicy beef flavor. I reviewed the bowl version pretty early on. Anyways, let’s have a look at this one! ...see full post

Meet The Manufacturer: #1458: Nissin Premium Instant Noodles Roast Beef Flavour

No comments

My son’s favorite instant noodles of all time are (drumrolls please), Nissin Top Ramen Chicken Flavor. It’s about as domestic as you can get. I’ll admit I like it a lot too – basic noodles and decent chicken broth. He does let me make him stuff that’s a little more adventurous from time to time. Today’s going to be one of those days. ...see full post

Meet The Manufacturer: #1457: Nissin Chu Qian Yi Ding Sesame Oil Flavour Instant Noodles With Soup Base

No comments

Many of you familiar with the sight of this package may say – hey waitta minute – what are you calling this? In fact, this is known by a few names! Here in the United States, it’s called Nissin Demae Ramen. In Japan, the four characters in big print translate to Demae Iccho. In Singapore however, Chinese is often spoken, and they translate to Chu Qian Yi Ding. I’m pretty sure it means something like delivery boy’ or something – the little guy on the package. Anyways, this is pretty easily gotten the world over, however this is the Singaporean made one! Let’s check it out! ...see full post

Meet The Manufacturer: #1456: Nissin Cup Noodles Chicken Flavour

No comments

Cup Noodles are made by Nissin in all sorts of varieties worldwide. They make them specifically for different regions – the ones for sale in India have an Indian taste; ones in Brazil have flavors that appeal to Brazilians. One flavor that is kind of universal is chicken. I would guess that every country has some kind of well known chicken dish. I wonder if they have chicken in Antarctica? I guess it would be freeze-dried and imported. Is Antarctica even inhabited? Maybe wikipedia will know… ...see full post

Meet The Manufacturer: #1455: Nissin Premium Instant Noodles XO Sauce Seafood Flavour

No comments

XO Sauce is an interesting thing; I think this Wikipedia snippet is a good way to start –

Developed in the 1980s in Hong Kong for Cantonese cuisine, XO sauce is made of roughly chopped dried seafoods, including scallops, dried fish and shrimp, and subsequently cooked with chili peppers, onions, and garlic. This dried seafood-based sauce bears similarity to the Fujianese Shacha sauce. Spring Moon, the Peninsula Hong Kong‘s Chinese restaurant is often credited with the invention of XO sauce, although others claim the sauce’s origin in the urban area of Kowloon.[2] ...see full post

Meet The Manufacturer: #1454: Nissin Cup Noodles Chilli Crab Flavour

No comments

I first heard of a dish called Chilli Crab a few years ago, and was told it was the ‘signature dish of Singapore.’ Since the advent of Instagram, I’ve seen this particular Cup Noodle variety dozens of times and always have been quite curious about it. Let’s take a look at this regional Cup Noodles variety! ...see full post

Meet The Manufacturer: #1453: Nissin Japanese Ramen Kyushu Black Instant Noodles With Soup Base

1 comment

Toiday, I’m reviewing another new one from Nissin Singapore – Kyushu Black. Kyushu style ramen is different in that it features broth with a cloudy nature and rich flavor. Nissin Singapore’s Kyushu Black looks from the package to feature this. The black part? Black garlic oil! Looks interesting! What to add… ...see full post

Meet The Manufacturer: #1452: Nissin Premium Instant Noodles Spicy Beef Flavour

No comments

Looks like we’ve got some hot weather coming to the northwest this week. One weather report is saying it will get into the 90’s which is pretty darn hot for these parts. My wife and I were talking about it the other day and she mentioned that the last time we had a summer with such hot temperatures, the winter was equally as extreme – got lots of snow! I hope that it turns out the same way this year because I really like snow quite a bit. Granted, there are quite a few challenges getting around being legally blind, but it’s neat stuff all the same. ...see full post

Meet The Manufacturer: #1451: Nissin Cup Noodles Tom Yam Seafood Flavour

2 comments

Whether you call is Tom Yam or Tum Yum, it’s a tasty, spicy and citrus flavored soup that originally heralds from Thailand. It is often served with seafood (shrimp seems most common) and garnished with coriander, better known in the United States as cilantro. When I first saw something mentioning coriander in Tom Yam, I decided to go to the store and find some. I ended up with a $5 little jar of powder. At the point I realized they call it cilantro here, I felt a little stupid, albeit a more educated. Coriander adds a nice little flavor to things. The thing is that you can’t get it here in very small amounts. For usually between 50 and 90 cents, you get more coriander than I would have any clue of what to do with, and I suppose it could be frozen, but I don’t think it would be as fresh and happy as it is when it’s just bought. So, I always feel a bit wasteful when I buy it. On the bright side, I think it’ll come into play a few times in this week, so that’s at least a plus. Well, let’s try this Tom Yam and use some coriander! ...see full post

Meet The Manufacturer: #1450: Nissin Japanese Ramen Tokyo Shoyu Instant Noodles With Soup Base

No comments

Here’s a new line from Nissin Singapore – their premium Japanese ramen. There are two of them – this Tokyo Shoyu and one called Kyushu Black which I will be reviewing in the few days. So what is Tokyo Shoyu? Well, let’s start with some Wikipedia info on shoyu ramen: ...see full post

Meet The Manufacturer: #1449: Nissin Cup Noodles Seafood Curry Flavour

No comments

Seafood curry! This sounds and looks really interesting. I think this is the first that mentions including cuttlefish, too! I got curries cuttlefish at a dim sum joint nearby a few months ago. It’s pretty good stuff – chewy and had a nice curry sauce. I’ve got some nice things to add to this one I just got at the store the other day. For the last few months, I’ve been trying new things from the seafood counter at the Asian markets around me. I’ve tried quite a few fishball varieties, sliced squid, and got some interesting looking fish cakes! Let’s have a look at this seafood curry from Nissin Singapore! ...see full post

Meet The Manufacturer: #1448: Nissin Premium Instant Noodles Roasted Beef Flavour

No comments

This looks like a good one! I like how it mentions on the front in the little text: with ‘top-notch Secret Roasted Beef Paste Recipe’ – that definitely has me interested. This is part of their Premium line – let’s have a look under the hood and see what makes this instant noodle tick. ...see full post

Meet The Manufacturer: #1447: Nissin Cup Noodles Cream Of Chicken Flavour

No comments

Let’s kick things off with this Cream of Chicken Cup Noodles. I’ve heard of creamy chicken instant noodle, but never cream of chicken! What’s more interesting to me is the part of the world this is coming from; I would think this a more US or British flavor, but Singapore? I looked around online and found this recipe for creamy soups on a Singapore Home Cooking site – I would never have guessed creamy soups would’ve been popular there! Anyways, let’s give it a try! ...see full post

Meet The Manufacturer: Interview With Nissin Singapore

No comments

Interview With Nissin Singapore * Product Samples From Nissin Singapore (1 of 2) * Product Samples From Nissin Singapore (2 of 2) * Nissin Cup Noodles Cream Of Chicken Flavour * Nissin Premium Instant Noodles Roasted Beef Flavour * Nissin Cup Noodles Seafood Curry Flavour * Nissin Japanese Ramen Tokyo Shoyu Instant Noodles With Soup Base * Nissin Cup Noodles Tom Yam Seafood Flavour * Nissin Premium Instant Noodles Spicy Beef Flavour * Nissin Japanese Ramen Kyushu Black Instant Noodles With Soup Base * Nissin Cup Noodles Chilli Crab Flavour * Nissin Premium Instant Noodles XO Sauce Seafood Flavour * Nissin Cup Noodles Chicken Flavour * Nissin Chu Qian Yi Ding Sesame Oil Flavour Instant Noodles With Soup Base * Nissin Premium Instant Noodles Roast Beef Flavour * Nissin Cup Noodles Tom Yam Veg Flavour * Nissin Premium Instant Noodles Spicy Beef Flavour * Nissin Cup Noodles Black Pepper Crab Flavour ...see full post

The Ramen Rater’s Top Ten Spiciest Instant Noodles Of All Time 2014 Edition

1 comment

THE TOP TEN SPICIEST INSTANT NOODLES OF 2015 HAS BEEN RELEASED, REPLACING THIS LIST – SEE IT HERE

If you like it hot, you’re in for a real treat here. These are the spiciest instant noodles you can get that I’ve reviewed from my 1,446 reviews thus far. If you can’t handle spicy foods, these definitely aren’t for you – these are serious! Many of these were so hot, I couldn’t finish the bowl – and I can handle a decent amount of heat! I used to review hot sauces! Anyways, Hope everyone is having a great summer and here are the spiciest instant noodles of all time for 2014! ...see full post

#1446: Myojo Ippei-Chan Jumbo Night Market Style Yakisoba

2 comments

To start off, thanks to Raissa T. and Andre L. for their help on translating! Today feels like a yakisoba day. I really like yakisoba! It’s a pretty versatile dish; you can add anything to it and it’s still good! Well, strawberry jelly probably isn’t the best add-in… Then again, with that mention perhaps someone will try it and make it the new craze? The latest weird add-in craze was adding those little pudding cups or flan into a Cup Noodle. Bizarre… Well, let’s see how this comes out – looks good on the package! Especially with the amazingly cool little recommendation to… ...see full post

#1445: MyKuali Penang Hokkien Prawn Noodle

1 comment

The day is upon us – the day to review the new Hokkien Prawn Noodle – the second instant noodle from the company that made the number one on my 2014 Top Ten Instant Noodles Of All Time list! As with their Penang White Curry Noodle, Hokkien Prawn Noodle is a bit of a mystery for me. I had never tried White Curry before I tried their product, nor have I ever had Hokkien Prawn Noodle before. I did a little digging online and found the Penang Hawker Food Blog. I found this text there: ...see full post

#1444: Maruchan Instant Lunch Jalapeno Cheddar Flavor Ramen Noodles

4 comments

Woo-hoo! I’ve been looking for a couple varieties by Maruchan for a while and this is one of them. I want to thank Craig Y. and all the nice folks at Maruchan for getting this one in my hands! I’m sure someone out there is going to say ‘Hard to find? It’s at every store around me!’ One thing though is that not every product is marketed or distributed to every area. One example of this kind of thing is a soda called Cheerwine. It’s quite popular and easily found in the southern United States, but it’s relatively unknown on the west coast. Anyways, Jalapeno Cheddar noodles sounds pretty neat! Let’s have a look at this one. ...see full post

#1443: Nongshim Harmony Korean Spicy Noodle Dish With Chipotle

No comments

Here’s a new one from Nongshim, and it’s definitely unique. It’s a stir noodle, which means that there’s no broth, but a sauce that it stirred in to coat the noodles. Another unique thing is that it can be served hot OR cold! I was thinking of using a special divided bowl I have, but one side is bigger than the other and so I came up with an idea: since they sent a few packs, I’ll make one hot, sample it and then make one cold and sample it – easy enough. Something else I found interesting was on the right and left sides of the package. It says “NONGSHIM BLACK CLASS NOODLE DISH.” The final interesting this about this one is the inclusion of chipotle. Chipotle? Now that’s different – don’t think I’ve come across that being used in an instant before. Well, let’s open this one up and see what’s inside! ...see full post

Meet The Manufacturer: Interview With Maggi Singapore

No comments

Interview With Maggi Singapore * Product Samples From Maggi Singapore ( 1 of 3 ) * Product Samples From Maggi Singapore ( 2 of 3 ) * Product Samples From Maggi Singapore ( 3 of 3 ) * Maggi Extra Spicy Curry Instant Noodles * Maggi Senses Laksa Instant Noodles * Maggi 2 Minute Noodles Curry Flavour * Maggi Hot Cup Perisa Kari * Maggi 2 Minute Noodles Assam Laksa Flavour * Maggi 2 Minute Noodles Tom Yam Flavour *
 ...see full post