The Definitive Source For Instant Noodle Reviews Since 2002
A long time ago, I went to JD’s Market in Lynnwood, WA. I found a few neat things, including pizza instant noodles from Pakistan! Well, I just realized years later on a recent trip (like a few weeks ago), I picked up a pack whose flavor is chicken pizza! It’s a wellspring of unique pizza flavor in the instant noodle way. Let’s give it a try!
I don’t I’ve mentioned lately how absolutely wonderful my wife is. I should just do a standalone post every week saying that and extolling the reasons why, but here’s one thing she did that was absolutely wonderful. We had a car accident in mid January (as I write this it’s early March) and we’ve had a loaner as it gets fixed. Yeah – early March. Since mid January, I haven’t been in a car. We’ve got two kids, two car seats, and one just won’t get in there right and so someone has to stay at home and since I don’t drive, that’s me. Well, the local grocery store I walk to had some sad mung bean sprouts and it’s Sunday – a week without mung bean sprouts is a sad ordeal for me. She drove to the 99 Rach Market out of town, got my veggies and then proceeded to send me individual photos of different instant noodles in hopes of finding some I’ve not reviewed. I’m super low on varieties I’ve not tried which is serious no bueno. She did find a few though and this is one of them. So I say thank you to my kind and wonderful wife. Let’s have a look at this rice noodle variety!
It’s Top Ten time again! These are my favorite cups from my reviews up to #3790. Cups are a neat thing – very portable. They’ve come under fire for ‘tipping themselves over’ in the past, but I assure you they don’t have any intelligence that would be required for them to move of their own volition. It should be said also not to give these or any other super hot things to little ones. Common sense is a good thing. Anyways that aside, you can get some really tasty instant meals in a cup! Let’s check out The Ramen Rater’s Top Ten Instant Noodle Cups Of All Time 2022 Edition, and don’t forget to have a look at the big announcements at the bottom!
As it’s the weekend of the Fourth Of July, I thought what better time to repost last year’s Top Ten American varieties list. Hope everyone has a good weekend! By the way – from July to the end of the year, lists get the following year’s date on them, so this list came out in 2020. A little confusing, I know… Check the bottom of this post for some special announcements including a series of instructional videos geared to help you elevate your ramen cooking! Happy Fourth Of July to all!
Here’s one the folks sent all the way from Singapore for me – thanks! This one isn’t available in the United States. I’ve tried it before, but they included a special sachet of powder to give it more oomph. Let’s give it a try!
This one gets the USA tag since it’s an export version for the United States. It’s from South Korea though – spicy beef! Sounds great for a Friday – let’s check it out!
I got a phonecall the other day from a guy in Georgia. He said a family member in Taiwan had come up with a new noodle variety and that they were interested in me trying it. Well, a week later it arrived at my door en masse! I decided it would be great to give it a try and so here we are. Let’s give it a go!
Here’s another cup I found locally hailing from far away – this one’s made in Pakistan. I really like finding stuff from places I’ve not done a lot of reviews. Let’s give it a try!
Here’s one that came via Exotic Noods – check ’em out and use coupon code THERAMENRATER for a discount!
What a weird day it’s been – let alone week. So a friend had a Facebook group that went from 200 members up to 39,000 in 5 months. He didn’t have the time to administer the group and asked if I wanted it. Nobody’s ever handed me 39,000 people to govern before. So I said yes. The group keeps growing, and today it hit 50,000 members! That’s a decent sized city! He offered Thursday and this is Monday. I wonder if it will keep growing… I guess we’ll see! If you want to join, it’s here.
I’ve been slowly getting through all the varieties sent by a reader from Montana – thank you! These have replaced a competitor’s varieties at Walmart. When I did the unboxing video I didn’t expect the feedback I got in the comments – people are very unhappy about the change. I will say that the change is a big one, however if you really enjoy the other brand, it is still available in stores other than Walmart, so there is that. I did hear some positive things about this pork variety. It should be noted that the Malaysian HALAL stamp doesn’t appear on this one – for obvious reasons. But I still suspect this variety is produced in Malaysia. Let’s check it out.
This is a neat looking cup from Nissin Germany! They’ve brought the popular Seafood Cup Noodle to the US market and it’s produced here as well – curious to see how it
As you can see from the sticker, this one was on my top ten 2020 list. I thought I’d better give it another try and see how it is and if I’m still into it as I was. I like to give another go with noodles that I’m thinking of putting on the next list from the previous year. Things can change – especially when it comes to Malaysian varieties – they love to change things up a little here and there with recipes! Let’s check it out!
Today, we have one that was part of Japan Crate’s Umai Crate. So Japan Crate is a subscription service which has all sorts of different options for you. pretty neat stuff from Japan! There’s a coupon code for you too – just use THERAMENRATER to get a special discount at check out.
This one’s made in Japan, however it’s definitely for sale in the United States and so that’s why it’s getting that country at the top. I found this at a local grocery store this morning and have been thinking about giving it a try. Well, today’s the day – and it’s going to be a post featuring the 1001st episode of Instant Noodle Recipe Time – one probably very hurried as my kids are doing online schooling and everything is such a rush with what I do these days. It will be interesting to look back at this time in our lives. Hopefully somewhat findly, but with some relief. Let’s check this one out.
Summer is here! It’s a great time to chillax and try some new things and subscription boxes are a neat way to do so. These subscription boxes come straight to your door and have some neat stuff inside! Check out www.japancrate.com and use the coupon code THERAMENRATER to score a sweet discount and get some neat noodles! Here’s the latest unboxing of the July 2021 Umai Crate!
I thought it was a good time to do a post with a product from Hong Kong. As it turns out, Apple Daily has closed it’s doors. What’s Apple Daily? It was a pro-Democracy newpaper that I worked with a couple of times regarding my top ten lists and ramen in general. Really nice people and it’s sad to see that they’ve been put down by the mainland Chinese government. Makes me sad. So, I’m going to d something with some noodles from Hong Kong today.
This one came out of a Zenpop subscription box. Zenpop has great boxes featuring different themes every month with 7 different instant ramen varieties from Japan. Use the coupon code RAMENRATER for a discount!
Chashu pork is one of the best things about ramen. Round, melt in your mouth, umami medallions. This recipe comes by way of P. Treadway and was used at a restaurant he used to work at. I’ve seen a million recipes that haver some person using expensive equipment like $200 pots, blowtorches, andf tons of ingredients. This one’s super easy and here’s a list ogf things you’ll need…
I’ve been spacing these out a little bit. They’re really fascinating to me. I discovered the Ramen Express By Chef Woo a while back at a local grocery store – these products are very different – and quite good! Good for Vegan folks, plus 20g of protein in a cup which is pretty neat. Definitely worth a try. Let’s see how this one pans out!
Okay just to straighten it out here – this is made in Hungary for sale in Germany and features a Japanese spiced curry broth. Sounds like a good one honestly. Let’s find out!
I hear it already – ‘but it’s from Korea!’ Look. Just humor me. Look. Lower left. Made in USA. Unless you visited South Korea and brought some back from Canada (they’re probably from their Chinese factory if so), then you’ve been eating Korean style instant noodles made in Rancho Cucamonga, California. Their factory is a really neat place – first one I ever had the fortune to visit and it was really neat.
This one arrived in an Exotic Noods subscription box – check ’em out and use coupon code THERAMENRATER for a discount!
First off, today I’m doing two reviews – 3842 and 3843. I ran a GoFundMe in February 2021 to help with an emergency situation and for some upgrades around here. Well, one of the upgrades is being used for the first time today! I got a print/scan/copy etc printer. This thing has an 11×17 scanner on it. The old scanner had condesation under the glass and that was affecting quality. This one’s extra nice since I can scan a wide label or package in a single pass without having to do two scans and patch them together! Thank you to all who donated and support the site and what I do!
I remember the first time I found out about this company. Finding a new domestic brand is a particular thrill for me. A new Malaysian, Thai or Chinese brand is expected, but here in the US, there aren’t as many new ones that often. Let’s check out this pillow pack version of their spicy variety!
I saw someone get some of these on my group Ramen Junkies and so I went and contacted the company – and here they are! Pozole and Menudo – I think these varieties are going to cause a bit of a stir! Let’s crack the box open and check ’em out!
Check it out! It’s Exotic Noods! A box every month of absolutely awesome noodles from around the world! Use the coupon code THERAMENRATER for a discount!
A very standard (and very wonderful) unique quality of Malaysian cuisine is the fact that tweaks and new recipes are an axiom. I found this out while in Penang, where changing styles of recipes goes on constantly and keeps flavors fresh and fascinating. This culture is present in their instant noodle brands as well – and it’s welcome! MyKuali’s Penang Red Tom Yum Noodle has been on previous Top Ten Lists and is absolutely excellent stuff. Very curious how this new formulation will be – let’s give it a try!
This is the second hottest offering of this new Fire Wok line. I’m very curious about this one – Nissin sent this one unannounced along with the other two. Let’s try the next to hottest of the three.
I rarely find anything to get at Uwajimaya these days – not because they don’t have a decent variety, but because I’ve tried them all. This was a nice one to find though – kind of pricy at that though. Curious… Let’s check it out!
Here’s another one of these neat cups sent by Nissin Foods Deutschland! Thanks again! Let’s check it out.
Well, here’s another one of the Panda Signature varieties that were sent in by a reader – thanks again! As it turns out, our local Walmart Market has these now too. I’m guessing these have been phased in at all the Walmarts everywhere around the United States. Still pretty surprised by that. Many people have voiced how they dislike these, and this one in particular. Then again, some have said they like these products. I must admit, I’ve not had so many folks comment on a new variety on the market as much as with these, most likely since they’re at Walmart. I’m guessing they have the same price point the previous ones had? Well, let’s give this creamy chicken one a try!
Here’s a fancy one from Japan found in a Zenpop box – check out zenpop.jp and use the coupon code RAMENRATER for a discount! The last time I tried one of these mochichi varieties I remember it mentioned ‘pinching one’s cheek’ to tell if they’re not really in a fancy ramen restaurant in Tokyo. It was pretty good, but no pinching occured. Let’s give it a try.
Did an interview for a Korean magazine and they wanted me to include a shot of various Korean instant noodles on my desk and this was one my wife picked up for me the other day. Let’s check it out!
In the past, I’ve done many mukbangs focusing on the spicy ghost pepper varieties that Shinsegae Mamee produce. Well, they’ve come out with some new varieties that sound very interesting! Let’s check them out!
Got an email recent from Thai President – the company that makes the popular MAMA noodles. Well, they also make Thai Chef and sent a box full of new varieties! Let’s check it out!
I got a ‘First Taste Club’ box in the mail a couple days ago which Nissin sends out to some people in the media – and me. Well, I found this and two others inside in this Fire Wok range. This one has four of the six peppers red – they have one with five and one with all six. I’ve not done a mukbang in… Months. I’m very curious if this is top class spicy. Definitely worth a try!
Today, we have one that was part of Japan Crate’s Umai Crate. So Japan Crate is a subscription service which has all sorts of different options for you. pretty neat stuff from Japan! There’s a coupon code for you too – just use THERAMENRATER to get a special discount at check out.
A big thank you yet again to Daniel from Montana for shooting these over! I found that there’s a HALAL stamp on the back of these mentioning Malaysia, so I can only surmise that’s where these were made. Packaging is definitely for the US market. Let’s check it out!
Today, we have one that was part of Japan Crate’s Umai Crate. So Japan Crate is a subscription service which has all sorts of different options for you. pretty neat stuff from Japan! There’s a coupon code for you too – just use THERAMENRATER to get a special discount at check out.
