Author: Hans "The Ramen Rater" Lienesch

#3632: Gurimi Rasa Kaldu Ayam – Indonesia

#3633: Gurimi Rasa Kaldu Ayam - Indonesia

This is your basic chicken instant noodle. It’s from ABC who I just did a short series on. We’ve been out of chicken lately and this morning I ducked out of the rain into the store and got some. $1.99/lb! That’s not bad, really. Let’s chicken it up! ...see full post

#3631: Sichuan Baijia Yibin Burning Noodle – China

#3631: Sichuan Baijia Yibin Burning Noodle - China

My initial though was ‘wow – what a good price!’ Found these at 99 Ranch Market for 99 cents! However, I did notice they expire in 4 days and immediately realized why they’re so cheap! Let’s give them a try. ...see full post

#3630: Sau Tao Instant Noodle King Lobster Soup Flavour – Hong Kong

#3630: Sau Tao Instant Noodle King Lobster Soup Flavour - Hong Kong

Time for more lobster from Sau Tao! This is one of the many varieties that came to my door a couple of months ago on a pallet. Yes, a pallet. Four hundred pounds of noodles. That’s a lot! Let’s crack it open and have a look. ...see full post

#3629: Sau Tao E-Fu Noodle Abalone Soup Flavour – Hong Kong

#3629: Sau Tao E-Fu Noodle Abalone Soup Flavour - Hong Kong

Still have a ton of these varieties of Sau Tao noodles. This one features a huge pack of noodles with two blocks. Made in a process that includes soda water which causes the noodles to end up quite large. Let’s check ’em out! ...see full post

Vegetarian Samples From Mom’s Dry Noodle Of Taiwan

Vegetarian Samples From Mom's Dry Noodle Of Taiwan

Was happy to hear about new varieties coming from Mom’s Dry Noodle of Taiwan! They sent them over for me to try which was nice. Notice the rabbit on the picture above – we’re about to enter the year of the rabbit! Pretty cool – I was born on the year of the rabbit – let’s check these out! ...see full post

#3628: LMF Hong Kong Chow Mein Sichuan Hot Spicy Flavor – China

#3628: LMF Hong Kong Chow Mein Sichuan Hot Spicy Flavor - China

As promised yesterday, here’s another one we found up in Canada at Smart’n’Save at the Lansdowne Centre mall. My daughter Mimi asks every once in a while these days ‘can we go to the Hello Kitty store, Papa’ and Miles immediately says ‘no Mimi, Canada is closed.’ Pretty sad. Man, I hope they come up with a vaccine for COVID-19 soon! I miss the wonders of the land to the north… ...see full post

A Heap Of New Stuff From Nongshim!

A Heap Of New Stuff From Nongshim!

I was curious about a variety that it turns out has been retired, but happily a few new ones are now in the game – Nongshim sent those over! Thank you very much! Let’s have a look. ...see full post

#3627: Ottogi Mac & Cheese Spaghetti – United States

#3627: Ottogi Mac & Cheese Spaghetti - United States

Okay so this one comes with an included… story! One day, the family went up to Canada to do the regular stuff – get some toys, peanut butter, hit up the Asian markets, etc. Well, we went to Smart’n’Save at Lansdowne Centre and saw these bowls. Got one and eventually drove home. ...see full post

#3626: Myojo Chukazanmai Soy Sauce Flavor Ramen – United States

#3626: Myojo Chukazanmai Soy Sauce Flavor Ramen - United States

Here’s another one that came by way of an Exotic Noods subscription box – use coupon code RAMENRATER15 for a discount! So these are kind of fancy – higher grade of noodle and dry as well as liquid base. Let’s check it out! ...see full post

#3625 Wang Teriyaki Udon Original – South Korea

#3625 Wang Teriyaki Udon Original - South Korea

Okay, this one comes from the folks at www.ExoticNoods.com, purveyors of neat subscription boxes – check ’em out and use coupon code RAMENRATER15 for a discount! ...see full post

Another Donation From James In Lakeside, California!

Another Donation From James In Lakeside, California!

A while back I got a few boxes of donations from a reader in Lakeside, California named James. Well, he’s struck again and sent another box – thanks! I’m always surprised that even though we’re both on the west caoast, the varieties he’s finding as opposed to the ones here and very different. Let’s have a look inside! ...see full post

#3624: Nissin Top Ramen Curry – India

#3624: Nissin Top Ramen Curry - India

Found this over at India Supermarket in Bellevue, WA. One of many ‘four-in-one’ packs. India. Curry. Let’s do this! ...see full post

Newgate Express Instant Noodles Sent By A Viewer From Ireland!

Newgate Express Instant Noodles Sent By A Viewer From IReland!

I was contacted recently by a fellow names Cian from Dublin about trying out some store brand instant noodles he found over there. He said they weren’t the greatest, but I am always interested in store brand varieties – so of course I accepted the offer – thank you! First varieties from Ireland to cross my desk! Let’s check ’em out! ...see full post

#3623: Itsuki Sesame Wakame Udon – Japan

#3623: Itsuki Sesame Wakame Udon - Japan

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. ...see full post

#3622: Sau Tao Tom Yum Flavour Trolley Noodle – Hong Kong

#3622: Sau Tao Tom Yum Flavour Trolley Noodle - Hong Kong

I like how the characters have wheels! This is another one of the ‘trolley noodle’ varieties – still unsure what kind of trolley they’re referring to. Let’s give it a try. ...see full post

#3621: Sau Tao QQ Vermicelli Abalone Chicken Soup Flavour – Hong Kong

#3621: Sau Tao QQ Vermicelli Abalone Chicken Soup Flavour - Hong Kong

Decided to start off the week with a couple Sau Tao varieties today (you should be seeing the second one tomorrow). They sent a ton for a Meet The Manufacturer series (okay, not a literal ton – just 400lbs of samples). Let’s check out their QQ Rice Vermicelli! ...see full post

#3620: Mamee SLRP! Mi Segera Perisa Kari Xtra Pedas – Malaysia

#3620: Mamee SLRP! Mi Segera Perisa Kari Xtra Pedas - Malaysia

Alrighty – it has been staring at me for a few weeks and today it’s time for a mukbang. This is a super spicy one from Mamee of Malaysia. I love curry stuff, spicy stuff – and Malaysia. Let’s give it a try! ...see full post

#3619: Igarashi Seimen Miso Ramen – Japan

#3619: Igarashi Seimen Miso Ramen - Japan

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. ...see full post

#3618: PLN Food Co. Ltd. Spicy Paste Noodle – Taiwan

#3618: PLN Food Co. Ltd. Spicy Paste Noodle - Taiwan

Here’s the second variety shipped by PLN Food Co. Ltd. of Taiwan. Really appreciate them going to all the trouble shipping these over – I can’t even imagine how much it costs to ship a 90 pound box express international via FedEx! This one’s got a spicy paste involved and sound really good – let’s check it out! ...see full post

Bone Broth Cup Noodles From Lonolife – 20g Protein!

Jesse over at Lonolife sent some samples recently to try out of their new chicken and beef bone broth instant noodle cups! 20g of protein per cup is pretty impressive! Let’s check them out! ...see full post

#3617: PLN Food Co. Ltd. Classic Dry Noodle – Taiwan

#3617: PLN Food Co. Ltd. Classic Dry Noodle - Taiwan

Here’s the first of two varieties that PLN Food Co. Ltd. of Taiwan sent over. This is not an instant variety – this is a frozen variety! They went to extreme lengths to send it over for my review and I’m really excited to try them! Let’s have a look. ...see full post

Ghost Pepper Daebak Now Available In The USA!

Shinsegae Mamee makes this Ghost Pepper Chicken Daebak noodle that’s seriously spicy – check out the video to see and watch a video I did two years ago attempting to polish it off! ...see full post

#3616: Nissin Top Ramen Chicken Noodles – India

#3616: Nissin Top Ramen Chicken Noodles - India

Really enjoying giving these Indian varieties a try – I don’t get a lot of them so I’m happily going through everything I got recently. Chicken sounds like it should be a good bet. Let’s go! ...see full post

#3615: Baixiang Artificial Crawfish Flavored Stir Fried Noodle – China

#3615: Baixiang Artificial Crawfish Flavored Stir Fried Noodle - China

I found this at a large Asian grocery in Bellevue, Washington recently. It was the last one – I’m guessing part of a special promo for Lunar New Year. My guess is that this is going to be in the vein of the hot spicy stir fried noodles of South Korea, but in a Chinese way? I don’t know for sure, but it sounds interesting. Let’s give it a try! ...see full post

#3614: Acecook Wantan Chuka Soba – Japan

#3614: Acecook Wantan Chuka Soba - Japan

Here’s one that came in a Zenpop box. Zenpop is a subscription box service – check em out and use coupon code RAMENRATER for a discount! ...see full post

#3613: Sau Tao Ho Fan Abalone Chicken Soup Flavour – Hong Kong

#3613: Sau Tao Ho Fan Abalone Chicken Soup Flavour - Hong Kong

You might be saying ‘gosh, you’re reviewing a lot of Sau Tao stuff!’ Well, yes I am – as I have a lot of different varieties in a couple boxes in our bedroom currently. I’m trying to review things that are big to shrink things down so they’ll fit in the hampers. ...see full post

The Ramen Rater’s Top Ten Instant Rice Noodles Of All Time 2020 Edition

This yeah has just been rough – for everyone I know. After the hardest part of it for me – the passing of my mother – I took a week off from walking after doing 1,000,000 steps on my Fitbit in June and dove in  to working on top ten lists. I did four of them, all current as of review 3545. This list hasn’t been updated since 2017. I’ll be rolling out lists here and there for the next couple of months and maybe do this again a little ways down the road. Here’s The Ramen Rater’s Top Ten Instant Rice Noodles Of All Time 2020 Edition. ...see full post

#3612: Nissin Top Ramen Fiery Chilli Noodles – India

#3612: Nissin Top Ramen Fiery Chilli Noodles - India

Hooray! Let’s go to India! Actually, I went to India Supermarket in Bellevue, Washington last month! They have a really great selection of varieties from India. It’s pretty common that Indian varieties come in these wide 4 packs. They had a ton I’d not tried and you’ll be seeing them rolling on through shortly. I got some neat stuff to add in as well Let’s go! ...see full post

Umai Crate Japanese Ramen Subscription Box – October 2020

Hey look – another Unboxing Time With The Ramen Rater! This one came today and we brought it inside set up the lights, shot the video, edited it and boom here it is! Lots of neat stuff in this box! Check it out! Get yours here: http://bit.ly/UmaiCrate
Use coupon code THERAMENRATER for extra discount! ...see full post

#3611: Sau Tao Tom Yum Kung Flavour Non-Fried Noodle – Hong Kong

#3611: Sau Tao Tom Yum Kung Flavour Non-Fried Noodle - Hong Kong

Recently, I finished a Meet The Manufacturer series with Sau Tao. They shipped a whole pallet of samples of a myriad of different styles and varieties. A PALLET! Well, the upshot is that I still have so many different styles and varieties to review! Here is one of them. ...see full post

A Huge Box Of Frozen Samples Shipped From Taiwan!

A Huge Box Of Frozen Samples Shipped From Taiwan!

After over 5 days of travel, I was really worried that this big box of noodles just was going to show up thawed and warm – but lo and behold, everything was frozen solid as a rock! Watch me crack this huge box open that started out at 90+ pounds and ended up easily lifted over my head! ...see full post

Meet The Manufacturer: #3610: Vi Huong Beef Flavor Instant Noodles – Vietnam

Meet The Manufacturer: #3610: Vi Huong Beef Flavor Instant Noodles - Vietnam

Today, we come to the end of this Meet The Manufacturer series of Thien Huong products. I want to thank John and C&T Produce Wholesale for sending over the samples and participating in this, the first ever Vietnamese spotlight series. Now, let’s give this beef variety a try and wrap things up. ...see full post

Meet The Manufacturer: #3609: Vi Huong Shrimp Instant Noodles – Vietnam

Meet The Manufacturer: #3609: Vi Huong Shrimp Instant Noodles - Vietnam

Here we have the second of two varieties (one spicy, this one not), clad in paper. Pretty neat – they have character, that’s for sure. Let’s give this non-spicy variety a try! ...see full post

Meet The Manufacturer: #3608: Vi Huong Black Pepper Crab Flavor Instant Noodles – Vietnam

Meet The Manufacturer: #3608: Vi Huong Black Pepper Crab Flavor Instant Noodles - Vietnam

Those crab claws there look really nice. Man, that sounds so good right now! I remember when in Penang, Malaysia, sitting around a table which was on a little dock – one of many that were roped together and you picked the seafood you wanted and they prepared it. It was amazing – and we got crab. The meat was so good! We also had duck and sea cucumber – that’s an interesting thing. They work well together, but sea cucumber by itself wasn’t my favorite thing. Anyways, I digress – black pepper crab it is! ...see full post

Unboxing: Exotic Noods Subscription Box – September 2020

Unboxing: Exotic Noods Subscription Box - September 2020

Looking for something a little different? Head over to www.exoticnoods.com! Their subscription boxes are from different countries! Not just Japan, you’ll get to try varieties from around the SE Asian region! Plus, use coupon code RAMENRATER15 for 15% off your order! Here’s what you’ll find inside the September 2020 box. ...see full post

Meet The Manufacturer: #3607: Vi Huong Instant Noodles Artificial Pork Flavor – Vietnam

Meet The Manufacturer: #3607: Vi Huong Instant Noodles Artificial Pork Flavor - Vietnam

As I ready this, the first post of the week, I’m a little worried. You see, I don’t have any ground pork. I hope they have some at the store tomorrow morning. I’m kind of unsure what kind of garnish to do on this one other than that. Hmmm… I don’t think eggs really are suitable… I’ll have to figure this one out! Let’s begin. ...see full post

Meet The Manufacturer: #3606: Thien Huong Food Lemon Chicken Flavour Instant Noodles – Vietnam

Meet The Manufacturer: #3606: Thien Huong Food Lemon Chicken Flavour Instant Noodles - Vietnam

Lemon chicken sounds good! This isn’t one I’ve seen a lot of. Lemon usually isn’t a pairing with instant noodle flavor profiles. Uniqueness! Hooray! Sure, there’s lemongrass, but this is different. Unique varieties pique my interest – let’s delve into this one. ...see full post

Tapatio Ramen Rolls Out An Extra Spicy Variety!

In my ongoing research into what’s hot and what’s not, my latest discovery was a new Extra Spicy Tapatio Ramen! I’ve reviewed all the other varieties, but this one’s new! Let’s check out the unboxing! ...see full post

Meet The Manufacturer: #3605: Vi Huong Spicy Shrimp Flavour Instant Noodles – Vietnam

Meet The Manufacturer: #3604: Vi Huong Spicy Shrimp Flavour Instant Noodles - Vietnam

I really like this packaging – paper with a protective inner liner. It’s definitely unique and I must say I wish more companies would do things this way. It’s so much easier for me to take pictures of the packaging – much less glare! Let’s give the contents a try! ...see full post

Meet The Manufacturer: #3604: Vi Huong Pho Bo Artificial Beef Flavor Rice Noodles – Vietnam

Meet The Manufacturer: #3604: Vi Huong Pho Bo Artificial Beef Flavor Rice Noodles - Vietnam

I thought it fitting to start things off with probably the variety most familiar to people – pho, and in particular, pho bo. There are a ton of pho restaurants nearby me – haven’t been in a while and as I type this in after reviewing this one, I’m thinking I need to visit one. It’s been too long! Unfortunately, no restaurants open at this point – luckily, I’ve got a series of Vietnamese varieties to review! Let’s check this one out! ...see full post