Over 5,000 Instant Ramen Noodle Reviews Since 2002
Here’s another one of the new varities available in Colombia. Gallina means hen
and from what I was told by Hector C. from Panama (who lives in Costa Rica) that
it is kind of like the veal of chicken ; young hen. I researched a bit online and
found a few recipes for soups from Colombia mentioning Gallina. Wikipedia had
this to say of the Colombian variety of ‘Sancocho:’
Another one that was sent from Indonesia – thank you! Soto varieties usually have a broth with them, rather than mi goreng which are dry. Cabe means chilli and hijau means green; so green chilli flavor noodle soup. Let’s check it out!
MAMA! Thai! Green curry! Chicken! It sounds really good – let’s check it out as we are on the cusp of another hundred reviews down!
Here’s another one from Scott A. over at Nissin Foods USA – thanks! This is a straight chicken flavor bowl – a new product. My son Andy really likes chicken noodles – I’ll steal a taste of it and let him demolish it! Let’s check it out.
Here’s another one from Joe B. of Nottingham, England – thanks! Sainsbury’s is a chain of supermarkets in the UK that were founded in 1869. They make two lines on instant noodles – the basics and a more premium version. Let’s check it out!
When I’m ready to relax and have some ‘me time,’ there are two words that immediately enter my mind: leisure meatballs. What’s that? Leisure meatballs? Yes. Spicy chicken flavored ones. Let’s have a look.
Another one sent by my friend in Indonesia – thank you! A little translation. So it’s onion chicken flavor – rasa means flavor, bawang is onion and ayam chicken. Mi instan is instant noodle, but rebus? Rebus translated to boiled and here I think refers to the noodles being ‘cooking noodles.’ As I’ve mentioned in the past, what makes a noodle ‘instant’ is the fact that you can put the noodle block and seasonings in a bowl, add boiling water and then cover for a few minutes, stir and eat. Anyways, let’s check out this Indonesian variant.
Here’s something new – green barley noodles. I’ve had noodles that were green from a myriad of ingredients before (wonder if someday there’ll be blue?). These are supposed to be for the health conscious. Let’s check ’em out!
Here’s another one my friend from Indonesia sent me – thanks! This is a departure from the norm for me – very rarely have I had Indonesian varieties of rice noodles. I think I’ve had them maybe thrice before. This one’s by the Indofoods people – makers of Indomie Mi Goreng. Let’s see how it translates to a rice noodle variety!
Here’s one of the varieties that Joe B. kindly send me from England – thanks again! This is a British product that has a very Indian flavor. Let’s give it a try!
Another from my trip to Canada for my birthday – thanks, Kit! A chicken bowl – let’s check it out!
Here’s one that was sent to me by a reader in Jakarta, Indonesia – thank you! Spicy green chilli soup – green chilli seems to be gaining popularity in Indonesia. Let’s check it out!
Check this big sucker out! This one was sent by a guy who runs a store in Japan called Yanaktei (www.yakantei.com). Kind of looks pizza minded eh? Let’s check it out!
Well, we’ve almost come to the end of this Meet The Manufacturer. It’s been fun and interesting to find out about and try new varieties from Nepal! Here’s one that I found particularly interesting when I sampled the vegetable curry variety. Krrish is a action film series popular in India and Nepal and this ties into that fandom. Let’s check it out.
The vegetable version of Pretti was really good and got very high marks – curious how the chicken flavor will stack up! Let’s check it out.
Chicken sounds good – This is an example of a vitamin fortified instant noodle. In areas of the world where many people eat a large amount of instant noodles, vitamins are added to make them healthier. Let’s check these out!
Nope – this is not a reference to the popular South Korean K-Pop group – it’s a reference to the time of day. 2pm is a common time for a quick bite to eat in the afternoon. Let’s have a look.
I think this is one of my new favorite packages – those kids are rockin’ out! Fatafat means ‘fast fast,’ referring to the fact that you can just pop it open and eat it as well as a smaller size for a quick meal. I decided to try the only cooking method I’ve seen this brand mention that I hadn’t tried yet: cook, drain, fry and add seasonings. Let’s check it out!
This one is called Miteri and it comes from Nepal. The makers of this product mentioned that coriander is a good garnish for all of their varieties.. I went to the store looking for the stuff and found coriander powder so tried that on the review before last. Then I had a thought to look on Google for coriander as the powder just didn’t seem right. Well guess what? Coriander is known here in the US as cilantro. Needless to say, I went and got some and will use it today! As it turns out, miteri means friend in Nepalese.. Let’s check it out!
Today, I’ll be reviewing something different. I’ve reviewed snack noodles before that have been made into various shapes, ones that start as a block and you crush and add seasoning, but none quite like these. These are in a small packet and in a block – they’re also noodles that have been seasoned already. Asian Thai Foods said that you can simply crush the noodles and have them that way; in fact, it is common that people eat many of their varieties this way – including mixing the seasoning packets and oil packets as well – and eating straight. What I’m going to do with it is add a couple things I’ve found before in namkeens. Namkeens are basically savory snack foods that are kind of like trail mix – they usually contain nuts, seeds, raisins and all sorts of different things depending on the region. Let’s have a try!
Here’s the first review of the Asian Thai Foods Meet The Manufacturer spotlight! Wow – noodles from Nepal! Let’s have a look at these, called Gaurav. I couldn’t figure out what Gaurav means – if anyone knows, please comment! UPDATE – Thanks for KC Gabby for letting me know that gaurav means pride! Let’s check it out!
Here’s another one from the T&T Supermarket up in Burnaby, BC. I asked for help with the translation on Facebook. Thanks guys! Snack noodles are very popular in Asia and here’s one variety to check out. Yes – it’s from Taiwan! It’s a package with three little packs inside. Let’s check it out!
Here’s another one from T&T Supermarket in Canada! I haven’t reviewed on in a while, but here we have a ramen snack. You don’t cook them, it’s a little snack that’s ready to eat and already flavored. Let’s check it out!
Here’s another one from T&T Supermarket up in Canada! To be honest, I was absolutely stoked to find this one; I’ve seen pics of the Campbell’s varieties in the past, but they’re not available in the United States as far as I know. Let’s check out this little chicken cup.
In the last day, lots of people have been coming to The Ramen Rater from Indonesia! One person who commented via the facebook page said”you should try this one fried noddle, it has black pepper flavour. will not disappoint you :)” (for those wondering, this is friend black pepper chicken flavor noodles). I looked through the box of varieties my friend in Jakarta sent me and lo and behold, I had it in there! Thank you very much! Let’s check this one out!
Here’s another I got up at T&T Supermarket in Canada! Shio is one of four main categories of ramen in Japan (Tonkotsu, Shoyu and Miso being the others). Here’s what Wikipedia has to say about Shio:
Let me say that the past couple of days have been probably a couple of the most crazy, fascinating and rewarding of my run so far as The Ramen Rater. I did am interview with Quartz (part of The Atlantic) and it went viral; Huffington Post picked it up, Grub Street, Digg,… Did an interview with South Korea’s Cultwo Veranda Show and appeared, and have two interviews with radio and television lined up in the next couple of days. A couple of interesting opportunities I can’t talk about yet have popped up and I’m very excited about them and will share as soon as I can. Thursday I went up to Canada and met with some folks at a big Asian grocery called T&T Supermarket. They were really nice people and even sent me home with some great new varieties to review and share! Thank you so much! This is one of them. Oat noodles? This sounds different – see the little circle on the lower right? It says ‘health is important. Let’s check it out!
Another Indonesia variety sent by a kind person in Jakarta! Thanks! This is called ‘gulai’ – something I’ve never heard of. I consulted Wikipedia and found this:
Went to Uwajimaya in Seattle yesterday and saw these – little four pack of mini noodles! Let’s check ’em out.
Here’s yet another one picked up in Canada on my birthday! My wife took me up there (I’m legally blind so driving’s not the greatest idea for me). Thanks, Kitten! My son is a huge fan of chicken flavored noodle anything, so I figure he’ll like these.
Here’s another one a fan shipped me from Indonesia. Never tried this variety before – very few Indonesian cups that I’ve tried. Let’s check it out!
Here’s the other variety I received from Baltix – chicken! Sounds good to me!
The back of the package (click image to enlarge). Appears to be free of meat.
Here’s another Indonesian variety from the big donation I was sent recently – thank you! Tropicana Slim – sounds like a character from an old mobster movie or something involving orange juice? I assure it’s neither – they’re low fat noodles from Indonesia! Let’s check these out!
Today’s Father’s Day and my son Andy is over. Thought we’d have some noodles and this is the one he picked. He usually sticks to chicken flavored ones. Let’s check it out!
This is one you can probably find quite easily in a grocery store here in the United States. Let’s have a look.
Yep – another one from my Canadian birthday trip! Let’s check this one out.
Export sticker (click image to enlarge).
Here’s another one from my birthday trip to Canada in March! Let’s check ‘er out.
Check this sucker out – this is one huge Cup Noodle! Scott from Nissin got this one for me during a recent trip to Asia – thanks! Let’s see what’s going on here…
Well this one looks to be extremely spicy. Samyang Foods sent some instructions along as everything on the back of these packages are in Korean. Well, they also added a little advice:
Here’s something people should be able to find easily at their supermarkets – at least here in the United States. Lime… Habanero… Let’s check it out!
