Here we are again with the Fire Noodle Challenge. This is the Samyang Foods Mala Buldak Bokkeummyun. So, all over YouTube, people are wincing and screaming as they choke down packs of Mala – why? Well, for some reason, they are under the impression that it’s 4x spicy. Don’t get me wrong – it’s quite spicy – it’ll kick your butt. But it is a far cry from the 2x Spicy Nuclear Fire Noodle, that’s for sure.
Category: * News / Noodle News
Special Report: 4x Spicy Fire Noodles Do Not Exist
fter seeing multiple posts and videos and online stores advertising for a 4x version of the popular Samyang Foods Buldak Bokkeummyun hot chicken noodle, I felt it required me to make a statement.
Travels: Taiwan 2017 Day 7: Departure And Arrival
Day 1 & 2 *
Well, finally it was the day to depart. I really love Taiwan – all the sights, sounds, smells… But I definitely was really missing my wife and kids. That was the hardest part of the trip. Being a stay at home dad is so rewarding – not seeing the smiles on everyone’s faces was really killing me.I packed everything up and met Kyle to go out for some dim sum.
Travels: Taiwan 2017 Day 6: Of Soup Dumplings And Steamy Seafood
Travels: Taiwan 2017 Day 5: Eating Out Of Toilets, Coffee & Pizza
Travels: Taiwan 2017 Day 4: Saturday @ The Food Expo
Travels: Taiwan 2017 Day 3: Taiwan International Food Expo
Travels: Taiwan 2017 Day 1 & 2: Travel, Arrival & Exploration
Day 1 & 2 * Day 3 * Day 4 * Day 5 * Day 6 * Day 7
Taiwan 2017 Day 1 & 2: Travel,. Arrival & Exploration
Off I Go
On November 14th, 2017, my wife drove me to Seattle International Airport. My main impetus for the trip was to do an awards show at the Taiwan International Food Expo – the first food show I’d ever been invited to. They asked if I’d come and do a little awards ceremony for the top three from The Ramen Rater’s Top Ten Taiwanese Instant Noodles Of All Time 2017 Edition list that came out in September. I was definitely all in for doing this for sure – after visiting Taiwan last year I was keen on visiting again. This time was different – it was my first time travelling alone. I was a little pensive about this (I’m legally blind) but I have flown to Taiwan 3 times previously and so thought hey – I can do this. Oh – and a week before I broke my pinky toe. That was really annoying but broken toe be damned – I was going! So I got to the airport around 11pm, went through security, grabbed some drinks and snacks and headed to my gate. Hopped on the plane just after midnight.
Happy Holidays From The Ramen Rater!
It’s been quite a year! I just wanted to send a big thank you to all my readers, folks who’ve sent in noodles, companies I’ve worked with and for all the help everyone has been on translating and everything else. Every day is such an enjoyable one because of you! From my family to yours, Happy Holidays!
The Ramen Rater Awards @ Taiwan International Food Expo
I went to Taipei, Taiwan on November 15th, 2017 to take part in the Taiwan International Food Expo. I was invited to do a presentation of the first through third place winners in this year’s Top Ten Taiwanese Instant Noodles Of All Time 2016 Edition!
The Ramen Rater Appearing At The Taiwan International Food Expo
Hey Taiwan! I’m going to be at the Taiwan International Food Expo in Taipei! Check out the video for further details!
We Try 7 Kinds Of Hong Kong Potato Chips!
So the other day I posted the unboxing of noodle and potato chip samples sent by Nissin Hong Kong (thanks again!). I thought it would be fun to do up a video with the family and try these out one by one.
The Ramen Rater: How I Review 2.0
Today, I wanted to show you exactly what goes into my reviews from start to finish.
The Ramen Rater: How I Review 2.0
Special Update: The Ramen Rater Select
I rarely come out with any special news or anything like that, so I direct you to watch the video below. Thank you for watching.
Rematch: The Story Of The 18 Prohibited Fire Noodle Challenge
So in late August 2017, a fellow named Jay from Taiwan told me about a very spicy noodle I should try. I had recently put out the new Top Ten Spiciest Instant Noodles Of All Time for 2017 and was definitely keen on trying anything and everything spicy of course to begin the search for newcomers for the 2018 list.
Ramen Noodlist Interviews The Ramen Rater
#2559: Jackpot Teriyaki – Beef Ramen
On June 22nd, we met my sister up in Tulalip, Washington to check out the outlet mall. It’s kind of a misnomer; you think outlet mall, you think cheap prices, right? Well, these are outlet stores for stuff like Coach, Burberry, etc – so you can get overpriced things that are still overpriced but not as cool as if you got it currently for this season. Ugh.
The Ramen Rater’s Top Ten Taiwanese Instant Noodles Of All Time 2017 Edition
It’s been quite a year of reviewing as far as Taiwan is concerned. I brought back a trove of varieties I’d never had the chance to try before. Really opened my eyes many varieties that people had recommended I try over the years. This is the top ten – the best Taiwanese varieties I’ve tried from the over 2,500+ reviews I’ve posted to date. As always, if I’ve not tried your noodles, please contact me! I’m interested! Let’s check it out!
The Ramen Rater On 92.9FM KISM Bellingham, Washington
Just did a radio show this morning called the Brad & John Show. Check it out below!
Product Samples From Happy Noodle Of Taiwan
Got a box today from Taiwan – wasn’t sure what it was at first then realized it was one I’ve been expecting for a couple of months! These are Happy Noodle samples! Let’s have a look!
New Samples From Nissin Singapore
Got a box from Nissin Singapore yesterday – thanks! They’ve been updating recipes and so I reached out to them for some samples. Let’s have a look!
Sauce & Noodles From A Reader In Taiwan
About 3 weeks ago I got a message from a guy named Peter in Taiwan asking me if he could send me a sample of a new sauce he’s making there. I never would turn down a sauce to try, and after a couple weeks here it is! Let’s see what’s inside!
The Ramen Rater’s Top Ten American Instant Noodles Of All Time 2017 Edition
After a few years, I thought I ought to update this list. I thought I even ought to change the name a little. Honestly, not a huge amount of instant noodles from the United States cross my desk these days and of those that do, not many are 5 stars. Nonetheless, there are some changes in the past few years that I thought were noteworthy and so here you go! These are the best instant noodles from the United States out of the 2,500+ varieties of instant noodles I’ve reviewed thus far.
New Very Veggie Cup Noodles From Nissin
I saw an article mentioning a new product from Nissin Foods America which focused on a lot of vegetables and thought ‘it’s about time.’ I’ve had a ton of instant noodles in my time and honestly very rarely have I been satisfied with the amount of vegetables in them. I dropped a line to my contact over there and boom – a day later here are samples. Let’s see what’s in this box!
New Samples From Paldo South Korea
Nowadays, soon as there’s a knock at the door my son Miles is racing for the door. It’s really funny actually – he wants to steal the box and try to get it open as soon as possible to see what’s inside! I wasn’t expecting this one from Paldo – unexpected but definitely appreciated! Let’s see what’s inside!
Binders Full Of Women? Nope – Noodles
Since my 200th review or so, I’ve been keeping the packaging from the instant noodles I review. Why? Well, there are a few reasons. First, it’s kind of a physical representation of the varieties I’ve sampled. Also (and more importantly), the bar codes are on them all. These can be added as tags to the posts and be added. I started adding bar codes in the tags around review 800 or so. The Ramen Rater apps all have bar code scanning capability and so adding these in makes the app more functional for the site. Unfortunately, there’s still a lot of tedious work to do in that area. Anyways, Someone asked about how I store my noodle packaging and was curious to see some binders, so here you go!
The Ultimate Instant Noodles Collection
Okay so some of you may be wondering – and some have asked as well: what do you noodle holding pens look like? Well, they’re next to my desk – actually next to and under.
Product Samples From Tseng Noodle
I asked for one four pack of their noodles. They sent a whole box! Let’s look inside.
Product Samples From Tseng Noodle – Taiwan
An Enormous Gift From Nissin Mexico
So Nissin Mexico’s Gourmet Caldo De Camaron was #1 on this year’s The Ramen Rater’s Top Ten Instant Noodle Cups Of All Time 2017 Edition – and well deservedly so. Big shrimp, lots of veggies and a broth to die for as well as some great noodles in these cups. Well, they were enthused and wanted to thank me, so they sent me a couple of cups.
The Ramen Rater’s Top Ten Singaporean Instant Noodles Of All Time 2017 Edition
So for the past few years I’ve been thinking about putting out a top ten list for Singapore. It took me a while though; I wanted to have a TON of Singaporean varieties that I’d tried before doing so. Well, I’ve tried a TON of them now and I felt it would be nice to put out a new list. I’m posting this on Singapore’s National Day – thought it would be fitting. If you’re not familiar with the half lion half fish image in the picture above, that’s a Merlion. It’s the national symbol of Singapore. Here’s a little more about it here. Well, it’s time. These are my favorite varieties that come from Singapore from the over 2,500 reviews I’ve done to date. All these Singaporean varieties are most definitely shiok – so grab your favorite beer (mine’s Tiger) and check it out!
The Ramen Rater In… GQ? Really?
The Ramen Rater In… GQ? – Taiwan
Yeah – really! So I had no idea until it came out, but I’m in GQ Taiwan. Definitely didn’t expect that! If you want to read the article, it’s here (note – you’ll need to use Google Translate if you can’t read Chinese). Posts will resume Friday. I’ll do a couple Throwback Thursdays on Instagram though – oh yeah – follow me on Instagram! I post there every day as well.
The Ramen Rater’s Top Ten Spiciest Instant Noodles Of All Time 2017 Edition
NOTE – THERE IS A NEW TOP TEN SPICY LIST FOR 2018 – HERE IT IS
It’s that time of year again! Actually, this is the first time the list is coming out in July although at the tail end of July. I usually have the lists come out on the Monday closest to the date it came out the prior year. So this list is a compilation of absolutely hottest and spiciest varieties I’ve had out of the 2,500+ varieties I’ve tried thus far. Something you think belongs on this spiciest of lists? Let me know – I’ll give it a try. Let’s get started!
Pringles Top Ramen Chips & Where To Get ‘Em
Pringles Top Ramen Chicken Flavor Potato Crisps
Okay so you may have seen that there are new Pringles Top Ramen Chicken Flavor Potato Chips on the market. This is a pretty surprising thing for the US – less so elsewhere. Apparently, the only place you can buy them in stores is at a place called Dollar General. There aren’t any in Washington State, so I had to look elsewhere. I found an eBay Seller who has them and at a very reasonable price. Some people are selling six cans of Pringles for $99! That’s $16.50 per can! Egad; what has this world come to… Anyways, yeah I don’t think they currently have any in stock but I asked and they said that they were going to restock again ASAP!
Samyang Foods Samples Including New Mala Buldak Bokkeummyun
So both the kids were interesting this box that came yesterday. Miri is just about to start crawling but Miles is running around like a beast these days! Let’s see what’s inside!
New Product Samples From Mom’s Dry Noodle
Got this box in the mail a couple days ago from Taiwan! Wonder what’s inside. Let’s find out!
A Spicy Package From India
My wife Kit was kind enough to get me a pack of noodles I’d heard about being ultra spicy! Let’s look inside!
The Ramen Rater’s Top Ten Instant Rice Noodles Of All Time 2017 Edition
Now for the third year, I’m coming out with the latest Top Ten Instant Rice Noodles list. Rice noodles have some benefits as opposed to their fried wheat counterparts. First, they’re virtually fat-free. Also, they’re not fried. Rice noodles are gluten-free by nature, although the ingredients in the sachets that come with these varieties might not be. People ask me for a gluten-free list often, but that would be rather difficult as I’d have to pore over every ingredient list on every review to do this. Well, let’s have a look at these great rice noodle varieties – the best instant rice noodles varieties of the almost 2,500 reviews to date!
The July Box From Japan
Every month, Box From Japan offers instant ramen subscriptions as well as candy and other special subscriptions! This is the July box. Thus far, I’ve never gotten a repeat, nor one I’d reviewed previously! Let’s have a look.
Bokkeum Neoguri & Mr. Bibim Samples From Nongshim South Korea
A fellow reviewer from Happy Souper posted about these new Nonshim varieties and gave me the contact info for Nongshim Korea – I lost touch with my contact a while back. These were kindly sent by Danny – thank you very much! Let’s have a look!
Vietnamese Crab Noodles Donated By A Reader
I got an email a couple weeks ago from Kimmy N. or Connecticut asking if I’d tried Binh Tay Crab noodles. I haven’t, and she offered to send some!