This is something new – an upgraded version of Maruchan’s popular Instant Lunch. I’ve tried the non Hot & Spicy in the past and been meaning to try this one. Let’s give it a go!
Category: United States
#4129: Soupply Filet & Brisket Pho Bowl With Real Meat & Collagen – United States
For a long time now, I’ve thought something that would be really quite amazing would be if instant noodles in the US would take a cue from the outside world. That cue is the retort pouch. Retort pouches are basically like flexible soup cans; metallic pouches that can hold meats and vegetables, sauces and more to give a noodle dish a serious boost while retaining shelf stability. I’m really curious about these – I reached out to the company to find out about samples and that worked out well as I’ve got some to try. There are two versions – a beef and a chicken. Let’s start with this beef one and in a couple reviews, the chicken.
#4126: Snapdragon Chicken Ramen – United States
Here’s another one sent by James from Lakeside, CA – thanks again! This one’s made in Vietnam, but for the US market. Chicken instant cup noodles. Sounds pretty basic to me and should be alright – let’s find out!
#4125: Menraku Japanese Ramen “Hokkaido Style Seafood” with Shrimp & Scallop Soup – United States
This came out of an Exotic Noods subscription box – one of many interesting and unique varieties from around the world they put in there. Use the coupon code THERAMENRATER at checkout for a discount!
#4123: GreeNoodle Yakisoba – United States
This came out of an Exotic Noods subscription box – one of many interesting and unique varieties from around the world they put in there. Use the coupon code THERAMENRATER at checkout for a discount!
Instant Spreads – Prison Ramen To The Next Level
Some of you may have heard of ‘spreads.’ In prisons, people will bring a bit of this, and a bit of that and all come together in a community way and share what they have to make a special feast called a spread. Well, the folks at Instant Spreads save you the hassle of going to prison by bringing you Instant Spreads – all you do isd add boiling water and you’re on your way to flavorland! Let’s check it out!
#4121: SesaOle Sesanood Sesaiginal – United States
This one sounds interesting. So, this is a Taiwanese made product specifically for the US market. This sounds as if it’s full of sesame with the sesa prefix to all the parts of the product’s name and maker! Let’s check it out!
#3972: Maruchan Wonton Soup Chicken Flavor – United States
Definitely not ramen, but something interesting from a domestic company known for ramen. Found this at Uwajimaya in Bellevue, Washington when I was picking up some narutomaki. Let’s check it out!
#4119: Sapporo Ichiban Tonkotsu Ramen Japanese Style Noodles – United States
This one came from Exotic Noods! Exotic Noods has great monthly subscription boxes with products from around the world. Worth a look! Use coupon code THERAMENRATER for a discount!
#4116: immi Tom Yum “Shrimp” Flavor Ramen Soup – United States
This is the third of three immi varieties I received from the company – thanks! They use pumpkin flour to make these noodles and thus far, I’ve had mixed results on the noodles’ consistency and chew. The first one I disliked a lot, however the second I liked quite a bit. Let’s check out this third and final iteration.
#4111: immi Spicy “Beef” Flavor Ramen Soup – United States
Pumpkin seed noodles – it just fascinated me, especially since I’ve been doing weird things with bread. Now I want a noodle machine to load with all sorts of interesting things… Very curious how this oe will turn out. Last time, they were on the extremely chewy side and so we will see. Let’s give these low carb noodles a try!
#4101: Nongshim Tonkotsu Ramen With Kuromayu Black Garlic Oil – United States
For the longest time, I only thought there was a single variety of Nongshim’s Tonkotsu bowl – the spicy one. Lo and behold, there’s this one with black garlic oil as well. What’s more, I think both exist concurrently. The spicy one has a five star rating from me and is at the top of the USA top ten. Let’s check this new one out!
#4100: Vite Ramen Vegan White Miso v1.3 Prototype – United States
This is the last of the prototypes Vite sent me. These have been really good! Curious if I’ll like this one too. What a week – I’ve been deep diving into pumpkin spice noodles for the past 4 days and while I thoroughly enjoyed them, this will be a welcome change. Let’s give this a try!
#4098: Myojo Cold Ramen Soy Sauce Vinaigrette – United States
Here’s a neat cold variety from the United States! Summer months are great for cold noodles as they are more refreshing. My friend Taku-san from Myojo was kind enough to share some new refrigerated varieties recently and here’s the first one – arigato! Let’s check it out!
#4097: Aces Sriracha Ramen Noodle Soup Extra Spicy – United States
Was digging around in my hampers and found I hadn’t reviewed this extra spicy variety and thought to myself ‘it’s time.’ So, since I thought that, it must be. Let’s give it a try.
#4095: Nissin Chow Mein Teriyaki Chicken Chow Mein Noodles – United States
It’s been literally years since I tried this one since it’s packaging has changed. I was looking around the local store when that hit me. So, here we are. Green beans, carrots and bok choy? Interesting – let’s check it out, shall we?
#4094: Vite Ramen Garlic Pork Tonkotsu v1.3 Prototype – United States
So the first ‘Generation 3’ varieties I tried was the chicken flavor from this range and I was thoroughly impressed. Today, I’m going to sample the tonkotsu. Let’s just rip into it and give it a taste!
#4091: immi Black Garlic “Chicken” Flavor Ramen Soup – United States
As soon as I heard about this stuff I was curious. But that was a long time ago and I’d almost forgotten why I was so curious until I did the unboxing. This stuff is made with pumpkin seed protein! That’s definitely unique. 22g of protein and 6g of net carbs. Ah, I remember net carbs. So, for every gram of fiber, you can knock off a carb. This has a ton of fiber. I’m really curious. Let’s give it a try.
More Noodles From James in California!
James from Lakeside, California strikes again! Thanks! Let’s check this latest box he’s sent over!
Exotic Noods Sends Bull Head Noodles!
I saw these recently and was really curious. Then I got an email from Dan over at www.exoticnoods.com asking if I’d tried them – I hadn’t, and he sent me some! Thanks! Let’s give them a look!
#4089: Mr. HOO Rice Noodle Soup Spicy Shrimp Flavor – United States
Thanks as always to James from Lakeside, CA for sending this over! I like this brand – wonder who Mr. HOO is though. Whomever he is, he must have a moustache. Let’s give it a try!
#4088: Vite Ramen Roasted Soy Sauce Chicken v1.3 Prototype – United States
I’m always really humbled when a company sends me a prototype! Getting to try something that’s being tested and isn’t available yet – that’s a true honor for me. So thanks for sending it over! I’m really curious – this one has lots of protein, fiber, vitamins, and low sodium. Let’s get to it!
Even More Noodles From James Of Lakeside, CA
Well, would you look at that? Without warning, this guy strikes again! Jame of Lakeside, California has been sending over noodles for a couple of years now – thanks again! Let’s see what’s inside!
#4184: Poco Kitchen Pork & Ginger Ramen – United States
I remember a few weeks ago looking at my browser – repeatedly, I would see this same ad. I finally, figured it was a demand that I reach out to this company and so I did. I was sent samples, and now we get to try them! When I initially saw their offerings, I thought these were boil in bag or microwave varieties. That’s not the case – they’re cook on stove – and I’m really curious how they’re going to be. Well, let’s find out!
#4076: Nissin Cup Noodles Stir Fry Rice With Noodles Thai Yellow Curry Flavor – United States
Big thanks to James from Lakeside, CA for sending this over! At first I was curious how they would go about doing this and then I opened the lid. Crushed noodles. I had a quick ‘a-ha’ moment and remember way back I reviewed good old #1506. 1506 was Nissin Mug – which was a variety from India and almost the same thing – instant noodles that are in rice sized lengths. This however has both the short crushed noodles AND rice. I’m very intrigued and curious about this. This right here is the kind of innovation and unique thing I have been talking about – and seeing something like this in the US market is a thrill, honestly. Let’s take a look and give this one a try!
Premium Varieties From Poco Kitchen
Started seeing ads for Poco Kitchen while browsing the web, so I figured I ought to reach out to them. This is a different thing – while they might look like microwavable bags, the noodles and seasoning are dry ; nothing wrong with that at all, just not as expected. The result though was quite nice.
#4074: Noodie Tonkotsu Irresistible Ramen – United States
This is the third variety of Noodie Vegan ramen I have here to try and I’m really stoked! The first I tried was their Peanut Chili which was absolutely fantastic stuff – just loved it. The second was the Smoky Garlic, and sadly, I really disliked that one. But now we have a Vegan Tonkotsu and I’ve had quite a few Vegan tonkotsus in the past, so I’m hoping this one will be great. Let’s give it a try!
#4067: Noodie Smoky Garlic Irresistible Ramen – United States
I’m absolutely fascinated and enamored with this new brand. Their products are very uniquely packaged for one, and for two, they’re quite good – at least that was my experience with their peanut chili variety. Let’s give the smoky garlic a try in hopes that it’s got some serious garlic flavor going on!
#4066: Yumei Noodle With Scallion Oil – United States
Alright so first off – this is made in China, however the package is definitely made for sale in the United States. Second, I found this at Asian Food Center on Hwy 99/Aurora by Shoreline, WA – definitely a great place to visit every couple of months. I’ve found tons of unique variants there. Let’s check it out!
#4064: Ramen Express By Chef Woo Hotter & Spicier Chili – United States
To be honest, this makes me very happy. I’ve really found the Ramen Express varieties to be quite good, and now they’re easily found at Walmart. I’m not extremely keen on the cup versions (although I haven’t had the new shrimp variety so maybe they’ve changed; I will soon), but the packs have a great noodle and very nice flavors. I’m unsure if this is different than the origininal hotter and spicier variety; this one tacks ‘chili’ on the end and has different packaging. Saw it at Walmart a couple of days ago.
#4061: Menraku Japanese Ramen “Spicy Sesame” – United States
This one came from Exotic Noods! Exotic Noods has great monthly subscription boxes with products from around the world. Worth a look! Use coupon code THERAMENRATER for a discount!
#4060: Nissin Raoh Miso Flavor Ramen Noodle Soup – United States
This one came from Exotic Noods! Exotic Noods has great monthly subscription boxes with products from around the world. Worth a look! Use coupon code THERAMENRATER for a discount!
#4059: J-Basket Japanese Style Noodle Soup Curry Flavor – United States
This one came from Exotic Noods! Exotic Noods has great monthly subscription boxes with products from around the world. Worth a look! Use coupon code THERAMENRATER for a discount!
Out Of The ICU! Maruchan Feel Better Recovery Ramen!
An older package of Maruchan Chicken flavor Ramen Noodle Soup
You may have seen that I was in the hospital this week. I can describe the whole thing in the video below since it has been typed a lot of times and I had a TON of blood draws in the past few days and to put it short, they had to get them out of my dominant hand and it’s a little sore after being poked so many times, so my apologies.
The Definitive Guide To Nongshim Shin Ramyun Noodles
Definitive Guide Series – Maruchan Ramen Noodle SoupSamyang Buldak * Nongshim Shin Ramyun * Indomie Mi Goreng
UPDATE 3/15/2023 – Added Shin Vegan cup
UPDATE 3/12/2023 – Added section referring to new Shin Gold and Shin Green US variants.
Back in 1986, a South Korean company called Nongshim 농심 (which translates to Farmer’s Heart), introduced a product called Shin Ramyun. Since then it has been one of the most popular varieties around the world. In this post, I’ll do a deep dive into the product – a tear down of the package and it’s contents, my tips of preparation, and some things you might not know about it. While not my favorite variety I’ve tried, chances are it may be yours. I run a group called Ramen Junkies on Facebook and the topic and focus of the bulk of posts on there surround this product.
#4051: Schylling Ramen Noodlies – United States
Today, I have something that should get some folks in a tizzy but that’s just fine. I’m reviewing instant noodles. Well, sort of. Well, not really. This is a toy. Don’t eat these. I mean, you could I suppose, but I’m telling you not to. See, it says that this toy is for ages 3 and up. So, they’re figuring you and small children will have the sense not to try and cook them and eat them. Let’s check out these sproigy and stretch things.
#4043: Vite Ramen Vegan White Miso v1.2 – United States
Yup – another newer version Vite Ramen! Once I get through all these, the prototypes for version 1.3 will be next! I remember I really liked this one – let’s see how this improved version does!
Another Donation From James Of Lakeside, California
So for a couple years now, a fellow ramen enthusiast from Lakeside, California named James has been shooting over varieties of instant noodles not on my Big List – very kind and thoroughly appreciated – my thanks! Let’s see what he sent over this time!
Exotic Noods Subscription Box – December 2021
A little late to get a holiday gift for someone? Want to try some noodles? 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!
#4040: Vite Ramen x Fly By Jing Sichuan Chili Edition v1/2 – United States
So what I love about what these guys do is they come out with new versions. This particular variety is version 1.2. This one is a special collaboration with a company called Fly By Jing that makes Sichuan Chili Crisp, one of the true flavor delicacies. Let’s check it out!