A couple years back, I did a Meet Ther Manufacturer with Paldo, a South Korean company. I was stoked to get a pack of this Rabokki back then and asked if it would ever be in the United States. It sounded like there weren’t any plans to bring it this way and I was bummed – really bummed. Well, bummed no more, I can happily announce that it’s gracing store shelves in the USA now! Rabokki is a fusion of ramyun and topokki Topokki is what you see there on top of the noodles on the package – finger length rice cakes that are chewy – about the consistency of string cheese, served most popularly in a thick sweet and spicy sauce. I will say it’s probably one of my favorite foods of all time – especially the way I’ve tried it lately at a local place called Chi-Mc n Hot Pot, with cream cheese – egad it’s really good. Let’s check out this ramyun-topokki fusion from Paldo!
Travels: Back From Thailand
So our trip to Thailand was absolutely amazing – met some really great people, checked out two noodle factories, tried some great food, saw wonderful sights! All this said, it’s good to be back home. I’m recovering from jet lag and will be posting a day-by-day travelogue in a week or so as a new Meet The Manufacturer will be starting very shortly. Until then, let me just say that Thailand was so different from expectations; I thought since it was so close to Penang and Langkawi (about a 2 hour flight) that it would be much the same, but boy was I wrong! It’s completely different! Can’t wait to share it with everyone!
#1676: A1 Emperor Herbs Chicken Noodle
Here’s one I got at the Econsave in Butterworth, Penang on my Malaysia trip last year! I looked up Emperor Herb Chicken on Google and found a recipe that lists the ‘Emperor Herbs’ – quite a list!
#1675: Baixiang Noodles Sauerkraut Flavour
Sauerkraut! Chanced are that if you walk down the instant noodle aisle, you’ll see some kind of purple packaged variant. It seems that there are certain colors for certain flavors; red for beef, yellow for chicken, green for pork, blue for seafood – and yellow for sauerkraut. Pickled cabbage is a very common flavor of instant noodles, especially in China and Taiwan. Let’s check these out!
Re-Review: Tat Hui Mi Hai Cua 2 Crab Flavour Oriental Style Instant Noodles
I remember the first time I saw this one – it looks so exotic! So fascinating! So ‘what is it?’ The tiny crabs shown on the package were enticing. They reminded me of the ones I’d find as a kid on the beach in Anacortes – you’d flip over a rock and watch them scurry all over the place. I reviewed this one way back – before #500. Let’s give it another look as it’s been calling to me in the noodle aisle for another try.
#1674: emart Dare You! Habanero Ramen (New Packaging)
This was sent to me by Anders E. from South Korea – thank you very much! For some time new, eMart’s Dare You! Habanero Ramen has topped The Ramen Rater’s Spiciest Instant Noodle Of All Time lists. There’s a really good reason for this too – it’s violently hot. Heat is measure in SHU – Scoville Heat Units. Here’s what wikipedia has to say about the Scoville test:
#1673: Lishan Food Manufacturing Black Cock Brand Vegetarian Chicken Noodle
Some days are tougher than others. This is one of them. This has been the focus of my ire for the past hour or so. I have been trying to figure out what it’s called exactly, and hoping to find an ‘official’ website for it. No dice. I asked some people on facebook and got a little help, though. The brand is 力山食品工廠. From what I gather, you steep these, but with how much water I am unsure. It’s also got some other interesting things inside, aside from the swastika on the package and twin dragons. The swastika isn’t a reference to Nazi Germany, however to Buddhists who are vegetarian, as well as not allowed to eat ‘fetid’ vegetables like garlic or shallots. Anyways, let’s look inside this unique Taiwanese variant!
#1672: Azami Chili Seafood Flavour Noodle Soup
Here’s another one that was sent to me by Justin M. from Winfield, BC up north of here in Canada! I haven’t been a big fan of these Canadian instants thus far, but I keep trying them in hopes one will be really good. Chilli Seafood definitely has a nice ring to it – let’s see if it lives up to its name. Let’s go!
#1671: Ah Lai Penang Favourite White Curry Rice Vermicelli
A while back, Ah Lai sent me samples of their regular white curry noodle. Today, It’s their rice vermicelli version! Here’s a little about rice vermicelli from wikipedia:
#1670: Tropicana Slim Less Fat Noodles Grilled Chicken
So I get this email asking me my thoughts on a particular instant noodle from Indonesia from this guy named Seth. I’ve tried another variety, but not this one. There’s a little dispute at his house whether it’s good or not and he wanted me to review it and get my opinion on it. So he sent me some, all the way from Indonesia. The package had some bumps along the way (mainly because I made a typo in my address) but it did get here, and so here I am, about to review this variety for the health conscious. It’s an interesting concept – low fat noodles and all. Grilled chicken does sound good as well – but let’s let the noodles speak for themselves. Let’s check out Tropicana Slim Grilled Chicken!
#1669: A-One Mì Ly Instant Noodles Mì Chay Vegetarian Flavor
Another one from the bottom of the hamper! A very plain looking label – but how’s it taste? Let’s check out this variety from Vietnam.
Travels: Off To Thailand!
Tonight, I begin a long journey to Thailand to visit Thai President Foods and President Rice Products. They’re best known for their MAMA line of instant noodle products! My wife Kit will be posting reviews I’ve already done ahead of time until my return. If you want to see what I’m up to on my trip, check out my instagram – follow theramenrater – or look at it here. I will be accompanied by my sister Sue as my wife is too far along in pregnancy to do the trip. When I get back, I’ll do a detailed travelogue as I did with last year’s Malaysia trip to visit MyKuali.
#1668: MAMA Cup Rice Vermicelli Clear Soup
I’ve often wondered about this one. I’ve seen chand clear soup as well and not exactly able to find anything online about it. I did see what to add to it, but if anyone has any info of the origin of clear soup, please let me know. This is made in Thailand by President Rice Products, one of the factories I’ll be visiting on my upcoming Thailand trip!Let’s have a look at this one.
#1667: Deshome Aloe Thin Noodles With Camellia Oil Vegetable Sauce Flavor
Camelia oil – this is a new thing to me. I was curious – why camelia oil? Wikipedia had this to say:
#1666: Vifon Curry Instant Noodle With Chicken
Once in a blue moon I find an instant noodle in my hamper of which I have absolutely NO CLUE WHERE IT CAME FROM. I mean, yeah – I know it’s made in Vietnam and that it’s a chicken curry variant, but I have no idea how it got into my hamper. Where did I get it? Hmmm… Well, it needs to be reviewed so here I am. Let’s check it out!
Re-Review: Sapporo Ichiban Japanese Style Noodles & Chicken Flavored Soup
I’ve been asked by quite a few people in the last few months to re-review this one. It sounds like a lot of you really enjoy this one! One thing to note is that I’ve also been asked repeatedly about instant varieties that are vegetarian. Most instant noodles made in the USA will contain meat and/or seafood. Why? Well, it’s pretty hard to import chicken and beef into the United States. Standards for agricultural products are pretty strict, so the logic here is that if a foreign company builds a plant here, they don’t have to deal with these restrictions since they’re in the country, using US meat products in what they produce. Knowing this, if you stroll down the aisle of an Asian grocery store, you’ll see quite a few chicken, beef and other flavors which usually are imported and do not contain any beef, chicken or pork. So just a little tip from me – look and see where it’s made on the pack – it might have fish, but should be meat free. These noodles are made in Garden Grove, California. Southern California is the spot where most instant noodle companies that open up plants congregate – easy access to big seaports and centralized distribution has a lot (if not everything) to do with this. Anyways, let’s check out this much requested re-review of Sapporo Ichiban chicken noodles!
#1665: Paldo Vina Koreno Premium Mushroom Flavor
Paldo Foods is a South Korean company, and it looks like they’ve expanded to Vietnam with Paldo Vina. Now mushroom isn’t generally my favorite flavor, but I’ve been surprised in the last year or so at how much I’ve liked many mushroom instants. Let’s see how this one pans out.
#1664: Mamee Oriental Noodles Prawn Flavour
Picked this one up this year at the PriceSmart foods in Richmond, BC in Canada during my birthday trip! This is definitely an export version. How do you know? Well, look at the myriad of languages here – French, German, Arabic and English are all here on the front. A lot of companies make export versions and sometimes they’ll make a spicy version which for their local market is spicier than for the export market. There’s so much that goes into figuring out how to tune flavors and such for different places. Let’s check out these Mamee Prawn Flavour instant noodles!
#1663: Vina Acecook King Chef Authentic Kimchi Flavour
Here’s one from Vietnam. Vietnamese instants usually tend to be pho flavors for the most part, but a lot of them are Thai or in this case, South Korean styled. Let’s see why this one’s leaning South Korean, other than the flavor.
#1662: MAMA Ramen Non Fried Instant Noodles Tonkotsu Flavour
This one’s interesting – a Thai take on a Japanese classic! Tonkotsu! Here’s what wikipedia says about tonkotsu:
#1661: Chencun Senior Food Rice Noodle Fragrant Peppery Beef
Here’s one from low in the hamper that needs reviewing! I’m woindering if perhaps ‘senior’ isn’t the correct word in this one; the title as it is sounds like something for older folks. Perhaps they’re going for something more along the lines of ‘classic?’ I don’t know, but it’s time to review this one – let get to it!
#1660: Sau Tao Ho Fan Wonton Soup Flavored
I’ve reviewed a few of these Hong Kong instant rice noodles in the past, but never looked up the meaning of Ho Fan. I did some research and found this on wikipedia:
#1659: United Instant Noodles Xi Gon Satay Onion Flavor
Here’s one of the ones sent by Marvin R. of Ft. Worth, TX – thanks again! So he originally asked me about identifying there. They look a lot like another Vietnamese brand, but the info on the back seems to show that it’s definitely not them. I’ve found in general that onion flavor is usually a good bet – but what about satay? Here’s what wikipedia has to say about satay:
#1658: Choripdong Hurricane Rice Cake (Topokki)
Topokki time! Okay so you’re probably thinking ‘what? Yesterday he reviewed rice porrige and now it’s rice cake?!’ Well, this one has topokki (Korean rice cake) as well as noodles in it. One thing to note as well – see where it says to keep it refrigerated? I saw pallets of these where I got it that weren’t. To be honest, I think putting that on certain instant products that have these kind of fresh noodle packs inside is a way to give the illusory guise of something less shelf stable, making one think it’s higher quality. Honestly though, that kind of thing doesn’t really phase me. So! What is topokki? Wikipedia for ya –
A Special Donation From Indonesia
I got an email from a guy names Seth from Indonesia recently asking if he could send me some noodles that he has been having a difference of opinion on at his house. He likes them and others aren’t so sure, and he wanted my opinion. You got it! So I gave him my address and he expedited a package out – only one problem – I mistyped my address! Luckily, the person who got it hadn’t eaten the noodles and when DHL came to recover the package and redeliver had no problem doing so. So, after a crazy journey, the noodles are here!
#1657: Shan Shoop Instant Noodles Bombay Biryani Flavour
I *think* this is the last of the varieties of Shan Shoop out there – I’m sure it’s the last in my hamper. So Bombay Biryani. What’s biryani? Let’s see what wikipedia has to say…
#1656: MAMA JokCup Instant Porridge Soup Seafood Flavour
I’ve been whiling my time looking up and down aisles of instant noodles for a very long time. When I find out about a new Asian market nearby, I am exceedingly enthused about perusing their noodle varieties. But sometimes I’ll find something a little different. This is a rice porridge. It’s not a wheat noodle, rice noodle or thread. I like to review these every once in a while because I’m sure many of you have seen them and not known exactly what they’re all about. Let’s have a look at this MAMA JokCup and see what’s inside!
#1655: Sichuan Baijia Artificial Pickled Vegetable Beef Flavor
So yesterday we went to the new Asian Food Center on 130th and Aurora southwest of here. Was hoping to find a lot of new varieties I hadn’t tried yet and found a couple – and this is one of them. I haven’t had much luck at all with Baijia products in the past – I think it’s just a taste that doesn’t translate well for me. However, I never met an instant noodle I hadn’t tried before that I didn’t want to. So with that, let’s have a look at this Sichuan Baijia variety.
Meet The Manufacturer: #1654: MyOri Malaysia Penang White Curry Noodle Super Spicy
To wrap up this Meet The Manufacturer, we revisit our old friend the Penang White Curry. This one says it’s super spicy – something that always piques my curiosity. I’ve had some instant noodles that have said they’re really spicy and they’ve been almost bland (yeah, I’m looking at you Canada and England). Usually though, something that has a little mention on the pack of heat usually isn’t kidding around. Let’s check this one out and see how spicy it truly is.
Meet The Manufacturer: #1653: MyOri Malaysia Penang Green Curry Rice Vermicelli
Ok, so I don’t think I’ve been bugged more by any company to try an instant variety before. I mean wow – daily asks of ‘have you tried it yet?’ The folks at MyOri are ultra excited about this one! Well, today is the day! I think I’m ready! I really like green curry, but never been a huge fan of rice vermicelli. However, rice vermicelli has been kind of growing on me in the last year, so we shall see. Let’s pop this sucker open and give it a go!
Meet The Manufacturer: #1652: MyOri Malaysia Penang White Curry Noodle Original
Penang, home of some of the most amazing food and culture of the world. White Curry is one of the great things about Penang – spicy, full of flavor and fascinatingly exotic. There are quite a few White Curry Noodle variants on the market, of which I’ve tried many. It’s always really great to try a new one – I’m succh a curry junkie… I could eat curry every day! My first meeting with curry was when I was a kid – my mom made curried chicken livers over rice. I really liked it quite a bit – still kind of surprises me that I would have been so adventurous at such a young ago, but back then, dinner was what your parents made and that was that. Luckily, my mom always made tasty dinner! Anyways, let’s move from past to present and try this Myori Malaysia Penang White Curry Noodle!
Meet The Manufacturer: Product Samples From MyOri
Nothing better than a nice box showing up on a rainy day.
Awesome! Can’t wait to try them out.
Meet The Manufacturer: Interview With MyOri
The Ramen Rater’s Readers Top Ten Instant Noodles 2016 Poll
So here’s the question: What’s YOUR favorite instant noodle? You can answer this question and everyone’s votes will be announced when I announce The Ramen Rater’s top Ten Instant Noodles Of All Time 2015 Edition!
#1651: Ruski Chicken Flavour Instant Noodles
You might have noticed that I haven’t reviewed a lot of chicken flavor varieties recently. The main reason for this is that Io haven’t had any chicken to go with my noodles – I usually cook some in the over and slice it up nicely and then I’ve got it for a couple reviews. Well, I’ve been lazy – a bag thing. So let’s check out this chicken instant from Ruski – laziness ends here!
#1650: Ottogi Sesame Ramen Korean Style Instant Noodle
I’ve gotten a good amount of comments about this one. Ottogi Sesame Ramen seems to have filled an interesting niche in the noodle market! It’s pretty neat stuff – it has something called an ‘egg block.’ It is basically dehydrated egg that when introduced to the boiling water springs to life! I’ve had the bowl version (also known as a king cup) before, but never reviewed the pack. Let’s check out Ottogi Sesame Ramen!
#1649: Master Kong Seafood Flavour Instant Cooking Noodles
Here’s another one sent by a kind reader in Sweden! Thank you! Master Kong is really popular in China and what surprises me is that there are no places that I’ve seen that you can get their products here in the United States. Luckily, people send them to me from time to time, but it seems to me that I really need to figure out a way to contact them and do a Meet The Manufacturer with them. The Chinese consume billions of packages of instant noodles a year and I’ve never done a Chinese Meet The Manufacturer yet! It’s about time. Well, let’s check out these seafood flavor Master Kong instant noodles!
#1648: Wei Lih Instant Noodles With Onion Flavour
This is one I got last month on my birthday trip to Canada! What’s interesting is that it’s one I tried to get along with a couple others from one store up there the previous year but there was some kind of thing that to use a card you’d need to spend at least $20 or something, and since the noodles I found were a far cry from that, I skipped it. I really was bummed – this is nowhere to be found here in the USA so thought this time around I’d see if the place had it – and it did! Let’s check out this Wei Lih onion variety.
#1647: No Name Shrimp Flavour Oriental Noodles And Soup Mix
Back in the day, there used to be a brand that was literally generic; they would have products with a white background and a very stark blocky black text. A can of dog food would simply say dog food. I think they’re long gone, but this is kind of the next best thing to it. No Name is a line by Canadian company Loblaw’s, a grocery store chain. Let’s give No Name a look!
Top Ten 2015 Re-Review: MyKuali Penang Red Tom Yum Goong Noodle
This one is pretty special. When I traveled to Malaysia last year, we got to visit an island off the coast called Langkawi. We went to a couple of really nice Thai restaurants while there and I tried the tom yum soup. It was nothing like anything I’d tried previously; extremely strong broth, with a deep richness to it. It was one of the best things I got to try during my trip! I knew that MyKuali had a new Tom Yum variety and I was very keen on trying it. The day I left, I got a couple packs to bring home and try. That being said, let’s have another look at MyKuali Penang Red Tom Yum Goong and see what makes it so special.