The Definitive Source For Instant Noodle Reviews Since 2002
See, I have a problem. I love vegetarian friendly products – however, I tend to add meat to them. The thing I like about these products is that they usually have a smoother flavor. I’m curious about this one. I also just cut 81 slices of chashu this morning, a ton of narutomaki, and I have marinated soft boiled eggs in the refrigerator. Let’s use the resources!
Here’s one that came in a Zenpop.jp box – use coupon code THERAMENRATER for a groovy discount!
Here’s a cup that came by way of the folks at Nissin Foods in Germany! This is a special collab cup with a German ramen shop. Sounds good! Let’s cook it up.
Here’s one that came in a Zenpop.jp box – use coupon code THERAMENRATER for a groovy discount!
This is great – I saw this at S*Mart and couldn’t resist. I generally resist purchasing multipacks as I usually just need one, maybe two package to do a review. I was thinking though perhaps my daughter might like this one so there will be extras. Definitely made in Taiwan, packaged for US sale. One thing too – you might think this is pronounced Vey-dan – it is not. The ve is pronounced ‘way’. So now you know – let’s cook!
It’s time to unbox a Zenpop.jp box – you get seven varieties of instant noodles to try! I would say that almost every time I’ve gotten one of these, I’ve never tried any of them before which is really awesome. Great as a gift or to hoard for yourself! Use coupon code THERAMENRATER for a groovy discount! Let’s check it out!
Well, here we are. The standard stuff. This was found at GMart in Lynnwood, Washington. So, what is it? It’s a combination of ramyun and tteokbokki – which are tubes of rice flour that are chewy and truly wondrous. Anyways, these really have been hit and miss on preparation – either dry or exploding in the microwave. Let’s give it another try.
Found this at a local Indian grocery yesterday and very pleased that I did. I’ve seen these around online but never in a store and they had single packs which makes things much easier! Let’s crack it open and give it a try!
This is the third one of these. They’ve all been kind of Buldak copycats but definitely not the same heat level by any means – the extra spicy was spicy indeed, but not as spicy as 2x, yada yada yada. I really dislike comparing any individual variety to another, however this is such an obvious copy of a well known product that I’m going slightly rogue. I’m curious though – since this looke to be about the same style as the original Buldak, will it be as hot? Will it taste good? Well, let’s find out.
Yet another packaging design – it should also be noted that this one doesn’t say spicy masala and just masala. I found this at Indian Sweets & Spices in Shoreline, Washington yesterday. Yesterday was a day of finding particular things. I’ve been doing a lot of curry lately and I got some nice basmati, some noodles, some black cardamom and mango pickle there. I also went and got a half pork belly at Double DD Meats, a great butcher shop and holy grail for hot sauces and all things spicy. I must note that while this is made in India, it’s certainly an export version specifically for sale in the United States. Anyways, time to cook.
UPDATE 2/8/2024 – It’s pretty daunting. The end is in sight though. Currently, just paid for the security package for the blog – $200. It’s a lot but after being hacked a couple years ago, that’s one thing that can’t go unpaid or delayed. $2 to my name. They just started charging for my wife’s meds out of the blue – sounds like a new year thing. So we’re both in the crapper as it were. Tax return should be alright but about a month til we’ll see that we reckon. Want to thank everyone who has helped so much – without your kindness, we’d be is an even worse spot than we are, although pretty grim currently. Hopefully the next update will be much better, but for now if you can send something it would be appreciated. Been broke since October. Tough thing to get used to.
A friend of mine shared a link with a great article today about a guy who I haven’t heard from in a while. Ramen Conqueror Piki! He saw what I was doing and decided he needed to do the same over in South Korea! Below is an interview I did with him in 2017 – he was kind enough to include pictures of me and my family in the book . This is from six years ago. Hope he’s doing well!
Another one found at S*Mart. I know, it’s not ramen or instant noodles per se, however it’s something you might find on the instant noodle aisle as I did. Usually these aren’t bad – definitely not a thick broth or anything, but a nice flavor and thin walled macaroni. First found this kind of thing years back in Canada with some Nissin varieties. Anyways, let’s proceed.
This one is definitely a trip – so it’s made in Vietnam for the South Korean market. Found it of course at the famed S*Mart – that’s right kids – shop SMart – shop S*Mart! I really don’t think any people in that Korean store have seen Army Of Darkness, but honestly I think they’d get a kick out of it. Anyways, let’s commence.
This one usually comes out in January, but a little late this year on edits. However, this one’s ready to go! This is my list of favorite South Korean varieties from my reviews up to number 4,650. Definitely want to try more South Korean varieties – especially those only found in South Korea – not export versions if at all possible. Anyways, let’s boil some water and check out The Ramen Rater’s Top Ten South Korean Instant Noodles Of All Time 2024 Edition!
This one was brought over and mailed to me – thank you! Very nice and excited to try it! I’m going to guess this will be a beef and Sichuan pepper kind of affair, but who knows – it’s a Thai brand so it should have a special spin on it. Let’s give it a try!
Definitely haven’t tried this one in the past, but I’ll review it today thanks to Pher Engi from Australia – thank you very much! Aceh is a region of Indoesia – that being said, here’s a little blurb about this one I found online –
Here’s one I’ve wanted to get my hands on for quite a while. I like tantanmen – usually thick and spicy stuff – a denser, sloppier ramen. Let’s give it a go!
Fancy new packaging going on here. Mapo century egg with meat paste sounds really quite exquisite – this sounds great – I’m on it!
Well folks, this is the last of the Trader Joe’s stuff I had. Honestly, these pouch noodles and sauce bowls have been surprisingly decent. The only problem are the bowls – you can’t just cut it up and scan it before you use it – rather irritating for yours truly, however my issues with the bowl itself probably aren’t an issue for 99.99% of those eating this. Let’s see how the garlic one is.
Big thanks to Pher Engi for sending this all the way from Australia! This is a variety that used to be available in the United States, however this and a couple other have disappeared from our shelves here over the years – and it bums me out. Bring them back, please! Not sure what rendang is? Wikipedia says –
Well, hmm. I think it’s time for something spicy. It’s early August 2023 and you know – spicy food. It’s funny – the chicken here kind of looks like Terminator with a chili pepper machine gun or something. I should note that this is the first review using my new tool – the RPFD – the ramen packaging flattening device. What’s that? Well, it’s a suction cup shower handle attached to a clear piece od thick Plexiglas which does a great job of flattening packs of instant noodles on the scanner. After over 4,000 reviews and trying different things to aid in scanning problem wrinkly packs, this came to me after using a tablet screen to hold down a metallic pack a few reviews back. You can see the post I did about it here. By the way, while it’s definitely got export info for the US, it’s got it for many countries, so this isn’t specific for the US and so it gets a South Korea label. Let’s try some fire?
Looks like Yamadai/New Touch is getting into the export market game with this and another one I found at S*Mart. Shop smart. Shop S Mart. You may have noticed I keep saying that – it’s where the main character in the film Army Of Darkness works before he’s launched into a bizarre comedic hellscape. Anyways if you’ve not seen that movie you should. Let’s make some shoyu ramen.
Well, dang. I really would have loved to been able to review this sooner but tough to get samples from companies in the United States for some reason. Ah well. I found this at S*Mart – yup – shop smart, shop S Mart. Not sure if they just did a repackaging of the old version or not, but I’m guessing it’s a bit more than that. Let’s give it a try!
Made in South Korea and packaged for US sale. I’m curious if this one will work better than the last one which just kind of exploded in the microwave. Hopefully this one’s a gem.
This list is coming a bit late this year, but I figure late is definitely better than never. This one’s comprised of varieties made in, and specifically for the US market. Some really tasty stuff here is your backyard if you didn’t know! These are my favorite US varieties out of reviews up to review 4,650 that are currently on the market. Got something I’ve not tried? Hit me up! Anyways, let’s check out The Ramen Rater’s Top Ten American Instant Noodles Of All Time 2024 Edition!
Definitely found this at 99 Ranch Market. They’ve had a ton from this brand lately. Time to cook!
This one came from James of Lakeside, California – thanks, man! Pulmuone leans towards the healthier end of the stick when it comes to food manufacturing. I believe I read a while back about how there is in fact a large farm Pulmuone runs that is also a school on heritage farming for students in South Korea – pretty cool. Let’s make some crab ramen!
Man, where did I find this one. Hmm… I think I found it at 99 Ranch Market in Edmonds, Washington, but I could be totally wrong. It looks as Sichuan Baijia is making this one, however they’re making it in Inner Mongolia which I find fascinating. I’m really curious about this one, that’s for sure. Let’s give it a a try!
Big thanks to Pher Engi for sending this over from Australia! I haven’t reviewed one of these in such a long time, and I remember they were pretty darn good. I’m also going to guess this is pretty spicy as well. Let’s cook it up and give it a try.
Here’s one I found in an Umai Crate from Japan Crate! They have boxes full of neat Japanese varieties! Check out www.japancrate.com and use the coupon code THERAMENRATER to score a sweet discount and get some neat noodles!
Man, I’ve been itching to get my hands on this stuff for quite awhile and finally it showed up at my local grocery store. This is a pretty good range – especially the sizzlin’ rich pork – that one’s excellent. Let’s see if the Mongols can conquer them all!
I reviewed the bowl version of this quite a while back and they were pretty good, so when I saw the cups, I decided to give them a shot. Here’s the first one I’ll be doing. This is made in South Korea and packaged for the US market.
Here’s one that came in a Zenpop.jp box – use coupon code THERAMENRATER for a groovy discount!
Might seem peculiar, but I’m back. Took almost a month off while the boy was doing summer school. He enjoyed it and while there I walked with my daughter all over the place. She’s six, but she did a 9.6 mile walk with me the other day – not bad! Anyways, this one I think came by way of James from Lakeside, California – thanks! Let’s made some Chinese broad noodle – Hoping they’re good!
Here’s one that came in a Zenpop.jp box – use coupon code THERAMENRATER for a groovy discount!
Here’s one that came in a Zenpop.jp box – use coupon code THERAMENRATER for a groovy discount!
Here’s one that came in a Zenpop.jp box – use coupon code THERAMENRATER for a groovy discount!
Here’s one that came in a Zenpop.jp box – use coupon code THERAMENRATER for a groovy discount!
This one came by way of Pher Engi of Australia – thanks again! So BonCabe is a spicy concoction – like a seasoning. There are differing levels of heat and this one is LEVEL 30. I think the next up is the BonCabe Max End. Anyways, I’m very curious how spicy this one is, so let’s find out.
