Tag: noodle

#3114: A-Sha Gourmet Sichuan Peppercorn Flavor – Taiwan

Here’s the third of the A-Sha Gourmet varieties I’m trying today. There’s one more left. So translation isn’t my strong suit and I often turn to friends and colleagues as to what different varieties are called and translate them. At this exact moment, I’m dumbfounded. Google’s not very helpful; one says hemp. I could be mistaken, but I think hemp isn’t going to be in the name of this one. I’ve had varieties say they’re dolphin bone as well, which most certain isn’t the case! I’ll find out shortly though! ...see full post

#3010: Vedan Wei Wei Premium Noodle With Braised Beef – Taiwan

#3010: Vedan Wei Wei Premium Noodle With Braised Beef - Taiwan

This one comes by way of a reader from Taiwan who visited t he Philippines and saw this and a spicy version there. This is most definitely an export version. First, lots of English text. Now, you’ll never see this in the United States as it does contain beef. Casn’t go wrong with braised beef – well, I guess you could if it’s bad, but I don’t think that’s going to be the case here. Let’s find out! ...see full post

#2956: Paldo Curry Volcano Chicken Noodle

#2956: Paldo Curry Volcano Chicken Noodle

I took a look in the closet the other day and boom – hey look a six pack of these cups! Forgot about these ! You have to understand – I have a lot of noodles to review – hard to find space for them! But here they are ready to go! Thanks to Paldo for sending them along! Let’s check out these super spicy noodles from South Korea! ...see full post

#2950: Nissin Top Ramen Chili Flavor Ramen Noodle Soup (New Recipe)

#2950: Nissin Top Ramen Chili Flavor Ramen Noodle Soup (New Recipe)

It kind of confuses me on this one – I mean, yeah, it says ‘the original’ and doesn’t really say that there’s been a recipe change. But there has – now there’s no MSG and no artificial flavors., plus a reduction in sodium. These aren’t bad things at all of course, but I’m just kind of left wondering – so shouldn’t it say new and improved instead of ‘the original?’ Anyways, let’s see what’s in this, one of the Vegetarian varieties in the Top Ramen range. ...see full post

#2941: A-Sha Dry Noodle Guanmiao Noodle Hakka Sesame Oil Scallion

#2883: A-Sha Dry Noodle Guanmiao Noodle Hakka Sesame Oil Scallion

A-Sha’s US distributor messaged me a little while ago about these new varieties about to hit the US market that are very popular in Taiwan right now. Guanmiao noodles hail from southern Taiwan in the agricultural heartland. Hotter weather and lot of noodles! Let’s crack it open and have a look! ...see full post

#2931: Maruchan Ramen Noodle Soup Creamy Chicken Flavor (New Packaging)

#2931: Maruchan Ramen Noodle Soup Creamy Chicken Flavor (New Packaging)

Yesterday, I needed a new pair of pants. I’m not into ultra fashionable stuff – like paying $100 for jeans, so we went to Walmart. Walmart is an interesting place – you’ll see some interesting people there – especially at the one in Lynnwood, Washington. When we got out of the car, there was the sound of some guy at the other side of the parking lot screaming obscenities at someone or some thing – unsure. But that was entertaining. In the store, we g ot to see a lady with a very small dog barking at everyone and every thing ( apparently, if you have an ’emotional support’ dog you can bring it with you, but this dog needed emotional support and was definitely not providing it for anyone). I did get some new pants, and they were extremely cheap. $16 for pants. It’s been a while since we’ve been to Walmart so I thought a trip down the domestic instant noodle aisle might be in order. Surprisingly, they had a very small amount of them, however they did have this pack. Creamy Chicken has been one of my absolute favorites for a very,  very long time. I am curious to see whether or not they’ve changed the recipe as that seems to be a popular thing to do in the US instant noodle market right now. Let’s crack open this new package design and give it a try! ...see full post

#2910: Nissin Top Ramen Soy Sauce Flavor Ramen Noodle Soup

#2910: Nissin Top Ramen Soy Sauce Flavor Ramen Noodle Soup

Well would you look at that! Top Ramen. An American original. You might be thinking ‘aww that’s Japanese,’ but this stuff is as American as it gets. The flavor is made to appeal to the local market. What bums me out is when I say ‘an American original’ all I can think about is my favorite political show which is no more. My dad used to watch The McLaughlin Group for years and I finally hit an age after he was gone that I checked it out and got hooked on it. I’d torture poor Andy and make him watch it all the time. But Dr. McLaughlin died a couple years ago, and they ended the series long run. I would be curious how it would have been if he would have stayed alive longer – how the show would be these days. Anyways, I’ve gone way off track. So soy sauce is known as Shoyu in Japan. This is a kind of Shoyu ramen. Let’s check i tout! ...see full post

#2909: Nissin Cup Noodles Very Veggie Soy Sauce Flavor Ramen Noodle Soup – United States

#2995: Nissin Cup Noodles Very Veggie Soy Sauce Flavor Ramen Noodle Soup - United States

When the Very Veggie line came out, my first thought was that it would just be varieties for Vegans and Vegetarians. Surprisingly, there was no option for this crowd. Well, it seems that that has changed! This one was sent to me by Robert Z. from Kentucky – thanks man – go check out his cooking blog www.dadbert.com! He found this at a local grocery store – nothing about this and the other new Cup Noodles he found and sent on their site or mentioned on Instagram. This has led me to think that perhaps he’s in what’s called a ‘test market.’ In some areas, a product will be introduced to meter how it’s received by the public – if it sells really well, it’ll go nationwide. If not, it might be pulled. Let’s pop the lid and look under the hood. ...see full post

#2871: Island Foods Chiba · Matsudo Tsukemen (Dipping noodles) – Chuka Soba Tomita

#2871: Island Foods Chiba · Matsudo Tsukemen (Dipping noodles) - Chuka Soba Tomita

Here’s one sent to me by Ippin, a purveyor of lots of different Japanese products. This is definitely a fancy variety from a set of Kanto region varieties based on popular ramen shops. Not a lot of boxes come across my desk so this should be interesting! Here’s what the Ippin website had to say about this variety: ...see full post

#2835: Da Long Yi Self Heating Hot Pot – Vegetable Version

#2835: Da Long Yi Self Heating Hot Pot - Vegetable Version

Alright – now if this isn’t something that doesn’t make you wanna check your head… So we went up to Canada yesterday. What was up there? This, the second one I’ve reviewed that has a little sachet that actually heats the bowl of noodles and cooks it. Where did I find it? I’m sure you’re thinking ‘oh some neat Asian grocery store.’ No. Hold onto your butts. My wife saw this one. At Walmart. Yeah. Walmart. The Walmart locations both in Richmond, BC and Vancouver, BC have decent noodle aisles with varieties from all over. It should be noted though that there’s a huge Asian population in this area – and so kind of makes sense in a demographic way. I mean, you certainly won’t see this near Walmart HQ in Bentonville, Arkansas…I thought it would be really cool if my son Andy got a chance to try and cook one of these. It should be fun! Glad we found it at Walmart – it was our last stop before heading back home. We go to Walmart every time we go to Canada. It’s really nice up there. Let’s cook this sucker up! ...see full post

Meet The Manufacturer: #2791: Mike’s Mighty Good Craft Ramen Vegetarian Vegetable Ramen Soup

Meet The Manufacturer: #2791: Mike's Mighty Good Craft Ramen Vegetarian Vegetable Ramen Soup

Alright so today it’s a Vegetarian variety. To be honest, I used to enjoy a lot of condensed soup and this was my favorite flavor. So, I suppose it has a bit to live up to as far as the name. Let’s have a look inside this cup and see what lurks within! ...see full post

#2773: Vedan Minced Pork Noodle

#2773: Vedan Minced Pork Noodle taiwan

Brought this back from Taiwan. Pretty much everything I brought back came through the rigors of baggage handling unscathed; but not every single thing did. Alas, this was one of them that didn’t. To be quite honest, it did better than some I’ve brought back before from abroad – a little crushing of noodles isn’t bad – I’vbe had ones whose noodle blocks were reduced to crumbs. Let’s have a look at this one – I found it at RT-Mart in Taipei. ...see full post

#2764: Vedan Double Bang Thick Beef Broth Noodle

#2764: Vedan Double Bang Thick Beef Broth Noodle - Taiwan Taiwanese

This one’s got horns and flying saucers on the packaging – something that denotes… Well, horns and flying saucers I suppose. I guess it more likely denotes ‘hey look at me – I’m on the store shelf!’ The double bang is for the two noodle blocks. The other variety I reviewed in this series had two in it as well and called for (like this one) 700ml boiling water. Guess we will see how this one goes as well! I remember seeing these on store shelves – I think I got all but one of the varieties (sniff) but hey – got some pretty fascinating ones. Taiwanese beef noodles, it is your time to shine. ...see full post