Today, I’m trying the second variety of the samples that Ramen Talk sent recently. I should mention that I’ve made an error here. This image above is the back of the package… My mistake… It sounds really quite good – let’s check it out!
Tag: pepper
#4124: Charming Couple Biang Biang Vegan Sichuan Pepper Sesame – Taiwan
I’m really excited to try this one – I love sesame paste and I love spicy things – unsure if this is sesame paste or sesame oil though – but we shall see! The last variety was really good so we shall see. Let’s go!
#4080: Ve Wong Artificial Peppered Beef Flavor – Taiwan
September 8th, 2010. That was the last time I tried this one – it was review #132. I’ve been reviewing instant noodles since then – it’s kind of crazy. I mean, over 11 years ago and almost 4000 reviews later, I’m still into reviewing instant noodles. Let’s revisit these – it’s not a re-review since in that amount of time, a lot of things can happen. For one thing, the packaging has changed. Another thing is that the same ingredients from suppliers may have changed. After 11 years, a lot changed in a product’s lifecycle. Let’s check this one out.
#3779: Nissin Togarashi Men Umakara Tomato & Cheese – Japan
Here’s one from a zenpop.jp box! You can get these every month with some neat varieties like this one inside! Use coupon code RAMENRATER for a discount!
#3597: Shi Zu Ren Energy Green Sichuan Pepper Instant Vermicelli – China
I’m really bummed as this is the last of the three varieties by Shi Zu Ren I have had the privilege to sample. They’re very different – so many sachets it’s mind boggling too. Just look below!
Meet The Manufacturer: #3581: Sau Tao Taiwanese Style Sliced Noodle Pepper & Sesame Flavour – Hong Kong
Still just surprised with all the different varieties. Here’s a nice wide-style noodle from Hong Kong – Let’s cook some up!
#3289: Sanpo Spicy Green Pepper Tonkotsu Ramen – Japan
This one was in a Ramen Trunk subscription box.These boxes are full of extremely high end varieties that you’ll never find in the United States or anywhere outside Japan! Check out this link and use coupon code RAMENRATER20OFF for 20% off any single box or subscription!
Unboxing Time: The Ramen Rater Spicy Pack By Gourmet Ramen Club
I’m happy to announce that in cooperation with Gourmet Ramen Club, the availability of a new box of noodles! This box has a fiery mix of the hottest of the hot – the spiciest instant noodles in the world! So have a look at the video and get yours today!
#2709: KOKA Signature Black Pepper Fried Noodles
Well, I thought I was out of KOKA varieties to review and only had a couple duplicates but nope – nada – still got more! See, there are KOKA Signature and KOKA Delight which both look about the same and often have the same flavors. What’s the difference? Well, KOKA Delight is baked noodles – not fried. So I’ve still got a few varieties left. This one is a black pepper flavor noodle – without broth. Black pepper is an interesting thing – very historic as well. Let’s see if I can find something from Wikipedia –
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!
The Ramen Rater’s Bottom Ten Instant Noodles Of All Time 2017 Edition
So today it’s the fifth annual The Ramen Rater’s Bottom Ten Instant Noodles Of All Time. On my other lists, I exclude varieties that no longer are on the market. On this list, everything’s fair game for the bottom ten. As I say in the video presentation, if you like some of these, there’s nothing wrong with you – I just find these detestable personally. These are my least favorite varieties of the over 2400 varieties posted to date. Without gurther ado, the bottom ten.
#2318: Happy Cook Sichuan Spicy Flavor
This is one I brought back with me from Taiwan! Happy Cook is a brand that one of the factories in Taichung makes.
Meet The Manufacturer: Re-Review: Mom’s Dry Noodle Vegan Chilli With Sesame Sauce
A lot of people these days are giving up meat and switching to the Vegan lifestyle. So, what’s the difference between Vegetarian and Vegan? It seems like there are many different ‘flavors’ of Vegetarianism. For example, I have a friend who claims to be vegetarian, however he eats bacon, eggs and Jack In The Box fast food tacos. Here’s what wikipedia has to say about Veganism:
Meet The Manufacturer: Re-Review: Mom’s Dry Noodle Pepper & Sesame Sauce
So today we kick off Meet The Manufacturer with a unique variety – pepper and sesame sauce. First, this is black pepper, not hot chill. Second, sesame sauce is completely different from sesame oil. Sesame sauce has a more peanut butter kind of texture and flavor whereas sesame oil has that strong sesame scent and saltiness. Let’s dig into this one and get things started!
#2289: Myojo Shin-Toyama Black Ramen
Here’s another one sent to me by Javier from Box From Japan. Box From Japan has subscriptions for all sorts of neat Japanese things. I regret to say that I was informed that they won’t be taking subscriptions for their ramen boxes for now – hopefully that will start again soon. He mentioned that you can purchase instant noodles from them here. Here’s what he had to say about this particular variety:
#2243: Nissin Cup Noodles Black Pepper Crab Flavour
Here’s the last of the varieties that Prima Taste sent a while back – thanks! You might be wondering – why would they send a product they don’t make? Well, I asked for anyone who could help to send me noodles – I was down to three or four varieties in my hamper – a bad situation! Well, lots of people sent noodles – even Prima Taste! So let’s check out this one from Hong Kong with a Singaporean taste!
Re-Review: Tseng Noodles Scallion With Sichuan Pepper Flavor
I thought that after making The Ramen Rater’s top Ten Instant Noodles Of All Time 2016 Edition and winning The Ramen Rater’s Top Ten Taiwanese Instant Noodles Of all Time 2016 Edition, it would be nice to revisit this tasty noodle! What do you think? Let’s dig in!
#2056: Koyo Reduced Sodium Garlic & Pepper Ramen
Can’t remember where I got this one, but it’s been a long time since I’ve reviewed anything by Koyo so I thought I’d check it out. So lower sodium, organic noodles, Vegan… But how will it taste? It’s tough to cover all these bases and make something that’s going to have a lot of flavor. Let’s find out!
Meet The Manufacturer: #1828: Zeng Noodles Scallion With Sichuan Pepper Flavor
In the past year, I’ve tried quite a few varieties with Sichuan Pepper in them and really gotten a feel for this kind of flavor. In a way, Sichuan Pepper has almost a minty taste to it; it’s really quite different and unique. Let’s check it out!
Meet The Manufacturer: Interview With Zeng Noodles
#1762: Mom’s Dry Noodle Sesame & Pepper
Here’s another new one from Mom’s Dry Noodle. This one’s got something inside none of the others do – FIVE sachets. Five. That’s a lot! Let’s crack the bag open and see what’s inside.
The Ramen Rater’s Top Ten Spiciest Instant Noodles Of All Time 2015 Edition
As many might know, I started The Ramen Rater (click to see the old site) in 2002 and did about 60 reviews. Then, I turned my attention to spicy hot sauces with The Sauce Rater. In 2010, I resumed my instant noodle reviewing. I’ve long been a fan of the spicy side of things – strong heat and good flavor are a couple of my favorite things. Let’s have a look at the absolutely hottest varieties I’ve found in my over 1,700 reviews of instant noodles from around the world in this year’s The Ramen Rater’s Top Ten Spiciest Instant Noodles Of All Time 2015 Edition.
Meet The Manufacturer: #1684: Wugudaochang Sichuan Pepper & Chicken Flavor Noodles
I’ve been really curious about this one, a brothless variety. This is made in the same way as mi goreng, however is more along the lines of what would be called a stir noodle or dry noodle. The looks from the package is interesting – I see peanuts! Peppers! Let’s crack it open and have a look!
Meet The Manufacturer: #1530: Lucky Me! Spicy Beef Mami Instant Noodle Soup
Lucky Me! Spicy Beef Mami is a newer product I’m pretty sure. A couple neat things about this one is tyhat they use Labuyo pepper. It’s also known as Bird’s Eye chilli as well a cili padi (chilli paddi) in Indonesia and Malaysia. What’s more, this is another instance of instant noodles being referred to as ‘mami.’ As far as I know, this in a purely Filipino thing; never seen instant noodles called mami anywhere else (although there is a Malaysian company called Mamee, (a play on mee and MAMA) and a Thai brand called MAMA (for the same reason). I thought I’d see what Wikipedia has to say about the various meanings of mami and got this list:
Meet The Manufacturer: #1387: Takamori Red Pepper & Garlic Peperoncino
Well folks, this is it. The last one for this Meet The Manufacturer. I really have enjoyed reviewing all of these fresh noodle varieties quite a bit, and I think it’s finally gotten me to look at the possibility of a The Ramen Rater’s top Ten Fresh Noodles Of All Time list. They don’t exactly fit into the Top Ten Instant Noodles Of All Time lists as they’re usually on a different playing field; they’re not fried blocks, but fresh pouches. So that might be something coming up in the near future. I’d like to thank Yuji for the help in making these reviews happen – I’ve messaged him plenty of times with questions throughout as there’s no English on any of the packaging, let alone the title sometimes. Let’s have a look at this interesting variety from Takamori Kosan of Japan as we bid them a fond farewell for now. Yuji has mentioned that there will be new varieties coming, so it’s not goodbye, but til next time.
Meet The Manufacturer: #1088: Amianda Noodle Tachia Dried Noodles – Peppery
To start things off, we have tachia noodles. It sounds like Tachung county is where a city called Tachia is, so I’m guessing this is a local version. Anyways, let’s check ’em out!
#1058: Meet The Manufacturer: A-Sha Dry Noodle Mandarin Noodle – Original Sauce
Here’s the last of the varieties that A-Sha sent. This has been a really interesting Meet The Manufacturer – I’ve immersed myself in Taiwan documentaries and listening to music from Taiwan and checking out the architecture. I really never knew anything to speak of about Taiwan, but I must say it looks like an amazing place! Today, I’ll try the original flavor – A-Sha told me it’s their most popular.
#1057: Meet The Manufacturer: A-Sha Dry Noodle Hakka Noodle – Spicy Sesame Oil Sauce
The A-Sha Meet The Manufacturer is winding down here is the next to last of the varieties I’ll be reviewing. Spicy and sesame – two words I like! Let’s check it out.
#1056: Meet The Manufacturer: A-Sha Dry Noodle Mandarin Noodle – Onion Oil Sauce
As most of you have probably noticed, I like onions. I usually pick sweet onion since it tends to smell up the freezer a bit less as I get a ton of them, prep them, then put them in a freezer bag. One time I got some at a grocery that were simply called brown onions, and they stunk up the entire fridge! Looking forward to this one by A-Sha – onion oil flavor!
#1055: Meet The Manufacturer: A-Sha Dry Noodle QQ Thin Noodle – BBQ Sauce
Today we’ve got the thinnest noodles I think I’ve seen in a pack. I was curious about the whole QQ thing so I looked it up and found this on Quora:
#1054: Meet The Manufacturer: A-Sha No. 10 – Mandarin Noodle – Black Pepper Sauce
When I first opened the box of samples from A-Sha, I was immediately curious about this one. Big, blocky red type on a stark white background. I’ve been told this black pepper flavor is tradition of a dish served at ‘Night Markets’ in Taiwan. A steak with a black pepper sauce and an egg on the side – a very nostalgic Taiwanese classic (here’s what it looks like). Let’s have a look.
#1053: Meet The Manufacturer: A-Sha Dry Noodle Tainan Noodle – Sesame Sauce
I was sitting in the car for a while yesterday and I turned on a streaming radio app I have on my phone. I searched for noodles and found a story about the popularity of cold sesame noodles in the ’60s there and a guy named Shorty Tang whose restaurant was quite popular. Anyways, here’s the radio broadcast.
#1052: Meet The Manufacturer: A-Sha Dry Noodle Hakka Flat Noodle – Chili Sauce
Here’s the first of seven in-depth reviews of A-Sha products. Wow – they’re wide! They’re also drained and liquid is stirred in – hmmm! So first, what’s ‘hakka?’ Wikipedia had this to share:
Meet The Manufacturer: A-Sha Foods International Samples
Yesterday a package with samples from A-sha’s US distributor, Pacific Trade Partner came!
Meet The Manufacturer: A-Sha Foods International Interview
Interview * Samples From A-sha Foods * A-Sha Dry Noodle Hakka Noodle – Chili Sauce * A-Sha Dry Noodle Tainan Noodle – Sesame Sauce * A-Sha No. 10 – Mandarin Noodle – Black Pepper Sauce * A-Sha Dry Noodle QQ Thin Noodle – BBQ Sauce * A-Sha Dry Noodle Mandarin Noodle – Onion Oil Sauce * A-Sha Dry Noodle Hakka Noodle – Spicy Sesame Oil Sauce * A-Sha Dry Noodle Mandarin Noodle – Original Sauce
#923: Ibumie Penang LadMee Hot Pepper Flavour Instant Noodle
Hey awesome! Went to 99 Ranch yesterday and found a couple I hadn’t reviewed before! With such a drought of new things to review, a couple 69 cent packs were a nice surprise! So here’s Ibumie LadMee from Malaysia!
Meet The Manufacturer: Paldo Interview
I’m very happy to announce that today begins Meet The Manufacturer Week: Paldo~ There will be many reviews and information about this great South Korean company. Here, we shall start with the interview. Enjoy!
#820: Sunlee Tom Yum Shrimp Flavour Instant Rice Stick
Today is probably the hottest day we’re going to have in Western Washington this summer. Right now it’s 88 degrees! I thought a nice bowl of spicy noodles would go well with it. I mean, isn’t it hot in Thailand too?
#812: Master Kong/康师傅 Spicy Beef
Spicy beef! This was sent by Bo H. of China! Thanks again! These have all been a lot of fun and quite good! Let’s see how Master Kong’s Spicy Beef goes.
#662: Daikoku Shokuh Kitsune Udon
Here’s another Japanese bowl I got at Uwajimaya. The one yesterday was so good, I thought a kitsune udon bowl would be nice today.