Tag: taiwan

#2330: Ve Wong Little Prince(ss) Brand Snack Noodles Artificial Mexican Pizza Flavor

#2330: Ve Wong Little Prince(ss) Brand Snack Noodles Artificial Mexican Pizza Flavor - Taiwan - The Ramen Rater - noodle snack

As I’ve said in the past, I’m usually about 50 or so reviews ahead of myself. Well, today is the actual day our daughter Miriam will be born and by the time this comes out she’ll be close to two months old. Wow! It’s early in the morning – although it’s just a few hours away. Really excited! This one seemed interesting enough for a day of birth – Mexican pizza from Taiwan? I think a fiesta is in order; although I wish these were called Little Princess – but hey look at the title I think that works at least a little! Let’s check it out! ...see full post

Meet The Manufacturer: Re-Review: Mom’s Dry Noodle Vegan Chilli With Sesame Sauce

Mom’s Dry Noodle Vegan Chilli With Sesame Sauce - Taiwan - The Ramen Rater

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: ...see full post

Meet The Manufacturer: #2313: Xiao Ban Mian Sesame Oil With Garlic Flavor Thin Noodle

Xiao Ban Mian Sesame Oil With Garlic Flavor Thin Noodle - Taiwan - The Ramen Rater - Instant noodles

This looks very interesting. Check out how thin these noodles are! Sesame and garlic are great flavors to marry together as well. So we’ve seen sesame sauce – the tan colored peanutty kind of stuff and today it’s sesame oil – a much lighter fare. Let’s have a look! ...see full post

Meet The Manufacturer: Re-Review: Mom’s Dry Noodle Sour & Spicy Flavor

Meet The Manufacturer: Re-Review: Mom's Dry Noodle Sour & Spicy Flavor - Taiwan - The Ramen Rater

Here’s one I really like. It has what I like to call a ‘back and forth effect flavor.’ It’s like you get one flavor lingering then your palate gets the hint of another flavor, then back to the first. It’s really unique in this way – reminds me of one of my favorite hot sauces – not in the taste, mind you, but this kind of back and forth. Let’s check it out! ...see full post

Meet The Manufacturer: #2312: Xiao Ban Mian Traditional Shallot & Onion Oil Noodle

Xiao Ban Mian Traditional Shallot & Onion Oil Noodle - Taiwan - The Ramen Rater

During my trip to Taiwan in November of 2016, I had the opportunity to try the three varieties of the new Xiao Ban Mian line. I remember this one in particular; it was really quite good and I only got a bite or two of it – my sister actually scarfed this one down quickly! Now, back in the controlled environment of my noodle lab (sounds more amazing than it is, really), I’m really excited to give this a try. Let’s check it out! ...see full post

Meet The Manufacturer: #2311: Xiao Ban Mian Sesame Sauce Matcha Noodle

Meet The Manufacturer: #2311: Xiao Ban Mian Sesame Sauce Matcha Noodle - The Ramen Rater - Taiwan - instant noodles

Xian Bian Mian is a new line from Howsler Foods. They all use straight noodles and are a bit different from the Mom’s Dry Noodle line. These tall narrow packs have three servings in each. So matcha has become really popular – but what is it? Let’s ask wikipedia: ...see full post

Meet The Manufacturer: Re-Review: Mom’s Dry Noodle Onion Oil & Shrimp Flavor

Mom’s Dry Noodle Onion Oil & Shrimp Flavor - Taiwan - Taiwan - The Ramen Rater

Here’s one I’ve liked for a while . In fact, it’s on the Taiwanese op Ten list! I really like shrimp as well as onion! I thought since I’ve had the opportunity to try a nice amount of Taiwanese food now, I’d share this info about their food from wikipedia: ...see full post

Meet The Manufacturer: Re-Review: Mom’s Dry Noodle Pepper & Sesame Sauce

Meet The Manufacturer: Re-Review: Mom's Dry Noodle Pepper & Sesame Sauce - The Ramen Rater - Taiwan

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! ...see full post

Meet The Manufacturer: Interview With Howsler Foods

#2264: Unif Tung-I Instant Vegetarian Beehoon Rice Vermicelli

I think I should explain the symbol in the upper right hand corner before anything else. While the symbol may bring up thoughts of World War II, this actually has nothing to do with oppression; this is a Buddhist symbol denoting that it is safe for those who practice strict vegetarianism. Here’s a little from wikipedia about it: ...see full post

The Ramen Rater Visits Taiwan – Day 1: Arrival & Immersion

Day 1 * Day 2 * Day 3 * Day 4  * Day 5

A couple of months ago, I was invited by Kyle Kao of Mom’s Dry Noodle – a company in Taiwan – to visit and check out their operation. Just like last time I traveled (last May to Thailand), my wife is pregnant and the trip would happen when she was too far along. Again, just like last time, she said it was alright to go and I was accompanied by my sister Sue. Like many of you know, I can’t see very well so I need a little help when travelling. In the following posts, I will chronicle everything we saw and did while there. Thank you so much to Kyle for extending this invitation, as well as to Perry, James and everyone else we met there – You made us feel welcome and we had an amazing time! I hope you all enjoy the posts! ...see full post

#2218: Tseng Rice Noodle Spicy Braised Pork Flavor Flavor

Okay now this – this sounds good. I absolutely love a few things in this world. Curries, Korean BBQ, dim sum… Something new has been anything braised and Taiwanese. We’ve got a little restaurant nearby called Looking For Chai and their braised pork and braised beef is so good – tender and so full of flavor. Just a nice slab of it on a bed of rice and that’s all you need – well, that and a little milk tea. Let’s check out this spicy braised noodle! ...see full post

Tseng Noodles – Coming To America!

This is a box I’ve been really excited about – and I think a lot of you will be excited as well. People have been asking me about Tseng/Zeng noodles and where to get them since they were #9 on my annual The Ramen Rater’s top Ten Instant Noodles Of All Time 2016 Edition. They just made #1 on my Taiwan Top Ten list2 days ago. Well, I have it on good authority that they will be available in the United States at 99 Ranch Market in California around Christmas time – that’s all I know for now but if I hear more, I’ll let you all know! ...see full post

The Ramen Rater’s Top Ten Taiwanese Instant Noodles Of All Time 2016 Edition

 This is the fourth year of The Ramen Rater’s Top Ten Taiwanese Instant Noodles Of All Time lists. The list definitely has had a lot of movement every year – a good sign as those who produce instant noodles in Taiwan are innovating and producing new styles and flavors all the time! Here are my pick of the tastiest and most memorable Taiwanese varieties from my over 2,000 reviews to date. ...see full post

#2168: Tseng Rice Noodle Shallot With Braised Pork Flavor

Here’s another new one from Tseng’s – shallot braised pork. Man, this sounds good – I really have high hopes. As I’ve opined before, Taiwanese braised anything is unbelievably good. Really, it isn’t just my opinion – I would mark it down as fact. If you don’t like Taiwanese braised anything, you just don’t know what tastes good and should have your tongue examined for mold or aliens. Let’s give this one a try and see how it translates to a rice noodle. ...see full post

#2162: Tseng Rice Noodle Seafood Laksa Flavour

So this is definitely a first – I don’t think I’ve ever heard of laksa from Taiwan! It sounds good – I mean hey, I make laksa here in the United States quite often but I’m sure my neighbors haven’t a clue what they’re smelling ‘must be some off kind of Hamburger Helper’ probably going through their minds. But laksa is a seriously tasty thing and I’m keen on seeing what Tseng has come up with for us. Let’s have a look! ...see full post

Product Samples From Tseng Noodles Of Taiwan

Today started well, then got a little crazy then got better – I started at 5am with reviewing some noodles. Then the power went out around 7am for over two hours! A bit later, the mailman knocked on the door with a big package of Taiwanese noodles! Tseng was in The Ramen Rater’s top Ten Instant Noodles Of All Time 2016 list this year – and they have some new products! Let check them out! ...see full post

#2156: A-Sha Chow Mein Oyster Sauce BBQ Flavor

The next edition of The Ramen Rater’s top Ten Taiwanese Instant Noodles Of All Time will be coming out in about a month, and so I’ll be cramming in as many late ones to arrive as possible. Today, one of a trifecta by A-Sha Dry Noodles – microwavable trays! Definitely something I’ve not seem out of Taiwan before that I can think of. Anyways, let’s give it a whirl in the ol’ microwave! ...see full post

Meet The Manufacturer: #2152: Jingqi Black Eyes Bean Cyanobacteria Noodles With Ginger Oil Sauce

Now I’ve tried all the different sauces with one type of noodles – now we’ll go through and see how they work with the other noodle! Today it’s the cyanobacteria noodle once again – good stuff! Instead of the wider lasagna-like gauge, this is the thinner one. Ginger oil sauce too! Let’s check it out! ...see full post