Hello fellow instant noodle enthusiasts! Whether for lunch or a snack, instant noodle cups are popular the world over for their convenience and ease of preparation. I’ve samples over 2,800 different instant noodle varieties, and a great deal of them are cups. Out of those, here are my absolute favorite varieties – updated for 2018! As always, if you’re an instant noodle cup (or otherwise) company, please contact me if you’d like to have your products reviewed! Hope you enjoy!
The Ramen Rater’s Top Ten Instant Noodle Cups Of All Time 2018 Edition
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A video presentation of The Ramen Rater’s top Ten Instant Noodle Cups Of All Time 2018 Edition
The Ramen Rater’s Top Ten Instant Noodle Cups Of All Time 2018 Edition
#10: Nissin Cup Noodle Light+ Bagna Cauda – Japan
The noodles have a really nice quality to them – not mushy or anything; they’re just really good. The broth is saucy and hearty with a cheese and light fish taste which is augmented with vegetables galore. Amazing! This doesn’t make me think of low-calorie noodles, yet they are. Original review
#9: Daikoku Kaisen (Seafood) Shio Noodles – Japan
The noodles came out very nicely – hydrated to a T. The broth has a great buttery and seafoody flavor I very much enjoy. The included crabstick, scrambled egg, seaweed and cabbage hydrated perfectly and everything married together just right. A very well made seafood cup. Original review
#8: MAMA Instant Cup Noodles Seafood Pad Kee Mao Flavour – Thailand
The flavor is really quite good and can be summed as kind of a sweet seafood taste with a great bite of spiciness – and then this lingering flavor from the holy basil. It’s got a really different flavor I wish was present more often in instant noodle varieties. Original review
#7: MyKuali Penang Red Tom Yum Goong Noodle Authentic Taste – Malaysia
The noodles have a very light chew and a different mouthfeel. While I wasn’t entirely satisfied with this new style of noodle in the White Curry cup, this works very nicely with the tom yum. The broth is a tour de force of strong flavors – spicy, lemongrass pucker and a really nice balance of shrimp and vegetable taste. Original review
#6: Nissin Cup Noodle Nice Rich Pork Shoyu – Japan
The noodles are excellent; I don’t know why they just don’t replace these in all Cup Noodle Japanese varieties; they’re just the right way to go I think! The broth has a bit of thickness to it which was unexpected but very nice. The included vegetable, egg and pork just all worked together so well. Really an amazing and excellent cup of noodles. Original review
#5: Mamee Chef Curry Laksa Flavour – Malaysia
There are some flavors erupting from Malaysia that are just fantastic and this instant noodle cup exudes them like a rock star. The noodles came out excellent – pretty much identical to the packaged version. The broth and garnish as well were great – rich curry flavor and premium garnishes including little tofu puff bits and pepper. Original review
#4: Miandom Tasty Asia Green Curry Shrimp Flavoured Instant Noodles – Singapore
The noodles are interesting – while they have the tension and chew of something that I would at first glance think a rice noodle, these are indeed wheat noodles according to the labeling. They came out nicely – good chew and gauge. The broth is a luxuriant green curry flavor with a nice crescendo and little peaks of spiciness. Perfect there. The included bits of greenery and augmented with rings of chilli pepper which are pleasing to the eye as well as the palate. Original review
#3: Nissin Cup Noodles Very Veggie Spicy Chicken Flavor Ramen Noodle Soup – United States
The noodles are this and have a soft tooth. The flavor is a chicken with a lot of cumin and a bit of spiciness – not too much to fend off anyone I know, but enough to say ‘hi – I’m spicy.’ Just like the other two, this one gets a lot of added flavor in the broth from the myriad vegetables included. Corn, bell pepper, and onion are omnipresent and just so welcome here. Original review
#2: MyKuali Penang Hokkien Prawn Noodle Authentic Taste – Malaysia
The noodles are soft and have a kind of dark tan color to them. The broth here is like you died and went to prawn mee heaven. It’s thick, oily, spicy and tasty. It’s just awesome stuff, and then they go and include those awesome fried onions. The only thing is the bustling of motorbikes and people talking at the hawker court. Original review
#1: Nissin Cup Noodles Gourmet Sabor A Caldo De Camaron – Mexico
Second year in a row! So the noodles came out great in the microwave – flat and thin with a nice light tooth. Indeed the broth was a show stopper – a great Mexican shrimp broth with a rich flavor and light heat. Moreover, it has a sweetness I’ve only seen in Southeast Asian variants previously. The shrimp that are included are among some of the largest I’ve seen in an instant noodle – not only did they hydrate perfectly but they’re of good quality as well. The other bits of garnish supplied such as cabbage, carrot and other things round everything out and give the cup an excellent premium feel. In conclusion, this was absolutely wonderful stuff and I am seriously impressed – best of the instant noodle cups to date. Original review
