Journey into the World of Ramen

Asda Smart Price - Prawn Flavour Instant Noodles

2009-01-04T16:02:00.004-05:00

It's not a very good sign when your instant noodle packaging is semi-transparent and you can see the flavor sachet through the outside wrapper. Nevertheless, I took my chances with this one. This is part of Asda's Smart Price range. Similar to Tesco Value or Sainsbury's Basics lines, the Asda Smart Price range is a low cost line of products. The packaging is restricted to one or two colors to reduce cost as much as possible.

These noodles were disappointingly limp and tasteless. The noodles themselves were quite gooey and starchy and didn't have the springiness illustrated on the packaging. There was barely any flavoring at all, especially not prawn flavoring. It tasted like a weak salt broth.

These noodles were terrible, but luckily my expectations were already very low. They didn't taste bad, but there was just no taste or texture to them. I will definitely not be getting these again.

Asda Smart Price - Prawn Flavour Instant Noodles - 0.5/10

Super Noodles - Mild Mexican Chili Flavour

2008-10-23T18:03:00.005-04:00

One thing that I love about Super Noodles is that they sometimes have very festive packaging. This package makes you feel like you are in a Mexican cantina, enjoying an ice cold margarita and some delicious tacos al pastor. From a practical point of view, the brightly colored packaging grabs your eye in the supermarket aisle and makes you just a little bit more likely to try this flavor out.

Upon my first bite, I was expecting strong flavors of cumin, chili, onion, and garlic. While all of these flavors were indeed there, they were quite mild. Looking at the picture of the noodles, you can tell that the flavoring is not as strong as it could be. As usual, the Super Noodles themselves are quite high quality. They have just the right amount of inherent flavor and springy texture needed without being bland or soggy.

I thought that these noodles were pretty good, but I wished that they had kicked up the flavor a few notches. I guess I should have placed more emphasis on the word "Mild" on the package rather than focusing on the wildly festive sombrero. While I did enjoy these noodles, I probably won't be getting them again as there was nothing particularly great about them.

Super Noodles - Mild Mexican Chili Flavour - 5.0/10

Tiger Tiger Cup Noodles - Thai Spice Satay Style

2008-10-23T17:35:00.005-04:00

There was no way I could resist this pack of noodles with its catchy slogan: "Unleash the Taste". Knowing that there was a fork inside, I could barely contain my excitement as I ripped open the box to discover...a cheap plastic cup inside. Why couldn't they just sell the cup like every other brand does? I guess they feel the need to add some additional useless packaging in order to stand out from the crowd.

I love a good satay, but these noodles didn't resemble satay in the slightest. The soup seemed to contain corn starch or some other thickening agent because it quickly became one gluey and starchy mess. The taste was quite bland and didn't have much good flavor at all.

It is very rare that I am tempted to throw away a partially eaten instant noodle, but in this case I was strongly tempted to do so. Nevertheless, I forged on for the sake of this review. There is nothing good to say about these noodles except that they have attractive packaging. I will definitely be avoiding anything of the Tiger Tiger brand in the future.

Tiger Tiger Cup Noodles - Thai Spice Satay Style - 0.0/10

Oh yeah, I almost forgot to mention this: the fork inside was pathetically small and completely unusable.

Super Noodles To Go - Grilled Steak Flavour

2008-09-22T07:40:00.005-04:00

Batchelors have recently introduced the Super Noodles To Go line to compete with the Pot Noodle franchise in the cup noodles department. I usually try to avoid this type of instant noodle for a couple reasons. First, the noodles tend to be very inferior; I don't know why this has to be the case, but these cup noodles are always filled with puny tasteless noodles. The second reason I usually avoid these noodles is that they are a complete waste of packaging and usually include non-recyclable styrofoam. With that said, I couldn't pass up this cup of Grilled Steak Flavour, as this is a flavor that Super Noodles doesn't make in the brick form.

True to form, the noodles inside are the crappy thin strings that are found in cup noodles across the world. How hard would it be to put some decent noodles in there? I don't know why they don't just put their regular noodles in, since Super Noodles make some pretty good noodles in brick form. Perhaps they need the noodles to be thin so that they cook very easily, even when the water isn't quite boiling.

Block form Super Noodles aren't meant to be eaten with broth, but this cup of noodles was designed to include broth. I was pleasantly surprised that the broth was beefy and savory. The dried sweet peas and corn were a nice touch as well, although hardly surprising for this type of product. To be honest, this was one of the better cup style instant noodles that I've had. However, they just don't hold a candle to a good brick style instant noodle package.

Super Noodles To Go - Grilled Steak Flavour - 4.5/10

Samyang Foods - U-Dong Flavor Noodle

2008-08-23T07:11:00.001-04:00

Samyang make an Udon flavored instant noodle called Pojangmacha. The packaging of these noodles closely resembles the Pojangmacha packaging and these appear to be a rebranded version of those noodles. I suspect that the Pojangmacha brand is sold within Korea where the customers would be familiar with the term meaning a street vendor. Outside of Korea, most people would be unfamiliar with the term and it would simply be sold as U-Dong Flavor Noodle.

I was very relieved to find that the stiff piece of seaweed in Pojangmacha has been eliminated in this package. The noodles are Samyang's typical product: thick, chewy, and flavorful. The broth is quite mild but has tastes of onion, salt, and fish. There are tons of scallions to provide bursts of flavor.

I quite enjoyed these noodles despite the mild broth. It bears little resemblance to the Japanese style udon that most of us are familiar with, but still provides a satisfying experience if one is looking for a simple and hearty broth. Typically I avoid this kind of noodles due to their plainness, but it's nice to have one or two in the cupboard for those days when our tastebuds need a break.

Samyang Foods - U-Dong Flavor Noodle - 6.0/10

Samyang Foods - Kimchi Flavor Noodle

2008-08-16T07:08:00.001-04:00

I've already reviewed this pack of instant noodles over two years ago, but I figured it was worth another try. They've changed the packaging, so it's possible they've changed the recipe as well. The Korean name for these noodles is much more prominent in this package although the graphics and layout remain nearly identical. It's possible that I've just obtained a different regional variant of these noodles, but there's no way for me to know for sure. The phrase "NO MSG" also appears for more prominently, perhaps reflecting an updated health consciousness.

I usually like Samyang's noodles thanks to their thick and chewy quality, and this pack of noodles is no exception to the rule. They have plenty of flavor and provide a nice contrast to the spicy soup. They also give you a lot of noodles, in this case 120g.

The broth in this soup is not very spicy compared to some of Samyang's other products. However, it does have a distinctive pickled cabbage taste which I never noticed before. This is a nice touch but it comes across slightly spoiled tasting instead of tasting like kimchi. They also include small dehydrated cabbage chunks to add to the kimchi theme. These noodles are pretty good, but I wish they had made it a lot spicier.

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Samyang Foods - Kimchi Flavor Noodle - 7.0/10

Tesco Instant Noodles - Chow Mein Flavour

2008-07-05T19:17:00.002-04:00

Tesco's line of instant noodles are color coded so that you can grab the flavour you crave at a glance. The packaging is fairly plain but has the cute quirk that the second "o" in "Noodles" is shaped like a mouth slurping a noodle. It's small touches like this that sway my decision when I am picking out a pack of noodles.

Unlike most noodles reviewed on this site, the Tesco instant noodles are meant to be eaten dry. The typical method of cooking involves adding a relatively small amount of water (~300mL) to a saucepan and cooking the noodles until all the water is gone. I believe the dry noodle style reflects the British and Irish palate where noodle soups would be very rare at Chinese restaurants. It's a shame since noodle soups would be the perfect thing to warm up in the cold weather of the British Isles.

The Tesco instant noodles are undoubtedly high quality. They maintain their springiness yet are soft in the mouth. The chow mein flavouring and nicely subtle and contains hints of soy sauce, garlic, ginger, and onion. It is fairly unassuming but also unmistakably Asian in flavour. Overall, this is a pack of noodles that I am happy to slurp whenever I am looking for a basic pack of noodles that is not too flavourful.

Tesco Instant Noodles - Chow Mein Flavour - 7.0/10

Yeul Ramyon - Hot Taste

2008-02-24T15:27:00.005-05:00

Yeul Ramyon is a Korean instant noodle made by Ottogi Ramyon, the manufacturer of Jin Ramyon. Yeul Ramyon has many of the typical characteristics of Korean ramen. It comes in a large package (120g), the noodles are thick and chewy and the broth is spicy. I really don't know how this pack is supposed to differ from the Jin Ramyon Spicy Taste, but I guess that this one does not have any beef flavoring in the broth.

These noodles were nothing unusual but were still pretty good. The noodles were thick and chewy like most Korean noodles. There were plenty of mushrooms, scallions and carrots which added some nice bursts of flavor. The soup broth tasted a bit peppery and was not very spicy compared to most Korean ramen.

I enjoyed this ramen but felt that it tasted exactly like Jin Ramyon Hot Taste and most other Korean instant noodles. To be honest, next time I would just buy whatever spicy Korean ramen was on sale the most at the local Asian grocery store. They are all about the same and all pretty good.

Yeul Ramyon - Hot Taste - 5.0/10

Maruchan Ramen - Oriental Flavor

2008-02-02T13:15:00.002-05:00

What happens if you take away all flavorings from a broth except for Monosodium Glutamate? You slap the "Oriental Flavor" label on it and watch as the profits roll in! Although I'm not sure how high Maruchan's profit margins can be since these packs are on sale for 12 cents at Ralph's.

The broth in these noodles tastes surprisingly good. There really is no flavor here aside from umami, but umami is delicious. Still, I decided to add some Sriracha sauce since the flavor was still quite simple and needed a little more complexity.

This pack of noodles is about as basic as you can get. The noodles are pretty low quality and the broth consists of just MSG flavored soup. It doesn't taste bad at all, but it just doesn't have the complexity and flavor that I usually prefer out of my instant noodles. Still, you can't ask for much more than this for only 12 cents.

Maruchan Ramen - Oriental Flavor - 3.5/10

Maruchan Ramen - Chicken Flavor

2008-02-02T13:12:00.000-05:00

Maruchan is not afraid of saturating their soups with Monosodium Glutamate, better known as MSG. This chemical has been subject to much controversy which I won't get into now. All Maruchan noodles do have the unmistakable taste of Umami, which I like to call the 5th taste.

It's extremely difficult to describe what umami tastes like. I guess it's sort of like the difficulty in explaining the taste of sweet or salty. This broth tastes strongly of umami, although there is a bit of chicken flavor that tastes like it came from a bouillon cube. I won't complain about the Maruchan noodles here because I have done plenty of that already in previous posts.

The flavor of this broth is quite pleasant from the MSG, but I still felt that it lacked interestingness. So, I added a big dose of Sriracha sauce to liven up the flavor. Sriracha sauce goes very well with umami flavored broths; that's why you often see it at Vietnamese restaurants where the broth is naturally laden with MSG. I wouldn't particularly recommend this pack of ramen, but it is cheap and inoffensive if that is what you are looking for.

Maruchan Ramen - Chicken Flavor - 3.5/10

Maruchan Ramen - Beef Flavor

2008-01-27T18:02:00.001-05:00

You can't beat the price of cheap American ramen. This particular pack cost me 12 cents at Ralph's. At first, I thought that Maruchan had put a picture of a raw egg yolk on the front of their package. Upon closer inspection, however, it actually looks like some kind of pickled radish.

Most Americans are familiar with the Maruchan brand. It tends to show up in vending machines due to the convenience of their Instant Lunch line and low cost. When I ate these noodles, I was disappointed by the poor quality in the noodles themselves. They tasted mealy and lacked the springiness and crunchiness that is usually present in instant noodles. They were limp and heavy and had very little flavor.

The broth in these noodles was decent. It tasted like a beef and onion broth. However, I couldn't get around the fact that the noodles themselves were so low quality. I recommend to pay a little bit more and get better quality instant noodles. These noodles are completely different than the ones found in the Instant Lunch cups and I actually prefer the Instant Lunch noodles to these.

Maruchan Ramen - Beef Flavor - 2.5/10

Nong Shim - Seafood Ramyun

2008-01-20T11:27:00.000-05:00

Seafood-flavored instant noodles are notorious for being disgusting due to overwhelming seafood flavor. However, since seafood broths are such an important part of Korean, Japanese, Chinese, and Taiwanese cuisine, the seafood-flavored instant noodles are an essential part of a ramen manufacturer's lineup.

The noodle brick came in the convenient circular shape. Inconveniently, however, the noodles had been broken into a few pieces during transit. My first thought upon sipping the broth was that these noodles did not really taste like seafood at all. Instead, the spiciness was quite powerful and overwhelmed the seafood taste at first. This is a pretty common seafood strategy among Korean noodle-makers since most of the seafood noodle soups in Korean cuisine are quite spicy anyway.

After a few more sips, I started to taste the seafood identity of this broth. It was just a basic fish flavor but went quite well with the noodles. I probably wouldn't get these noodles again because I prefer the basic "hot and spicy" flavor without the seafood taste. There is nothing wrong with the seafood flavor here, it just seems a little unnecessary to me.

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Nong Shim - Seafood Ramyun - 6.0/10

Nong Shim - Mu-Pama Tang Myun

2008-01-20T11:06:00.000-05:00

To be honest, I'm not sure what Mupama means. I think it is some sort of beef and radish broth, but I have never had it at a Korean restaurant or noodle stand. I am generally quite satisfied with Nong Shim's products, so I figured I would give this a shot despite not really knowing what to expect.

The flavor of the broth in the Mu-Pama Tang Myun was quite good. There flavor was primarily beef and scallion which always makes for a nice soup base. There was also a few pieces of dehydrated cabbage, which is unusual but enjoyable. The noodles were thick and chewy with plenty of weight and substance.

Overall, I enjoyed these noodles despite not knowing what dish they were meant to evoke. The broth is a bit spicy, which was a nice surprise. But it's nowhere near the spiciness level of some of the instant noodles that I have been profiling recently. I would recommend trying this one out if you happen to see it, but I know that it is quite rare to find in the US.

Nong Shim - Mu-Pama Tang Myun - 8.0/10

Nong Shim - Japanese Style Udon Noodle Soup

2008-01-06T13:50:00.000-05:00

Udon noodle soup is one of my favorite fresh dishes, but instant versions of udon have usually sorely disappointed me. I understand the difficulty in manufacturing a noodle that can have 12 months of shelf life, yet reconstitute into the billowy soft noodle that udon requires. I was very interested to see how well Nong Shim could do, since their other offerings are mostly top-notch.

The noodles came in a vacuum-sealed package and seemed to be partially dehydrated. They were certainly not dry and rock hard like the typical ramen package, but they were still much stiffer and drier than udon noodles should be. The thickness of each noodle seemed right, unlike Samyang's halfhearted attempt at udon where they just used their regular instant noodle.

Upon tasting the broth and noodles, I almost had to throw this one in the garbage. The noodles are not soft at all and remain stiff with a strong wheat flavor. The texture on each one is grainy like a ramen noodle, not silky smooth like udon should be. In addition, the broth tasted like soy sauce rather than the delicious umami-loaded seaweed broth that udon should have.

I really don't think it is possible with today's technology to make an instant udon noodle soup with a long shelf life. The udon noodles are just too delicate to stand up to the partial or full dehydrating that long shelf life requires. I would recommend going with a fresh udon package instead. Another option is to buy fresh udon noodles from your local Asian grocer and then making your own broth from scratch or buying a udon broth base. I have tried both of those options and they have both come out vastly superior to the Nong Shim Udon noodles.

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Nong Shim - Japanese Style Udon Noodle Soup - 0.0/10

Nissin Demae - Beef Flavor

2007-12-09T13:49:00.001-05:00

I already reviewed this pack of ramen almost 2 years ago, but I figured it was time to revisit this popular ramen made by Nissin Demae. It doesn't look like the packaging has changed at all in the past two years, which doesn't surprise me since this is exactly how I remember these packets from my childhood. Nissin Demae has achieved a lot of success in the United States, mostly due to excellent distribution, conservative flavors, and marketing.

When I tasted the broth, it was a little more complex than I had remembered. The flavor is predominantly beef, but there are also some spices to liven up the broth. It actually reminded me a bit of Pho due to its complicated identity. I don't know if Nissin Demae has altered its recipe, but I thought the broth was quite good.

The noodles are exactly as I expected from eating packets of Nissin Demae noodles in the past. I consider them to be typical instant noodles, fairly flavorless with a slight nuttiness and springy crunch. But the main overall flavor comes from the broth and the broth is quite good here. Interestingly, the color of the broth looks much lighter in this picture than in my picture from two years ago, so perhaps the folks at Nissin Demae have altered their recipe and improved the flavor of the broth.

Nissin Demae - Beef Flavor - 7.0/10

Teumsae Ramyon

2007-12-09T13:47:00.000-05:00

When I was purchasing these noodles at the local Korean grocery store, the cashier warned me that these were particularly spicy. I shrugged him off, since I have eaten countless packets of spicy Korean instant noodles and lived to tell the tale. Teumsae is a noodle bar chain in South Korea specializing in fresh ramyon bowls, and they have decided to produce an instant noodle that customers can make and enjoy at home. The "Teumsae Dishes" page on their website has priceless poorly translated quotes, including the following ones:

While two people eat it, nobody knows even if the other dies.
Chewy squid and the smoothe (sic) mussel conveys the freshness of ocean and the spicy taste makes your stuffy heart cooly
It is well known among the young people especially, the young ladies, for it gives double pleasure of fantastic taste and exciting feeling of sauce dipping.
Have a cool summer with the Ice-ramyun to fill the sultry summer body with cool energy.

Upon tasting the broth, I quickly concluded that these were undoubtedly the spiciest instant noodles I have ever eaten. There is little you can taste except the intense heat radiating from the broth and noodles. The flavor of the broth really did remind me of some noodle bowls that I've had at Korean restaurants. Of course the noodles don't taste as good as fresh noodles, but they did have the typical thick chewy Korean instant noodle taste that goes well with spicy broth.

People could save a lot of money on their heating bills if they started eating these noodles! They will definitely warm you up and probably require you to find something to wipe the sweat away from your brow, even if it is freezing outside. I couldn't say it better than Teumsae's own website:

It only has never forgetting taste from various spices to turn you into 20 years of Teumsae love, right from the moment it touches your tongue.

Teumsae Ramyon - 8.5/10

Nong Shim - Kal Gook Soo

2007-11-24T18:32:00.001-05:00

These noodles are meant to imitate the same dish as Samyang Food's KalGugSu Noodle Soup. The original dish is served with thin, flat noodles and has a shellfish based broth. I have had a lot of poor experiences with seafood flavored instant noodles, but in general, the Korean noodle manufacturers seem to have done a pretty good job. The key, in my opinion, is to stay away from shrimp and crab and stick to shellfish flavorings like clam and mussels. It also helps if they make the broth spicy, like Nong Shim's Neoguri Seafood & Spicy noodles.

I must say that the smell from these noodles is quite strong. Even before I added boiling water, the smell of clams began emanating from the powder I poured on the noodles. After adding water, I felt like I was at a fishing pier. The broth smelled and tasted like salty clam broth. The flavor was pretty good and the disgusting factor was acceptably low. There were some floating yellow tofu strips that I thought were unnecessary.

The noodles included are different from Nong Shim's typical noodles. They are wide and flat and I found that they tended to stick together more than the usual round noodles. Despite being flat, they needed longer to cook in order to fully separate and soften. Overall, they were acceptable but there was nothing remarkable about their taste. These noodles are OK if you are craving some clam-flavored broth, but my advice is just to steer clear of seafood flavored instant noodles.

Nong Shim - Kal Gook Soo - 5.5/10

Paldo - Hwa Ramen

2007-11-24T18:26:00.000-05:00

The Chinese character for fire is displayed prominently on the front of this package, leaving no doubt the intended flavoring of these noodles. I like this package; it conjures up a mental image of a hot coal or something else too hot to even hold. It is a little odd that the packaging proudly boasts that these noodles are now "with soy peptide". But perhaps that is not weird for the Korean consumers that these noodles are targeted towards.

Without a doubt, these noodles truly pack a hot and spicy punch. The broth is cough-inducingly and sweat-provokingly spicy. As with all Paldo noodles, they are thick and chewy with not a lot of flavor. But your tastebuds will be numb anyways upon sipping the broth. The advertised "soy peptide" refers to these small vegetable protein cakes that are included. As usual, I think these things are just weird and don't taste particularly good. I really don't know why they seem to be popping up everywhere in these instant noodle packages.

This is a good pack of instant noodles to pick on a cold day when you need something to warm you up. Trust me, this one will definitely warm you up although it won't provide much besides heat. I rather enjoyed it and also thought the packaging was quite fun and unique.

Paldo - Hwa Ramen - 7.5/10

Jin Ramyon - Mild Taste

2007-11-17T11:26:00.000-05:00

These noodles have nearly the identical packaging as Jin Ramyon - Hot Taste except that the color scheme has been changed to blue instead of red. Here, they have also used a slightly different picture that includes a couple slices of beef. The raw egg yolk is still prominently in the picture. The package also proudly advertises that this pack of instant noodles is MSG Free, which is quite an accomplishment because these things are usually full of MSG.

The noodles were thick, chewy, and flavorless as I expected from trying the Hot Taste of these noodles. The biggest surprise was that the broth was a little bit spicy. I had been expecting a flavor completely devoid of heat but actually there was a pleasant peppery spice to the soup. In fact, the broth tasted quite good, combining flavors of pepper, soy sauce, mushroom, and beef. Much better than the Hot Taste flavor made by these guys.

I wasn't thrilled with this pack of instant noodles since the noodles themselves are quite disappointing. However, the broth was a pleasant surprise and was definitely flavorful and savory despite having no MSG. I recommend the Mild Taste much more than the Hot Taste for Jin Ramyon.

Jin Ramyon - Mild Taste - 5.5/10

Jin Ramyon - Hot Taste

2007-11-17T11:22:00.000-05:00

I don't think I'll ever fully understand why ramen manufacturers choose to put pictures of raw eggs on the front of their packages. But Ottogi Ramyon, makers of Jin Ramyon have chosen to do just that. In Korean cuisine, it is customary to crack a raw egg into your boiling hot soup at the dinner table. In that case, though, the egg cooks immediately and doesn't sit on top of the soup looking raw.

Ottogi Ramyon has very little distribution in the US and I've only seen them in one supermarket in my life. This is typical of many imported ramen, however, since it is difficult to compete with such tight profit margins on instant noodles. The noodles here were thick and chewy but lacked flavor. The broth was spicy, but not nearly as spicy as some of the other Korean instant noodles that I've had recently. In fact, it was a little disappointing that the broth wasn't spicier, since I had been expecting a real sweat-inducing lava soup.

There isn't much that's exciting about these noodles. The broth is mildly spicy, but not especially flavorful and the noodles themselves are quite forgettable. There are much better Korean spicy instant noodles so pick up another pack.

Jin Ramyon - Hot Taste - 3.0/10

San Francisco Curly Pasta Noodle Soup - Extra Hot

2007-11-10T10:37:00.000-05:00

I was really surprised to discover these noodles were made in the USA. I have never seen them before despite having been to countless American grocery stores and Asian markets. Finally, I found them in a Korean supermarket and decided to give them a try. Here's the website for SF Curly Pasta if you'd like to check them out, they've got some cool pictures of their ramen factory.

Although these are American made noodles, they still have the description printed in 4 languages (English, Korean, Chinese, and Japanese). Maybe they plan on exporting this package to other countries. Since I picked these up in the Korean supermarket and there is a picture of two chilies on the front, I expected these to be quite spicy. Sure enough, they were cough-inducingly spicy! The flavor of the broth really reminded me of Korean instant noodles.

True to their name, the noodles themselves are very curly. Instant noodles are purposely curly so that they can be packed tightly together, but these took curliness to a new level! I suspect that the curliness appeals to Americans who would have an easier time eating these noodles with a fork. For an Asian person eating noodles with chopsticks, the curliness doesn't make a difference in ease of eating. I enjoyed the curliness in my mouth as well, since I tended to get more flavor in each bite.

This noodle soup was powerfully spicy with nice hints of onion and mushroom. I rather enjoyed it, but to be honest, it is one in a sea of very similar spicy Korean instant noodles. Oh wait, this one wasn't even Korean, it's American!

San Francisco Curly Pasta Noodle Soup - Extra Hot - 6.5/10

Sapporo Ichiban - Shrimp Flavor

2007-11-10T10:34:00.000-05:00

I think Sapporo Ichiban's neon pink packaging is meant to evoke the image of succulent cooked shrimp. But wait a minute, aren't shrimp more of an orangey-red color than pink? But no matter, this color helps to clearly distinguish this flavor versus the brown, green, red, or orange packets.

Sapporo Ichiban has gained a strong foothold in the US and it's easy to see why. The flavors are good but still extremely conservative. The American version of the packaging has been designed not to scare away the consumer; it resembles the Top Ramen packaging quite closely. There are no "weird" things like seaweed, textured vegetable protein, tofu, or kimchi involved.

I felt that the shrimp flavor here was almost nonexistent. I guess it is better than the aquarium water flavored seafood noodles that I have had before, but this one really tasted like beef instead of shrimp. Sapporo Ichiban broths always taste good because they include a healthy dose of salt and MSG (should that be unhealthy?). The noodles themselves are crunchy and have a slight onion taste to them. This was a very plain pack of noodles that was very similar to original flavor and beef flavor. For the unadventurous, these are your noodles!

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Sapporo Ichiban - Shrimp Flavor - 5.0/10

Paldo - Stir Fried Kimchi Noodles

2007-10-23T22:59:00.000-04:00

I usually think of Paldo as one of the cheaper and lesser Korean brands. I got this pack from the Korean supermarket and it looks quite different from every other Paldo pack I've ever had. Notice that this one is different from the Paldo Kimchi Flavor that I already reviewed. The package proudly indicates that stirfried kimchi is inside, which really intrigued me as I've never seen anything like that before.

The kimchi came in a very large packet that was well sealed to prevent any possible leakage. Inside was a lot of liquid and the kimchi itself. This was quite unusual because vegetables are almost always dehydrated in instant noodles. This saves on weight and also prolongs the shelf life.

There were quite a few pieces of kimchi in the package; the kimchi pouch contained its own weight measurement and claimed to contain 40g of it. You can't really see all the kimchi in the picture because it tended to sink to the bottom. I think next time I try this one, the kimchi should be added right at the end so that it doesn't get buried during the stirring process.

The Paldo noodles are typical Korean noodles. They are thick and chewy and provide a tasty contrast to the spicy soup. I thought that the flavor of the broth and especially the kimchi was a little bit too sour and bitter. The appeal of kimchi is that it is able to combine many different flavors, including spiciness, saltiness, savoriness, and a hint of sweetness. However, I felt that the flavor in these noodles was too sour and didn't really taste like kimchi. That was a shame, because the included kimchi was an interesting idea and I really wanted to like it.

Paldo - Stir Fried Kimchi Noodles - 3.5/10

Sapporo Ichiban - Original Flavor

2007-10-14T20:10:00.000-04:00

Sapporo Ichiban seems to be one of the most popular brands of instant noodles in the US. I see them everywhere, even in the local convenience stores and grocery stores. I got these from the Korean supermarket, even though they are not Korean. Sapporo Ichiban is a Japanese company, but they are so popular in the US that they have their own manufacturing facilities here. As you can see, this package has no Japanese writing on it since it is the American edition designed to compete with the likes of Nissin, Top Ramen, and Maruchan.

I think Sapporo Ichiban is the best of the bottom-tier of ramen. By bottom-tier, I mean the ones that you can find in the American grocery store. Sapporo Ichiban's noodles are thick, chewy and nutty with good flavor. In the case of Original Flavor, the broth has a good savory identity. It tastes mostly of soy sauce with hints of onion and beef. There is just one foil seasoning powder packet that makes these noodles quick and easy with a minimum of unnecessary oil.

You can't go wrong with Sapporo Ichiban because their noodles are tasty and filling. The broths are plain yet have enough variation to keep them from being boring. If you're not feeling too adventurous, then I recommend Sapporo Ichiban to give you a decent fix of ramen.

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Sapporo Ichiban - Original Flavor - 7.0/10

Indomie Instant Noodles - Onion Chicken Flavor

2007-09-23T15:18:00.001-04:00

Here comes yet another flavor from Indomie. I think their strategy is to package all possible combinations of their huge array of flavor packets and call them each a new flavor. In some cases, such as Indomie's Mi Goreng, this is highly successful. In other cases, such as this one, the broth really lacks any distinctive quality.

In a word, I would call these noodles bland. I was disappointed that Indomie didn't include fried red onion, since they are known to do this in their instant noodle packages. The broth tastes a little bit like onion and a little bit like chicken but it is not very strong. After my first sip, I realized that these noodles were practically begging for a healthy dose of Sriracha sauce. I was happy to oblige them and turned the broth a fiery red color.

If you are not familiar with Sriracha sauce, I highly recommend you pick up a bottle at your neighborhood Asian grocery store. These noodles provide a perfect backdrop for Sriracha sauce because they are very plain on their own and need an additional kick to liven them up. On their own, I would definitely not recommend these noodles but they taste pretty good with a big dollop of Sriracha.

Buy Indomie Instant Noodles - Onion Chicken Flavor from Amazon.com

Buy Sriracha Sauce from Amazon.com

Indomie Instant Noodles - Onion Chicken Flavor - 3.5/10