March 5, 2015 By Hans "The Ramen Rater" Lienesch

#1603: Salam Mie Mi Goreng Ala Jawa Dengan Sambal Cabe Asli

Got this one during my trip to Malaysia at the Chain Ferry Econsave in Butterworth, Penang. Today is March 5th, 2015 and Momofuku Ando would have been 105 years old today! It’s fascinating to me to think that I wouldn’t be doing any of this if he didn’t invent the instant noodle. Happy Birthday, Mr. Andi! This one however is an Indonesian brand called Salam Mie. The flavor translates to original spicy sambal. Let’s have a look at this variety by Salam Mie!

Here’s the back of the package (click image to enlarge). Looks to be meat free but check for yourself. To prepare, add noodle block to a pot of briskly boiling water for 3 minutes. While you wait, add contents of all sachets but the fried onion one to a plate and combine. Drain noodles and combine with seasonings on the plate. Sprinkle with the onion and enjoy!

The noodle block.

A dual sachet of dry seasonings.

The dry seasoning base.

Fried onions.

A triple sachet (from left to right): seasoning oil, chilli sauce and finally sweet soy sauce.

The three together.

Finished (click image to enlarge). Added kerapuk aci, hard boiled egg and shrimp with Megah Sari Original Sambal Bakso and BonCabe Level 3 chilli seasoning. The noodles are just as I expected – good gauge and chew. The flavor is really quite nice – this is the mi goreng flavor I love but with a very nice added kick thabks to the included sambal. Sweet, salty and spicy combined in a perfect trifecta. 5.0 out of 5.0 stars.EAN bar code 8992731101533.

Java: Includes Yogyakarta, Borobudur and Solo (from Amazon) Hike along one of Asia’s most stunning volcano chains before spending a relaxing evening at one of the nearby hill resorts. Visit one of the world’s great Buddhist monuments, the Borobudur, and prepared to be overwhelmed by the size of this giant pyramid-like shrine adorned with over 500 Buddha statues. From the crowded, bustling streets of Jakarta to the art deco architecture of Bandung, Footprintfocus Java will help you make the most out of your trip. Includes a Background section with fascinating insights into the history and culture of Java.

An older video about PT. Sentrafood Indonusa – makers of Salam Mie and their parent company, Medco.

Products cooked according to package instructions. Product reviews done prior to adding any additional ingredients.

March 4, 2015 By Hans "The Ramen Rater" Lienesch

Momofuku Ando’s 105th Birthday

Comments

March 5th, 2015 would have been Momofuku Ando’s 105th birthday! Google has honored the inventor of the instant noodle by putting up these alternate logos – I will explain them below.

This is a animation of the birth of the instant noodle. Ando spent hours and days and weeks trying to figure out how to make the instant noodle. He watched his wife making tempura one day and it hit him; frying. When you fry a cooked noodle, it extrudes the water and leaves tiny holes. When re-introduced to hot water, they spring back to life!

To be honest, I was a little unclear on this one at first. It has been said that after research, it was found that 1 minute wasn’t enough time to get the appetite going and 5 minutes too long. 3 minutes is the ipso-facto standard steeping time for instant noodles.

In 1971, the Nissin Cup Noodle was born. Ando saw businessmen on a flight putting chunks of instant noodle in foam cups usually used for coffee with some hot water. He decided a product made this way would be convenient for people. The research began. The noodle block is suspended in the cup midway to allow hot water to permeate the noodles above and below!

Outer space?! Yep! Ando’s crowning achievement was ‘Space Ram’ – an instant noodle astronauts could enjoy in outer space.

If you’d like to see some special reviews, check out Nissin Chikin Ramen – it’s exactly the same as it was when released in 1958. I also did a special video review of the Nissin Emergency Cup Noodle this year for The Ramen Rater’s 4th Annual Momofuku Ando Day! Happy Birthday Mr. Ando – you changed my life!

Products cooked according to package instructions. Product reviews done prior to adding any additional ingredients.

By Hans "The Ramen Rater" Lienesch

#1602: Vina Acecook Mikochi Tom Yum Flavour Instant Noodles

Comments

Here’s something new from Vina Acecook – Mikochi. Never seen Mikochi before, but I thought it sounded interesting. These are non-fried noodles, so they’re lower in fat. I’m a big fan of tom yum flavored anything, so I’m hoping it’s a good pick. Let’s check out Vina Acecook Mikochi!

The back of the package (click image to enlarge). Contains fish and shrimp. To prepare, put noodle block and powder sachet contents in a bowl. Add 400ml boiling water and let steep for 3 minutes covered. Add in contents of oil sachet and stir well. Enjoy!

The noodle block. Usually you don’t steep non-fried noodles, so this should prove interesting.

The powder base.

Has a seafood scent and a coarse nature.

The oil sachet.

Has a kind of spicy and acidic scent.

Finished (click image to enlarge). Added fishball, coriander, sweet onion and mung bean sprouts. The noodles are interesting. They didn’t seem fully hydrated after the 3 minutes, but then I stirred them and added the oil and they were just right. The have a very different consistency; a little bit of a robbery mouthfeel and hard to break by pursing the lips. The broth is pretty good – has the spicy and lemongrass flavors consistent with tom yum, although just ever so slightly lesser so than many. The oil was a very welcome addition and added a nice color and oiliness to the broth. Small bits of hydrated vegetable float around here and there. 3.5 out of 5.0 stars. EAN bar code 8934563706166.