Over 5,000 Instant Ramen Noodle Reviews Since 2002
Another shroomy one from James of Lakeside, California – thanks! The first one of these I reviewed I was very surprised by insofar as I actually liked it. I’m not a fungi (well, my wife thinks I am at least) and have never really been all in for mushrooms. She is though – bI have seen her devour them with such zeal; I feel kind of left out of the spore thing. But I digress; let’s see how it goes with a rice noodle version.
Frank over at 5am Ramen sent me this in a box of varieties – thanks! He’s got some really premium stuff like this for sale – and he does guides and tours over in Japan as well! Here’s what he had to say about this variety – “The city of Tenri in Nara is known for two things – the Tenrikyo religion…and RAMEN! The local ramen is referred to as “Stamina Ramen”. It’s rather unique. For one, the shoyu (soy sauce) seasoned soup is packed with Chinese cabbage, or hakusai. Hakusai is a topping you rarely see in ramen. Alongside the tangy shoyu base, the soup is a bit spicy from togarashi spice and broad bean chili paste. You’ll also notice the strong presence of garlic. In summary, this is an underrated, delicious ramen that hits the spot any time of year.”
Big thanks to Pher Engi for sending this along! These are really neat varieties and they come with braised egg or braised quail egg! Let’s see what is in there!
Thanks again to Pher Engi for sending this one! This is from their ‘syiok’ range – in Singapore (and I guess syiok (or shiok) mean wow or cool or excellend or rad. This sounds interestoing. Let us cook!
Frank over at 5am Ramen sent me this in a box of varieties – thanks! He’s got some really premium stuff like this for sale – and he does guides and tours over in Japan as well! Here’s what he had to say about this variety – “This is is the official instant ramen from Junren, one of Sapporo’s most celebrated miso ramen shops! This is saying a lot, as miso ramen originally comes from Sapporo….and there are countless miso ramen shops there. But Junren has a history going back to 1964. This instant ramen pays proper homage to this. The soup is rich with pork bones, but isn’t too rich. A bold miso flavors still shines through as well. The thick, Sapporo style noodles are wonderfully chewy and the generous amount of minced ork adds extra meatiness to the soup.”
This is the last of this range sent by James from Lakeside, California – thanks again! They’ve been pretty decent and I must say 6 minutes is the right timing to use. Let’s try it out.
You may have seen this before – on my top ten global noodles list. It’s incredibly good and the folks at A-Sha sent me the new packaged version. Read the review and I’ll go over changes if any to the product. Hope they haven’t as it was great.
Frank over at 5am Ramen sent me this in a box of varieties – thanks! He’s got some really premium stuff like this for sale – and he does guides and tours over in Japan as well! Here’s what he had to say about this variety – “This instant ramen beautifully showcases Japan’s Nagano region. First of all, “Shinshu” is the ancient name for Nagano. Furthermore, “Shinshu Miso” comes from Nagano and is the most prized type of miso in Japan. This instant ramen features a rich soup with a bright Shinshu Miso flavor. It also includes two toppings straight from Nagano – nozawana (a leafy green) and shimeji mushrooms. Lastly, there’s a little bit of heat coming from shichimi spice prepared by a company that’s famous for it.”
Here’s one sent by James of Lakeside, California – thanks! The first of these was good as I remember and this one sounds very good. While made in China, everything is done specificall for the USA. Let’s give it a whirl!
I’m really intrigued with these bowls. This was sent by Pher Engi – thanks again! A beef tomato eh? It looks to have a nice little spherical surprise – let’s have a look!
A big thanks to Noodle Journey for sending this one. So this cold noodle usually has apple I believe but this time it’s strawberry. Very curious about this, so lett’s cook!
Here’s the last of the Kenchan Ramen varieties they sent over – thanks! I think I might end up doing this cold today. Let’s give it a try!
This and the next Kenchan Ramen varieties I’m trying will be gluten free, which I think will appeal to many. I’m very curious about these – let’s give ’em a go!
In addition to fresh noodles, Kenchan Ramen also has shelf stable stuff like these. These can go hot or cold. Let’s try em hot!
Kenchan Ramen is providing a myriad of different delivery ramen options. The recently sent a box on ice with fresh as well as shelf stable varieties. The fresh boxes contain two servings of everything. This one today is their tonkotsu – a lot of nice garnish and looks good to me – let’s give it a go!
Kenchan Ramen is providing a myriad of different delivery ramen options. The recently sent a box on ice with fresh as well as shelf stable varieties. The fresh boxes contain two servings of everything. This one today is their tonkotsu – a lot of nice garnish and looks good to me – let’s give it a go!
Big thanks to Pher Engi for this one! Let’s start with a little info from Wikipedia –
Big thanks to Pher Engi for sending this one! A lot of the packaging is in Thai as well as English so I’m guessing it’s for sale in Thailand? Tricky, this one. I’m really curious about this – she also sent a soup version as well. After a little research, it turns out this is available at 7 Eleven in Thailand, so I was on the right track. Also, Jay Fai is a Michelin starred chef. Let’s give this a try!
Big thanks to Pher Engi for this one! When she was at a noodle shop, she asked if I’d like to review it. It had zero english on it and so of course I was game. Turns out there’s english info on the bottom of the bowl. This one has two types of noodle – vermicelli, wheat noodle as well. Not only that, it’s got an egg! Stewed egg isn’t my favorite, but it’s quite interesting to see. Let’s give this neat one a try!
Tried this 12 years ago. Packaging has changed as well as what’s in there – let’s give it a whirl in the microwave!
Here’s a new packaging variety from the ‘states. These contain instant rice as well as little bits of noodle – last one I tried was quite nice – let’s give it a go!
Here’s a variety that I found in one of MiauMall’s Nakama Noodles subscription boxes! These boxes are discontinued, however you can find their stuff at MiauMall – here is what they said about this one – “”Most of the fun this holiday season happens when the sun goes down. That’s why we got you a classic bowl of yakisoba inspired by nighttime shops and stalls! These noodles come with a tasty sauce and a slightly spicy mayo for tons of tasty yakisoba flavor and goodness!”
Big thanks to Noodle Journey for sending this along! This is a cold noodle variety – the third from the Noodle Salad range by Nongshim – let’s give it a go.
Here’s a variety that I found in one of MiauMall’s Nakama Noodles subscription boxes! These boxes are discontinued, however you can find their stuff at MiauMall – here is what they said about this one – ” Let’s see what they had to say about this one – “Is there any better way to start the Year of the Snake than with Chinese food ramen? This cup from the famous shop Sisen is inspired by their famous Mapo Tofu! With tasty non-fried noodles in a Sichuan Mapo soup, this cup is packed with flavor and (pleasant) spice!”
This one came out of the gargantuan National Noodle Day box Nissin sent. I looked it up and I reviewed this once before – in 2013. Let’s revisit this one – done a lot differently as for my garnish than the first time.
Here’s a newcomer to the Tapatio cup range – Birria. I’m ready – let’s try it out!
Thank you to Exotic Noods for sending this along! So, this is the North American version. Overseas, it’s a duck blood vermicelli. It’s kind of funny – on the front of the box it has a cartoon like image and then it says serving suggestion. I don’t think I’ll be able to find a duck winking with a thumbs up – I could possibly find a rubber duch… I think I’ll just cook it and appreciate the suggestion and decline.
We were at HMart and saw these – couldn’t resist. Who could resist a nice plate of tteokbokki in between watching people get slaughtered while playing children’s games? I’m hopeful on this one; I really like tteokbokki. I should also mention – this is my 2,500th episode of Instant Noodle recipe Time – it’s down at the bottom. I forgot about that, so episode 2,501 will have a little more about that. Let’s give it a try.
Big thanks to Noodle Journey for this one! My God – what a past few weeks. We’ve gone through some seasonal colds, holidays, ice, snow, snow days… I have been stuck at home, so I’ve been reviewing – a LOT! Just want to go outside and walk around but it’s been hell getting to be able to. Yesterday was a snow day and it melted a lot – this morning it got into the mid 20s – so all that melt has turned into ice. Bah. It’s not permanent – it’s not like, forever, though…
Here’s anothe from the Nissin Germany advent calendar! Let’s cook!
Detail of the side panels (click to enlarge). Unsure if it contains meat check for yourself. To prepare, fill to line with boiling water and cover for 3 minutes. Finally, stir and enjoy!
When I get to review a Baixiang variety, I get a little excited. I’ve always liked these – and this one’s unique – mutton! Wish I had some for garnish… But that’s okay it should be good stuff. I actually emailed Baixiang last night in hopes of a collab, so that could be happening. For now, let’s give this a try!
Big thanks to Noodle Journey for sending this along! I did a bunch of Ramen Talk reviews previously, but this one’s very new to me. These are really quite good in general and we shall see how this one goes. Tomato meatball seems very much like spaghetti soup… Hmmm…
Here’s a variety that I found in one of MiauMall’s Nakama Noodles subscription boxes! These boxes are discontinued, however you can find their stuff at MiauMall – here is what they said about this one – “With all of these rich flavors, you’ll need something with a touch of freshness to it! That’s where this tasty bowl of yakisoba comes in with super refreshing yuzu from Japan’s own Kochi prefecture combined with a tasty salt-based sauce, perfect for a tasty, light bite!”
This one sounds good – the Tapatio folks sent it along with two more varieties I’ll be reviewing in upcoming days. Let’s try it!
Well, as I type this is January 30th, 2025. Just had almost a full week of kids being sick and at the tail end while the kids are now back to school, we’ve got a cold. Feels like I got punched in the nose, my eyes are drippy, and I feel beat. Chicken instant noodles sound like a nice restorative, although I’ve got to go to the store and get scallions this morning. I feel the whole ‘I don’t want to do anything’ voice in my head but I learned a while back that if you listen to that voice, it’ll get its way. So onward! This one was sent by James from Lakeside, California – thanks again! I did get another from this interesting Ottogi range a while back. I want to say this is one that ends up in Mexico often – unsure. Anyways, on with it.
Big thanks to Noodle Journey for this one! So it turns out this is based on a dish served at Outback Steakhouse called Toowooba pasta. I asked my friend Paul who lives in Australia what Toowoomba was and its a place. Anyways, let’s give this a try.
Well, a few reviews back I was bummed as I lost a sachet, making it impossible to review the miso variety… I’m watching this one like a hawk. Let’s cook!
Big thanks to Noodle Journey for this one! This is a new variety and it’s all in Korean. What might confuse people here is that they may have thought this would be the flavor of it the whole time. This is not. The flavor of Buldak is the flavor of the sauce that goes on Korean Fried Chicken. Original Buldak doesn’t taste like chicken. I have fought with people over this misconception. ‘But there’s chicken seasoning in it!’ Yes, perhaps in some, however in another Korean variety – a beef flavor, there’s pollock (fish) and no beef. Is it fish flavor? In Pumpkin Spice cup noodle, there’s garlic. Is it garlic flavored? No. These different ingredients are part of the arsenal of food scientist ingredients used to approximate different flavors. Anyways, let’s give this a try!
This is the last of the Nissin x Irvins I had and honestly I’m sad to se them go – figured I’d save the bowl version of my favorite for the the end! Let’s give it a go and a fond farewell from me.
This came by way of my friend over at Noodle Journey – thanks! The Shin people should be stoked – I’m definitely curious. Let’s give it a try!
