Found this at Dollarama, a dollar store up in Canada. A cup of beef. See the little microwave icon on the lower right? We don’t have a microwave currently. Our old one was 20 years old, give or take a year and I though ‘hey – we should get a new one.’ It seemed to be cooking things inconsistently so we went and ordered a new one. It was all screwed up so we returned it last night. Found another one which was really neat! Got it home, lugged it in, opened it up to see this –
Another one from my trips to Chin World up in Richmond, BC. Remember kids, if you’re coming from the states, bring your Canadian cash because they’re not going to take your cards or exchange your greenbacks for ya! Really interested in how this one’s going to be – last one I tried wasn’t too shabby from this brand so let’s take a look!
I reviewed the red boxed version previously – and it blew my mind. This one has ultra fancy Australian Wagyu beef in the mix! Yeah! One thing you should note though, you’re going to pay for it. This is super premium stuff and goes for 499$NTD (that’s $15USD). On top of that, this is only out during the holiday season, so Lunar New Year. Maybe Mid Autumn Festival too? I’ll say one thing, if it’s that much better than the other version, it’s going to be existential. Let’s check it out!
So here’s the second of the POP varieties I’ve seen. This one however is one I found at HMart up in Richmond, BC. Why’s it called Pot Or Pan? Well, you can make it as a broth version and a dry noodle version. Interesting! Let’s check it out!
This one’s very interesting. This is from Taiwan but for the Hong Kong Market. Found it up in Canada at Aberdeen Centre at a little gift shop full of Hello Kitty and other stuffed animals in the back – it’s near the food court.
I’ve reviewed this in the past, but this one has new packaging and so gets a new number. I dunno – could have a new recipe too. Many companies are making subtle below the radar changes on their domestic product lines including lowering sodium. It’s kind of funny; people complain about the amount of sodium in instant noodles, but when presented a lower sodium product that exclaims the feature, they’ll shy away with thoughts of blandness. It just goes to show people are kind of conflicted. Okay, not kind of.
This one was found up in Richmond, BC at the SuperStore. What’s funny about this one? Well, it shows chopsticks on the cup and has a fork inside. I’ve been given a ration of insults and criticism for using a fork. I really don’t understand why; I mean, here’s an Asian variety with a fork. I think it’s common for Westerners to immediately go to ‘Asian people use chopsticks and if you use them wrong you suck’ kind of thing. My logic is that if I’m in Asia, I’ll use a pair of chopsticks. In Thailamd they use a fork to push food onto a spoon and then eat it, so I did that while there. It really doesn’t matter what tool you decide to use, it’s about eating a meal, right?
Here’s one I found up in Canada at Aberdeen Centre in a shop that was rife with Hello Kitty plushies and exotic candies and snacks next to the food court – I want to say it was called something like Paint Box or Art Box. This one was a nice surprise as it’s been tough to find Doll Brand varieties other than their export pack versions around here. I reall would love to do a Meet The Manufacturer series with Doll, so if you’re listening, please contact me! Let’s check out this Beef & Satay variety from Hong Kong!
Here’s one of the last ones sent by a Taiwanese university student who has probably graduated by now – thanks again and good luck! This is a really big box – let’s check it out!
Here’s a fancy new one from Taiwan! Lots of brands with boxed versions these days. You might see my logo on this one – Mom’s Dry Noodle has been on the top ten Taiwan as well as my annual top ten for the last two years! I will say I haven’t tried this one until today though, but given their track record, I’ll bet it’s good stuff! Let’s find out!
Okay so this one is interesting to me. First, I thought the name Cup Noodles was a Nissin thing? But then I thought Jinmailang was owned by Nissin, but then not anymore? I should note Jinmailang is most definitely a Chinese company, but it’s pretty obvious from the labeling that this is specifically for the United States. Interesting. Also, the nutrition facts seem a little interesting to me. It’s a pretty big cup – is everything actually doubled in reality? Unsure. Either way, I found this at Fred Meyer, a chain of grocery stores in Washington, Oregon, Alaska and Idaho. Was surprised to see this brand there! Anyways, I’ve found a couple varieties there recently I’ve not seen elsewhere. Curious. Let’s check this one out!
This is my list of my all time favorites (compiled up to review #3132). These are the best and most memorable varieties – some you’ll be able to find easily, some you won’t. In the images you see, you’ll see garnished bowls of noodles. Note – reviewing is done BEFORE products have anything externally added by myself, and I follow directions on the package – for better or for worse. I should also note that going forward, the official last day for companies to submit varieties to be considered for the annual top ten will be January 31st. That’s enough – let’s have a look at The Ramen Rater’s Top Ten Instant Noodles Of All Time 2019 Edition!
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