Today, it’s probably the most popular variety in India – Maggi Masala. If you ask anyone in India about instant noodles, they’ve heard of this one. I actually got this one up in Canada at Walmart (yep – they have Walmart in Canada). Here’s a little from Wikipedia about this one –
Maggi instant noodles are popular in India, Pakistan and Malaysia. Nestle has 39% market share in Malaysia, where “Maggi” is synonymous with instant noodles,[6] and had 90% market share in India prior to a nationwide ban by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India. Following the ban, the market share was reduced to 53% in India.[7] In Malaysia, fried noodles made from Maggi noodles are called Maggi goreng.
In June 2015, tests in India found high amounts of lead in Maggi noodles. The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India ordered a national recall for all 9 variants of Maggi Instant Noodles and Oats Masala Noodles.[8][9]
In India, Maggi noodles carry a green dot, meaning they are specifically formulated to serve vegetarians.[10] This special formulation is not available in other countries, unless imported from India.
Ah ha now see that last line? No green dot on this one. I really have been trying to get more varieties from India – if you’re a noodle company in India reading this – please contact me! I would love to do many spotlight series on Indian varieties – I think they’re really good and want to explore them as they definitely deserve a lot of attention. Alright – let’s look at this Maggi Masala – spicy!
Maggi 2-Minute Noodle Masala Spicy (Export) – India
Here’s the back of the package (click to enlarge). Looks to be meat free but check for yourself. To prepare, break the noodle block into four parts. Add noodles and seasoning to 210ml boiling water and cook for 2 minutes. Finally, stir and enjoy!
The noodle block.
The soup base seasoning sachet.
A granular mixture.
Finished (click to enlarge). Added spring onion, baked chicken, and coriander. The noodles are plump and have this kind of signature Indian mouthfeel to them I adore. The flavor is a spicy masala – most of the liquid is soaked up by the noodles and it’s strong. Everything is just perfect – I can see why people really like this one. 5.0 out of 5.0 stars. UPC bar code 055000490955.
Found this one down in Pleasanton, California during our road trip to visit family in August. Boy – that was a journey! We took Miles (almost 2 years old) and Miri (8 months old). I can say that car seats would be comfy I think but if I were that age I sure wouldn’t want to sit in one for that long – I think the way down was 18 hours and we broke the drive back into two chunks – I think altogether that was about 24 hours with all the stops.
Anyways, while down there we hit some Indian grocery stores. This variety I think is Indian (or Desi) Chinese food; spicy chow mein perhaps? Let’s check it out!
Maggi Cuppa Chilly Chow – India
Detail of the side panels (click to enlarge). Looks to be meat free but check for yourself. To prepare, add boiling water to fill line and cover for 3 minutes. Finally, stir and enjoy!
Finished (click to enlarge). Added coriander. These flat noodles are abundant here and enjoyable. The broth is indeed a bit on the spicy side, but the only problem is that I’m not getting a really great flavor. The broth (more of a sauce) is very monotone. Little bits here and there are nice though. 3.5 out of 5.0 stars. EAN bar code 8901058845617.
This is one we found at an Indian grocery in Pleasanton, California this Summer. I really like the fact that India has so many different instant noodle varieties and that I’ve not tried so many of them – like every one that I find is a little precious gem. Here’s what Wikipedia has to say about Manchow –
Manchow soup is a soup popular in Indian Chinese cuisine due to its ease of preparation and hot spicy taste. It is available in large restaurants and street food carts alike. Although the soup is named after Manchuria it does not resemble any that is normally found in the cuisines of the region. The origin of Manchow soup is Meghalaya.[citation needed]
See? Something I’ve never heard of. This whole Indian Chinese food thing is very interesting to me. Anyways, let’s delve in and take a look.
Nissin Cup Noodles Veggi Manchow – India
Here’s the back of the package (click to enlarge). Looks to be meat free but check for yourself. To prepare, add boiling water to fill line and cover 3 minutes. Finally, stir and enjoy!
Finished (click to enlarge). The noodles are thin and flat with a light chew to them. The broth has a kind of saltiness to it and is mostly in the noodle; there’s very little of it after steeping. Bits of garnish are ubiquitous, however the green chillies while of good quality and size kind of tend to dominate with their spiciness. 3.5 out of 5.0 stars. EAN bar code 8901014004836.
Here’s another from the spicy Hot Heads series from Maggi India. From the picture, it certainly looks tasty – although the picture doesn’t show a barbeque pepper but an onion or shallot. Regardless, I would have to say the onion is my favorite vegetable. I could eat onions on anything – Well, maybe not pie. Unless it’s a meat pie. I’m talking a dessert kind of pie – yeah, I wouldn’t prefer onions on that. But who knows. Alright, enough of this – let us have a look!
Maggi Hot Heads Barbeque Pepper Noodles – India
Here’s the back of the package (click to enlarge). Add noodle and sachet contents to 210ml boiling water and cook for 2 minutes. Finally, stir and enjoy!
The noodle block.
The ‘Tastemaker’ sachet.
The seasoning base powder.
Finished (click to enlarge). I liked the noodles – it seems like noodles that come from India have a slightly different texture and mouthfeel all around. They’re firm but have a kind of squish or collapse to them which is interesting to me. The flavor of this one however is totally lost on me. Okay, sure – it’s spicy. I don’t find it to be ‘run for the hills’ spicy but it is spicy. The black pepper flavor is just a plain menace and isn’t one I like. It’s got a funky back to it which just is one I don’t enjoy whatsoever and find off-putting in the extreme. 0.0 out of 5.0 stars. EAN bar code 8901058847864.
I remember the first time I heard about Ching’s Secret – I was very curious about this whole concept of Chinese food in India. As it turns out ‘Desi Chinese’ is kind of like American Chinese food insofar as Chinese bringing their food to a foreign country and adapting it to the tastes of the locals in order to sell more of it. This is a four pack and I would now like to make a formal complaint.
To distributors of instant noodles from India (and many other countries as well). The stickers you put on these products are enormous and very sticky. It takes me extra time to remove them. This one had a 2×6 inch sticker. It was ridiculous. Now, I know you have to do this, to comply with government requirements when it comes to labeling. But honestly, this drives me nuts. There has to be a better way! Maybe some kind of sticker whose ‘sticky’ isn’t so prone to leaving itself on the package? I mean I need to clean my scanner now as it is sticky as well. Thank you.
Okay so now that I’ve aired my grievance, let’s have a look at this one!
Ching’s Secret Schezwan Instant Noodles – India
Here’s the back of the package (click to enlarge). Looks to be meat free but check for yourself. To prepare, aadd one noodle block and one sachet to 250ml boiling water. Cook for 2~3 minutes. Finally, stir and enjoy!
One of the noodle blocks.
One of the seasoning sachets.
The powder base.
Finished (click to enlarge). Great noodles – they have that kind of sturdy and mushy chew indicative of varieties from India that I enjoy. The flavor is interesting; a kind of spicy then like a tomato with a tiny hint of masala in the background. Interesting stuff. 3.5 out of 5.0 stars. EAN bar code 8901595963355.
There are a few varieties in this Hot Heads series and I now have all of them. The first I reviewed was the one that’s the hottest – the green chilli. My wife Kit ordered me one from Amazon as we couldn’t find it locally. Well this summer we took a trip to northern California and found a couple great Indian grocery stores – and they had all of them. Sweet! Here’s a little about what peri peri means from Wikipedia –
The Oxford Dictionary of English records piri-piri as a foreign word meaning “a very hot sauce made with red chilli peppers” and giving its origin as the Ronga language of southern Mozambique word for “pepper”.[2]
An interesting pepper to be sure. Let’s check out this peri peri variety from India!
Maggi Hot Heads Peri Peri Noodles – India
Here’s the back of the package (click to enlarge). Has a green dot which means suitable for vegetarians. To prepare, add noodle block and sachet content to 210ml boiling water. Cook for 2 minutes. Finally, stir and enjoy!
The noodle block.
The soup base sachet.
Dark and looks spicy.
Finished (click to enlarge). The noodles are really quite nice – a slight mush to them kind of like a Japanese variety I’ve had with agar agar in them, yet hearty and tasty.Thee peri peri pepper sauce/soup is pretty good – not too spicy, but definitely, more than a wide swath of people I know could handle. If you like a bit of spicy you should enjoy it. 4.0 out of 5.0 stars. EAN bar code 8901058847857.
Found this one at New India Bazar while in Pleasanton, California this summer. Probably the biggest Indian grocery I’ve been in which was pretty cool. I spent a little time searching for mazedaar but really didn’t find anything, so if you know what makes this ‘mazdaar masala,’ let me know – that would be great. Anyways, let’s check out this mazedaar masala!
Detail of the side panels (click to enlarge). Looks to be meat free but check for yourself. To prepare, peel lid back halfway and add boiling water to fill line. Cover and steep for 3 minutes. Finally, stir and enjoy!
Loose bits of vegetable and seasoning from the cup.
Finished (click to enlarge). The noodles were decently hydrated and had a light chew. The flavor was a nice masala with a kind of funky back to it I wasn’t altogether appreciative of. Not a huge amount of broth here although the included garnish was rampant throughout. 3.5 out of 5.0 stars. EAN bar code 8901014004737.
Here’s one from India we found this summer at an Indian grocery in Pleasanton, California. There are a few different varieties of these with different shapes of noodles. Let’s check out this macaroni style one.
Maggi Pazzta Cheese Macaroni – India
Here’s the back of the package (click to enlarge). Looks to be meat free but check for yourself. To prepare, add sachet and noodles to a pot with 2 cups of water. Bring to a boil and then simmer for 5 minutes. Finally, stir and enjoy!
The macaroni.
The seasoning base.
Lot sof seasoning powder.
Finished (click to enlarge). The macaroni noodles came out nicely. They have an interesting gauge – rather large and thin walled. They come with a broth which is kind of thin, but the longer it sits, the thicker it gets. Not bad. 3.5 out of 5.0 stars. EAN bar code 8901058847482.
Found this one in California! I’ve been curious about Indian grocery stores lately as each one has had a different variety or two I’ve not reviewed. Honestly, the more reviews I do, the closer I get to doing a top ten India list. A ways to go though! Here’s a little about Maggi instant noodles in India from Wikipedia –
Maggi instant noodles are popular in India, Pakistan and Malaysia. Nestle has 39% market share in Malaysia, where “Maggi” is synonymous with instant noodles,[5] and had 90% market share in India prior to a nationwide ban by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India. Following the ban, the market share was reduced to 53% in India.[6] In Malaysia, fried noodles made from Maggi noodles are called Maggi goreng.
In June 2015, tests in India found high amounts of lead in Maggi noodles. The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India ordered a national recall for all 9 variants of Maggi Instant Noodles and Oats Masala Noodles.[7][8]
In India, Maggi noodles carry a green dot, meaning they are specifically formulated to serve vegetarians.[9] This special formulation is not available in other countries, unless imported from India.
So now you know – the green dot means vegetarian-friendly. Let’s check it out!
Detail of the side panels (click to enlarge). Has a green dot signifying vegetarian-friendly. To prepare, add boiling water to fill line and cover for 3 minutes. Finally, stir and enjoy!
Finished (click to enlarge). The noodles come out fluffy and buttery which I thoroughly enjoyed. The masala flavor isn’t overwhelmingly strong like I like it, but strong enough to impart a rich and tasty flavor. The peas. I always find peas don’t hydrate well – well, these did. They came out nice and mushy as they should. 3.75 out of 5.0 stars.EAN bar code 8901058844757.
Here’s one from a brand I’ve never tried before. I also must say that I really love exclamatory instant noodle names. Yippee! is probably about the happiest name I’ve come across. It seems that the closer to the end of the alphabet they get, the more interesting they are. Not only that, but someone on YouTube recommends I try them and there is one in my hamper, so I think hey – what better time to try? I got these at a local Indian supermarket in Bellevue, Washington. Let’s check ’em out!
Here’s the back of the package (click to enlarge). Color removed to make easier to read. Looks to be meat free but check for yourself. To prepare, add noodle block and sachet contents to 250ml boiling water. Flip noodle block and cook for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Finally, stir and enjoy!
The noodle block.
The soup base sachet.
A granular and strong scented powder.
Finished (click to enlarge). Added fried onions. The noodle came out very well after the 3 minutes cooking. They have a soft tooth and a familiar gauge that most companies seem to favor. The flavor is quite good. I did expect a stronger masala taste, however it seems paired with a tomato taste. This goes very well. I can tell why the person on YouTube recommended this. Yippee! 4.25 out of 5.0 stars. EAN bar code 8901725181222.
Well, I found quite a few of these new packaged versions recently at an Indian market in Bellevue, Washington. Now, this is what they call ‘Desi Chinese’ food. What’s that? Let’s ask Wikipedia –
The cuisine is believed to have originated from the Chinese of Kolkata and Chinese food is still popular there. At present, the Chinese population in Kolkata stands at approximately 2,000.[2] Most of these people are of Hakka origin; however, many dishes of modern Indian Chinese cuisine bear little resemblance to traditional Chinese cuisine.[3]
Schezwan (sic) Chicken/Prawn/Fish/Mutton/Vegetables/Paneer – dishes with this name in fact usually bear very little resemblance to ones from China’s Sichuan Province (although they sometimes contain Sichuan peppercorns). They instead center mainly around a sauce containing Indian red chillies and garlic. (The spelling of “Schezwan” is not a mis-print; this is indeed the how the term tends to be spelled in the Indo-Chinese kitchen rather than “Sichuan”, “Szechuan” or “Szechwan”).[5]
Manchurian Chicken/Prawn/Fish/Mutton/Vegetables/Paneer, generally consisting of a variety of meats or paneer with vegetables in a spicy brown sauce.[6] It is basically a creation of Chinese restaurants in India, and bears little resemblance to traditional Manchu cuisine or Chinese cuisine.[3] It is said to have been invented in 1975 by Nelson Wang; Wang described his invention process as starting from the basic ingredients of an Indian dish, namely chopped garlic, ginger, and green chilis, but next, instead of adding garam masala, he put in soy sauce instead, followed by cornstarch and the chicken itself.[7] A popular vegetarian variant replaces chicken with cauliflower,[6] and is commonly known as gobi manchurian. Other vegetarian variants include mushroom, baby corn, veggie ball Manchurian.
Many overseas Indian restaurants in the West and the Middle East also cater to the overseas Indians’ nostalgic taste for Indian Chinese food.[8] The cuisine is also branching out into the mainstream in major cities of North America such as New York City, San Francisco, Philadelphia, Chicago, Toronto, Los Angeles, Atlanta and Vancouver. Chinese food in Nairobi, Kenya, also tends to be of this style. It is also available in Australia, especially in Sydney and Melbourne. In many of these places, the restaurants are labelled as Hakka Chinese, when in fact the cuisine itself has very little resemblance to authentic Hakka cuisine. “Hakka” label in these restaurants are usually referring to the owner’s origins, and many Chinese restaurant owners in India were of Hakka origin.
So basically, it’s like American Chinese food; Chinese food made more palatable to the local population. Let’s have a look at this curry.
Ching’s Secret Singapore Curry Instant Noodles – India
Here’s the back of the package (click to enlarge). Looks to be meat free but check for yourself. To prepare, add noodles and seasoning to 250ml boiling water and cook for 2~3 minutes, stirring occasionally, Finally, stir and enjoy!
The noodle block.
The soup base sachet.
Smells like curry.
Finished (click to enlarge). Added a little chilli flake. I must say I like these noodles quite a bit. The have a slightly wider gauge and definitely chewier than many. Curious things they are. As for the flavor, the broth is not abundant and more of a kind of gravy. It’s not thick as gravy, but does have a bit of viscosity to it. I thought the taste was kind of like a curry meets masala with a dab of heat affair. 3.75 out of 5.0 stars. EAN bar code 8901595963409.
This is one I found a few weeks ago looking at an Indian grocery in Bellevue, Washington. I’ve never seen nor heard of this one before and thought it looked kind of interesting. I rarely find much if anything new locally and so this was a score. Let’s check it out!
TRDP Mario Masala Noodles – India
Here’s the back of the package (click to enlarge). Looks to be meat free but check for yourself. To prepare, boil 240ml water in a pot. Add noodles. Cook for 1 minutes and add seasoning. Cook two additional minutes. Finally, stir and enjoy!
The noodle block.
The seasoning sachet.
Has a nice masala scent!
Finished (click to enlarge). The noodles have a slight more width than a standard domestic instant. They also have a tiny bit more chewiness – just a little. The broth is more like a sauce and kind of thick. I really like it – my wife came in the room and said ‘it smells like India in here!’ Has a nice strong masala flavor with a little heat. 3.75 out of 5.0 stars. EAN bar code 8908003972176.
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