Over 5,000 Instant Ramen Noodle Reviews Since 2002
Well, this is the third of three varieties I’m reviewing from Prima Taste – This one’s the regular laksa – not wholegrain. It’s got a new size – smaller than the original. It’ll show up in the US at some point. I tried this back in 2013 and was floored with how good it was. From the noodle to the broth, it sings. Let’s cook!
Here’s the second of the two Vecorn varieties YeeLee sent – thanks again! Just got done soft boiling eggs – let’s give it a try!
Time for something prawny! It’s prawn o’clock! Prawn o’yeah! Let’s prawn it up!
Well, this is the last of the Ayam varieties – laksa. I’ve got a few laksa varieties I’m doing this week, some releasing in order, some getting out sooner than later. When I make laksa (if possible) there are a few things I really like to include when I garnish. You may have noticed my laksa of mung bean sprout recently – well, that’s a must. Fishball, tofu puff, and mint. That’s the quartet I like to have on hand. Of course, egg as well. This one’s showing shrimp as well, so I think I’ll include that in lieu of fish ball. Well, let’s cook some laksa!
Found this recently at S*Mart – shop smart shop S*Mart. I’ve been waiting until I had shrimp. I do, so here we go.
Here’s another of the new size/package Prima Taste LaMian series. This stuff is serious business. I’m hoping we don’t lose power as a massive storm rolls in. There’s been talk of the possibility of tornadoes! I live about an hour’s walk from the Seattle city limits, so that’s rather bizarre. Let’s cook this up as we get excited for a lots of thunderstorms to watch tonight.
I’m a nut for strong shrimp flavors. Plus, I have big shrimp to garnish with. Let’s go!
This one came by way of James from Lakeside, California – thanks again! Nope – haven’t reviewed this. I got shrimp! Let’s cook!
The other day I tried the pack version and here’s the bowl. The pack version mentioned it was a gravy version – this one says dry on it. Let’s give it a try.
You might have noticed a different background on the pics lately. So there’s a company that does flooring called Flooret and they had a thing in facebook offering to send free samples. Well, I got some and that’s what these are. I’m going to get a big piece and get it cut which is darker than this one I’ve been using. It’s pretty neat stuff and I’m pretty stoked. Let’s continue on though – this is a chilli crab pack from Singapore – one of the signature dishes of the country. Let’s give it a try!
Another send by James of Lakeside – thanks! This one purports to be a dipping ramen, but it’s confusing as the whole broth thing is confusing. I dunno – but I’ll figure it out.
This is an interesting one from James of Lakeside – thanks agaiun! So it’s made by a Korean company in Vietnam for export but not just for the US but all over the place. Really excited as I get to use a new chili crisp with it. Let’s give it a try!
Ahh curry. I will admit I’ve loved curries of all types since I was a kid. I still do – just last week I made green curry with chicken, onion, and bell pepper. Well, this one has graced the Global Top Ten many times – it’s strong noodle and rich broth always please. This new version is different – instead of a soup paste and premix (coconut powder) sachet, there’s two soup base which are infused with coconut milk. Very curious about this change. Let’s give it a look!
Big thanks to The Fat Hipster for sending this along! This is called an MRE – meal ready to eat – well, sort of. You do neet hot water of course, but it’s a heavy plastic bag that’s got a ton of stuff in it, including instant noodles. Let’s take a look.
Today, I’m reviewing a variety that was a favorite of my friend Jamie Burridge who passed on February 16th, 2025. His passing has left a great emptiness which I can’t even really start to explain. He lived in Devon England and we never met in person unfortunately, but we chatted very often. We of course talked noodles (he was a moderator in the Ramen Junkies group), but also about shared interests such as music, science fiction, food, and travel. This was his favorite variety and so I wanted to do a special post in his honor. In the episode of Instant Noodle Recipe Time at the bottom, I talk more about him. If you knew this great human, you should put a note or even donate to Cancer Research UK on his remembrance page. There is a special episode of Instant Noodle Recipe Time at the bottom – one has his favorite music and one does not, so if the one with the music he loved doesn’t work, try the other one. This one’s for you, my friend – may the cosmic rays of Tharg IV drag you forth to the holy daefaeneckf.
Big thank you to James from Lakeside, California for sending! The last one of these I tried was a vegetable mushroom and it was really quite nice – now we have a seafood mushroom. I’m curious if there will also be a sweetness in this one. Well, let’s find out.
Big thanks to James from Lakeside for this one! Jjamppong is a favorite of mine and this sounds like a Nagasaki jjamppong. Let’s cook it up!
Found this at a Dollar Tree store here in Kenmore, Washington. I remember trying out the chicken variety and I don’t think I found it very appealing. We shall see how it goes.
Found this at a local Dollar Tree store here in Kenmore, Washington. This one is fascinating and odd – it says it cooks quickly, however when you see the steeping time you might be a little surprised. Let’s check it out.
Here’s one that came by way of Exotic Noods – thanks! Check out their subscription boxes – this is something you might find in one of them. I know seafood, but here’s info on shiso. I’m intrigued – let’s give it a go.
The huge box of samples from Nissin Singapore as I’m finding out are all collaborations and that’s pretty interesting. This one is with 328 Katomg Laksa, a hawker stall founded in 1998 after a chef spent 6 months tuning and refining her laksa recipe. I love laksa, so I’m really excited to try this one.
A big thanks to Daniel over at www.exoticnoods.com for sending this one! I’ve been wanting to try it and mukbang it up for a while now (mukbang vid at bottom of the page), and here it is. I love tom yum. I’m curious though as the Buldak base has the heat, but it also imparts some sweetness as well. Interesting. I guess the correct route is to give it a try.
Hey look – it’s different! Yep – slightly smaller size and new design. I should note it won’t be in the West for a while. I needed to gather some things to be able to review these – you’ll see what it’s garnished. This has been my absolutely favorite instant noodle products for a very, very long time, I first tried the non-wholegrain version back in 2013 and I remember calling a friend who worked at another company and told them – ‘take notice of this – things are changing.’ Well, they have. With this review I’m also unveiling my new background. I’d been using a woven black plastic placemat for about ten years. It was time to change. This is a flooring plank cut to size and I’m pretty happy with it – you’ll see it more as time goes on. Anyways, on to the cooking – I’m very excited to try these again for the first time in the new package/size. Let us begin.
Well this sounds right up my alley! A rice vermicelli laksa that actually comes with fishball! I’m all over this let’s give it a try!
Here’s a variety that I found in one of MiauMall’s Nakama Noodles subscription boxes! Inside, they have 8-10 different varieties from Japan! If you’d like to get one, don’t forget to use the coupon code THERAMENRATER for a discount! Let’s see what they had to say about this one – “Let’s hop on over to Nagasaki—well known for their Spirit Boats in summer and for their famous champon! This champon is soupless but features a delicious sauce that combines the rich taste of tonkotsu with the deep umami of seafood like Japan’s famous scallop!”
Another variety that was sent by James of Lakeside, CA. The last of these Hoang Gia varieties I tried was really pretty good. Curious if this is just going to be the same thing with a little bit of heat. Time to find out!
Here’s another one you can only find… In prison. Yup – clear packaging is a giveaway. You can’t get these elsewhere – you will never see them in a grocery store. They are distributed by a company called Keefe Group – don’t call Keefe Group. They don’t want to talk to you – trust me I found out by calling them. This and three other varieties were sent by an anonymous donor – thanks again! Let’s give this a try.
Thanks to James from Lakeside, CA for this one. This pack had a particular problem which could’ve been far worse and made it unusable. The problem? Sometimes when packs are sealed, sachets get in there as well. This one has that particular issue. You’ll see it below. Anyways, there’s a few scenarios. Maybe they just had one that did this. Maybe a hundred or a thousand. Maybe they didn’t know when this started happening in a production run. Maybe they didn’t care. Anyways, it was a dry sachet so thats okay, but still. Let’s give it a try.
Big thanks to James from Lakeside, CA – awesome! What a day. July 1st. Well, it’s the first day I’ve dragged the kids out for a long walk. They did really quite well – just a smidge over 6 miles. The weather was crappy though – warm, yes – but very cloudy and humid; like walking through a world that feels like walking into a bathroom after someone took a shower. I was going tyo get these posts ready to do my reviews this morning, but I slept in a little bit, and when I got home with the kids and planned on doing it then, I got to call my internet service provider since my bill went up $40 a month, then when they screwed my downgrade up, I had to call back. Sheesh. But lunch is over and I’ve got some caffeine at my side. Let’s get ‘er done.
This is a special one. I’m doing a collab with a bar in Seattle’s Capitol Hill neighborhood called Time Warp, and this is the variety I’ve picked for July 2024 for their menu. This is the pack version and they’ve got the cup version – for some reason, nobody’s got any cups around here of this one which is a bummer, but it’s very similar. So, let’s cook it up!
Another one sent by James from Lakeside, CA – thanks! This is really fascinating. Is it going to be incredibly spicy? It sounds good… Well, no way to know until I cook it and give it a try.
Well, this is it. The last of the varieties we found back in March 2024 at S*Mart for my birthday. I swear – one trip to that place a year really pans out well. Let’s cook!
It’s kind of funny; I think of ‘top o’ the day to you’ or bits o’ beef’ when I see this company name. Anyways, found this at QFC supermarket in Edmonds, Washington when I was looking for curry simmer sauce. Weird. It’s was only $1.49, which isn’t bad!
Here’s a variety that I found in one of MiauMall’s Nakama Noodles subscription boxes! Inside, they have 8-10 different varieties from Japan! If you’d like to get one, don’t forget to use the coupon code THERAMENRATER for a discount! Let’s see what they had to say about this one – “With a package that captures the beauty of traditional Japan, this choice was inspired by the night sky at night sakura events. This pack combines a tonkotsu base and dried fish base for a unique, full flavor. Add thick, springy noodles and you’ll have tasty ramen (or tsukemen)!”
Think I found this at HMart. This one says it has a stewed seafood sachet which sounds interesting. I also find the global top ten mention – not my global top ten though. Interesting. Let’s give it a try!
Hey it’s time for some Korean seafood noodles! This one comes with some sea tangle (kelp) that helps season the soup! I’m kind of excited about this one. Let’s hit it up.
Really happy I got to try this range thanks to a local Asian grocer. Quite a few, and this is the last. I’m wondering if this will be akin to tom yum? Let’s find out.
This one comes by way of Daniel over the Exotic Noods – he asked if I’d tried it and since I hadn’t was kind enough to send one over – thanks! So, here we have a variety with a Thai flavor made in Taiwan. I’m game – let’s give it a try!
The second of these new changed to Red Chef products. This used to be called Sakura Prawn Mee. This usually has a very strong prawn sweetness I can’t get enough of – let’s see how it’s changed!
Here’s a variety that I found in one of MiauMall’s Nakama Noodles subscription boxes! Inside, they have 8-10 different varieties from Japan! If you’d like to get one, don’t forget to use the coupon code THERAMENRATER for a discount! Let’s see what they had to say about this one – “Last on our trip is the lovely prefecture of Nagasaki! This Chinese-inspired Japanese noodle dish features a base full of umami and delicious pepper that combine to make a delicious champon soup! It comes with a special flavor oil too, creating an addictive cup of noodles.”
