Category: * Stars 3.1 – 4.0

#2639: Maggi Hot Heads Peri Peri Noodles

#2639: Maggi Hot Heads Peri Peri Noodles - India - The Ramen Rater - instant noodles

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 – ...see full post

#2630: Myojo Udon Hot & Spicy Flavor

#2541: Myojo Udon Hot & Spicy Flavor - United States - The Ramen Rater

So today is the first review I’ve done in a month! This was the first time since 2010 that I thought I’d take a little time off of reviewing. The main reason being that I’m so far ahead of myself – 110 reviews ahead in fact. I must say it’s nice to have such a buffer. Anyways, here we have a Myojo Udon bowl – honestly I can’t remember where it came from – someone either sent it (thank you) or I got it at the store. Myojo Udon sounds pretty good. Here’s a little information about udon from Wikipedia – ...see full post

#2626: Nissin Cup Noodles Mazedaar Masala

#2626: Nissin Cup Noodles Mazedaar Masala - India - The Ramen Rater - instant noodles

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! ...see full post

#2620: Samyang Foods Buldak Bokkeummyun Stew

Samyang Foods Buldak Bokkeummyun Stew - South Korea - The Ramen Rater - instant noodles

This is the only variety of Samyang Foods’ Buldak Bokkeummyun series to have a broth. Spicy chicken stew sounds good, and it is – at least the pack version was really good. There are usually some differences between packs and bowls. Mainly, bowls are almost always steeped, so the noodles may come out a little different than being continuously boiled. Also, bowls sometimes have extra ingredient sachets. Let’s give this one a try and check out this super spicy variety! ...see full post

#2619: Liu Quan Authentic Snail Rice Noodle

#2619: Liu Quan Authentic Rice Noodle - 正宗柳州壮品螺蛳粉桶装 - China - The Ramen Rater

First off, special thanks to a reader from Malaysia who helped with translation. This one just says ‘spicy rice noodle’ on the distributor label, but it seems to be a non-spicy variety and it mentions snail. I don’t know if it actually is but hey you never know.But I’m pretty sure this is the regular version and not the spicy I reviewed previously by the same company. Actually after getting some comment from a couple friends in Canada and Taiwan, indeed it is snail! Here’s a little from Wikipedia about this variety – ...see full post

#2614: Samyang Foods Chacharoni

#2614: Samyang Foods Chacharoni - South Korea - The Ramen Rater

Chacharoni is a play on words. Jjajang kind of sounds like ‘cha cha’ and the roni calls to noodles. There are other plays on words in the South Korean industry when it comes to jjajangmyeon. So basically what you have here is a thick noodle with a black bean sauce – also known as jjajang. Here’s a little about jjajangmyeon from Wikipedia – ...see full post

#2612: Meet The Manufacturer: Nona Lim Laksa Rice Noodles + Thai Curry & Lime Broth

NL8: Meet The Manufacturer: Nona Lim Laksa Rice Noodles + Thai Curry & Lime Broth

Laksa noodles paired with a curry broth – I can’t really think of anything so well matched. Although I usually think of Laksa a little further south of Thailand in places like Malaysia and Singapore, all the flavors from that area of Southeast Asia play very well together. Let’s give it a try! ...see full post

#2590: JinMaiLang Bone Soup (Spare Ribs Flavour) Noodle

#2590: JinMaiLang Bone Soup (Spare Ribs Flavour) Noodle - China - The Ramen Rater - instant noodles - ramen noodles

Recently we headed up to Canada for a nice meet up with new friends and to find some noodles. This one spoke to me and said ‘Halloween’ – I mean, bone soup made from boiling pork bones is a very traditional kind of thing – heck, it could be also seen as something Thanksgiving style where after the meal the carcass of the turkey is boiled to pull out all of that great flavor. But the black and green big letters and all just kind of screamed skeletons! Trick or treat! Spooky! ...see full post

#2573: Ikeda Shokuhin Nabeyaki Kitsune Udon

#2573: Ikeda Shokuhin Nabeyaki Kitsune Udon - Japan - The Ramen Rater - Exotic Noods -

Here’s one that came by way of the guys over at Exotic Noods. Thanks! You can subscribe and get great boxes of different noodles every month – they also have The Ramen Rater’s Top Ten Box! Definitely take a look. So today it’s udon from Japan. Kitsune udon comes with some fried tofu – which is really good stuff. Udon is a very thick noodle, but what is a nabeyaki? Here’s a little from Wikipedia – ...see full post

#2565: KOKA Mushroom Flavour Instant Noodles

#2565: KOKA Mushroom Flavour Instant Noodles - Singapore - The Ramen Rater

I’ll be the first to admit – I’m not particularly keen on mushrooms. I mean sure – they’re alright                                              sometimes in with other things, but I’m just not a big fan of fungus. I always try to give them a good chance as with any kind of food -= and the same with instant noodles that are mushroom flavored. Let’s see how this one is. ...see full post

#2562: Binh Tay Mi Hai Cua Artificial Crab Flavored Instant Noodles

#2562: Binh Tay Mi Hai Cua Artificial Crab Flavored Instant Noodles - Vietnam - The Ramen Rater - Vietnamese

These came by way of Kimmy N. of Connecticut, USA! Thanks again! It’s rare these days that a new Vietnamese variety crosses my desk – always welcome of course! I know there’s quite a few that I’m not getting which bums me out. Definitely would love to try more of them. I’ve tried a ton of them in the past, but going forward I’d like to do a lot more of these reviews. ...see full post

#2561: Paldo Premium Gomtang

#2561: Paldo Premium Gomtang - South Korea - 곰탕 - The Ramen Rater - instant noodles

Colin from Massachusetts was kind enough to shoot this one my way! Thanks again! So Gomtang is a flavor I really like -it’s kind of like a creamy beef soup broth. What’s kind of funny is that I’ve only sampled Gomtang made by Paldo. I know there are other brands making it in South Korea, yet I’ve never found any here. Let’s look up[ Gomtang on Wikipedia: ...see full post

#2551: KOKA Signature Tom Yum Flavor Instant Noodles

#2551: KOKA Signature Tom Yum Flavor Instant Noodles - The Ramen Rater - Singapore

I recently did a Meet The Manufacturer series with KOKA (actually the company that makes KOKA is called Tat Hui) – they sent pretty much every SKU they make! Thanks again! So during a Meet The Manufacturer, I only review up to 15 varieties. So, there are some leftovers which are always nice. Let’s see what Wikipedia has to say about tom yum – ...see full post

#2547: Sichuan Guangyou 9999 Chongqing Spicy Hot Noodles

#2547: Sichuan Guangyou 9999 Chongqing Spicy Hot Noodles - China - The Ramen Rater - 重慶小麺 麻辣麺

I’ve tried Sichuan Guangyou noodles once before. Today, it’s a spicy and hot variety with a lot of 9’s. Found this one at Asian Food Center on Aurora in Seattle, WA a few months ago. It’s one of a whole slew of Chongqing noodle varieties that kind of leaped into the Chinese export market and headed to the west. Here’s some info about Chongqing from Wikipedia – ...see full post

#2546: New Touch Sugo-men Kyoto Backfat Shoyu Ramen

#2546: New Touch Sugo-men Kyoto Backfat Shoyu Ramen - Japan - The Ramen Rater - Box From Japan

Here’s another one sent by Javier over at Box From Japan. Box From Japan is a subscription service where you can get 4 unique bowls of instant ramen – direct from Japan – they also have subscription packages for Japanese snacks and candy as well as some other things – definitely worth a look – thanks again for sending this along! ...see full post

Re-Review: Great Value Spicy Ramen Noodles (Flu Edition)

Re-Review: Great Value Spicy Ramen Noodles (Flu Edition) - Canada - The Ramen Rater - fire noodle challenge

If you look at the header on the site, you’ll see the Noodle Shop is gone. It used to be there but it’s not anymore. Why? Well, Amazon decided to get rid of their aStore thing, so I guess that’s that for the little store thing. However, that freed up a spot so I decided to put my YouTube Channel up there instead! I have been doing a lot of videos lately – especially ones having to do with hot and spicy things. Anyways, yesterday I posted a video of me attempting to eat a bowl of this really spicy Japanese variety – but there’s a catch. I have the flu. I don’t know if it was violent as it seemed or I am just weakened by the flu. Anyways, I definitely failed the attempt (don’t fret – I’ll be doing it again soon) and thought hey – let’s do something else spicy. ...see full post

#2540: GGE Noodle Snack Wheat Crackers Mexican Spicy

#2540: GGE Noodle Snack Wheat Crackers Mexican Spicy - Taiwan - The Ramen Rater -

Here’s yet another opone of the GGE noodle snack varieties – Mexican Spicy. There are so many of these varieties its kind of mind boggling./ Actually, when you go to Taiwan and go down the noodle aisle, these aren’t there. Indeed, there’s an aisle with chips on one side and noodle snacks on the other. Why do we have so few of them here? I can’t think of any USA branded noodle snacks really at all. It’s like they came out with a few varieties of ways to offer up instant noodles here in the US and then they just stuck with those and kind of quit innovating. I mean, what about a beef stew instant noodle bowl with beef? A A spicy cheese? A pizzas flavor? Closest we get is a cheap cheese cup. I think the instant noodle world in the USA should really go and just kick some major butt and try some new things. I mean hey – no risk, no reward, right? Anyways, let’s check out this snack noodle! ...see full post

#2539: Nissin Demae Iccho Tonkotsu Flavour Instant Noodle

#2370: Nissin Demae Iccho Tonkotsu Flavour Instant Noodle

Today we’ve got yet another one from the massive amount of varieties left over from the Nissin Hong Kong Meet The Manufacturer. Seems like I just keep pulling them out of the hamper again and again! It’s a good thing though – the more the merrier and these days, it is getting harder to find varieties locally to review. So gotta make sure to give everything a try. Tonkotsu is a classic Japanese ramen variety. Most of all, tonkotsu is famous for it’s milky pork bone broth. Next, a little more info from Wikipedia: ...see full post

#2534: Fujiwara Hokkaido Hakodate Shoyu Ramen

#2534: Fujiwara Hokkaido Hakodate Shoyu Ramen - Japan - The Ramen Rater

Seems like a little while since I did a pack instant ramen from Japan. This is one I found during my trip to Taiwan last November at the Carrefour in Taipei by the Miramar Entertainment Park. I tell you – they had quite an impressive instant noodle aisle – like 4 aisles really. So this one is a shoyu instant ramen. Here’s a little from Wikipedia about shoyu ramen – ...see full post