I got some samples the other day to try! This is Hao Way’s new Penang Laksa. They’re very excited about it, purporting it to the the very first instant Penang Laksa whose paste contains grilled fish in the mixture. Sounds pretty good to me! Let’s give it a try.
Category: * Stars 3.1 – 4.0
#1556: Ching’s Secret Hot Garlic Instant Noodles
Have you ever taken a clove of garlic and eaten it straight? I would have to say that I’ve done it with a few different varieties. Some types of garlic are extremely hot and spicy, rivaling chilli peppers. They’re no joke and they burn like fire! I had a bite of this tiny little one once – I think it was a Himalayan variant – and it was so freaking hot! Well, I like spicy things and I like garlic, so this one really piques my interest. Let’s check out this Ching’s Secret Hot Garlic and see if we can find out if the secret is hot or not.
#1555: Ko-Lee Instant Noodles Taste Sensation Mixed Vegetable Flavour
Vegetarian instant noodles are ones I often get asked about. I often have been asked to do a top ten list on vegetarian and vegan varieties, gluten-free and others. The issue is that I’m neither a vegetarian nor am I someone requiring a gluten-free diet, and so I would definitely not want to come up with a list and say ‘these are great for vegetarian/vegan/gluten free folks’ and have someone eat what they don’t want or what they shouldn’t. One thing I can say is that foreign varieties coming into the United States that are chicken or beef flavored generally are free of said animal products, as the CBP/USDA/FDA are rather strict about their import. But there are always exceptions, of course. Many companies will also use things like bonito which is a fish in all their varieties. Anyways, when I say in my review ‘looks to be meat free but check for yourself,’ I’m saying that my poor-eyesighted, legally blind eyes have pored over the ingredients list, but I could be wrong and have missed something. Anyways, here are some mixed veg flavor instant noodles today by Ko-Lee. They’re made in Thailand and generally for the UK market. Let’s check ’em out!
#1553: Mamee Mi Segera Perisa Itik
Still got some duck left from our special anniversary lunch the other day! It’s pretty rare that I have any duck at all! Let’s check out this Perisa Itik (duck flavor) instant noodle from Mamee!
#1552: Bamee Oriental Style Instant Noodles Pa-Lo Duck Flavour
Duck! What’s awesome is that we went out for a special dinner the other day and got some braised duck. Leftovers! i can actually make duck instant noodles accompanied by the duck! Awesome. Let’s do this! I think there’ll be a couple ducky reviews for the next couple of days!
#1551: Myojo Men Black Seafood Tonkotsu
Got this one down in California during our summer trip! JFC distributes a lot of different products here in the USA from Japan and elsewhere. I’m curious what the actual brand here is. Those characters at the top look extremely familiar…
#1548: Samyang Foods Curry Noodle
Here’s one my wife got me during my birthday trip to Canada earlier this year! Thanks, Kit! This is a neat one. First, it’s a South Korean brand, but it is definitely for thye Japanese market; everything on the label is in Japanese for the most part, and a curry cup falls in line as well. This line also has a Shoyu cup, another Japanese ramen flavor. As I’m sure all who follow my blog know, I’m a big fan of curry, and so my hopes here are high! Japanese curry is much different from Indian or Malaysian curries; it’s usually not spicy and has a sweetness to it. Let’s see what’s under the hood of this Samyang Curry Noodle!
#1546: Nissin Demae Rice Vermicelli Beef Flavour
After going through the big noodle hamper the other day and getting rid of some ancient ones that had expired, I noticed this one that I needed to get to quickly. There’s a urban myth that instant noodles last forever, will survive all forms of apocalypse and deliver great flavor for the next hundred years. While frying noodles extrudes moisture and makes them shelf stable without refrigeration for a much longer time than their fresh counterparts, they do go bad. I also take into account that as a reviewer, it’s only fair to review them if they’re all not expired, hence the culling of the old. Luckily, I have scads of non expired instants to go through! Anyways, let’s check out this rice vermicelli from Nissin – Demae Beef Flavour!
#1543: Maggi 2-Minute Noodles Hungrooo Masala Spicy
Hungrooo! This is great – a new noodle word! It evokes a thought of a big monster that’s really hungry, or what a stomach might say. It’s fun to say too – Hungrooo! I recently did a Meet The Manufacturer with Maggi Singapore and have reviewed many varieties from Maggi Malaysia as well. Maggi is a brand from Nestle, a Swiss brand and seems to have many instant noodle varieties catering to the local flavors seen around the world. This one’s from India, and since not everyone’s familiar with Indian food, I thought I’d grab a snippet from Wikipedia about masala:
#1541: Wu-Mu Steam Pork Flavor Ramen
Here’s one of these Wu-Mu 4 packs I’ve not reviewed before – steam pork. I think there’s steam, simmered, stewed and maybe another one. That’s quite the array! Anyways, let’s check this one out!
#1539: New Touch Kimchi Noodle
Here’s one that has been at the bottom of the noodle hamper for a while . Kind of an interesting one; kimchi from Japan eh? Let’s delve into it and see how it tastes!
#1538: Sau Tao Oat Noodle Tomato Soup Flavored
I reviewed one of these the other day – the pork ribs flavor. Got my son Andy over here today and he’s been a little more adventurous in trying new flavors. I thought this one might be a good match – I had him choose between duck, mushroom and this. I knew he’d pick the tomato; kind of a no-brainer there.
#1537: Wai Wai Quick Zabb Chili Paste Tom Yum Flavor Instant Noodles
Here’s one sent to me by Marvin R. – thanks again! This was one of a series I’ve been looking for for a long time. I kept seeing them online, but only looked to be available in Thailand. These are now available here in the USA and the last one I had (tom yum shrimp) was pretty good. Let’s check it out!
#1536: Paldo Vina Koreno Premium Shrimp Flavor
Paldo Foods is a South Korean company, and it looks like they’ve expanded to Vietnam with Paldo Vina. Been curious about this line for a while now and wondering how they taste. Shrimp ounds good for today – let’s go!
#1535: Sau Tao Oat Noodle Pork Rib Flavored
I used to a lot of barbecuing a few years back and one thing I always liked to grill up were pork ribs. I would often have a couple of friends over and we would drink a few beers and exclaim ‘spicy pork ribs’ in a strange overdone Southern accent which would end up sounding more like Boss Hogg from Dukes Of Hazzard screaming ‘spassy poke relbs.’ I always liked to get the boneless ‘country style’ ribs in bulk and then do a nice dry rub. Nowadays, I don’t barbecue as much (mainly because I don’t have a barbecue) and my wife’s Uncle Joe has a really snazzy barbecue rig that you can control wirelessly and slow cook/smoke meats for hours effortlessly. His stuff comes out just amazingly – so now I leave it the pros. American barbecue ribs are generally a lot different than what you’ll find in Asia. Sau Tao is a company out of Hong Kong which makes a lot of different varieties of noodles. Today it’s oat noodles. They’re non-fried and have a nice texture to them (at least the ones I’ve had in the past did). Let’s check out Sau Tao’s Oat Noodles with Pork Ribs flavor!
#1534: Vit’s Seafood Instant Noodles
Here’s another one that Thomas from MyKuali got for me while we were on our trip to Malaysia! Thanks again! Vit’s is a brand that’s well known over there, but one I’ve never reviewed before. This looks like a spicy seafood variety – let’s give it a go!
#1533: Miliket Sate Flavor Instant Noodle
Okay so first off, I want to thank the person at the company who made the decision to use paper as the material for the outer packaging. One of the big tasks I have for the reviews is to do a lot of editing in Photoshop, mostly removing glare from packaging. Since they’re plastic wraps usually, they pick up the lighting and so angling the packs to get the least glare and reflection is key, but then sometimes it’s just not possible to get rid of all of it. Then I have to scan the packages and there’s always a good amount of glare there. This will be the first review I’ve ever done of Miliket instant noodles, so let’s check therm out!
Meet The Manufacturer: Re-Review: Lucky Me! Special Instant Pancit Bihon With Kalamansi
Rice vvermicelli isknown by many names in the world; bihun, beehoon, bihon – it’s all the same thing! One thing though – these noodles are made with corn starch! But pancit – let’s see what wikipedia has to say:
Meet The Manufacturer: Re-Review: Lucky Me! Supreme Bulalo Artificial Bone Marrow Flavor Instant Noodles
Bulalo sounds interesting – a beefy soup. I think I need more info though – here’s what wikipedia had to say:
Meet The Manufacturer: Re-Review: Lucky Me! Beef Na Beef Instant Noodles
I think a lot of people will say that Lucky Me! Beef Na Beef is one that they’ve seen many times when visiting an Asian grocery in the USA. Beef, like chicken, is one of those flavors you see about every instant noodle manufacturer out there making. Everyone knows what beef and chicken flavors taste like (well, maybe not everyone – hi vegetarians!). The weather here is quite cold and rainy lately and nice beef flavored broth sounds really good. One thing though; the Philippines isn’t a place known for it’s chilly climate. Would a beef instant translate well for colder places that’s been made there? I think I’ll have to see! Let’s revisit Lucky Me! Beef Na Beef!
Meet The Manufacturer: #1531: Lucky Me! Special Instant Sopas Chicken Flavor
Thought this would be one my son would like. He’s been keen on trying new things, and I doubt he’s ever had any Filipino soups before. Sopas is basically chicken soup, but has a Filipino twist to it. Here’s what Wikipedia has to say about Sopas in the Philippines:
Meet The Manufacturer: #1530: Lucky Me! Spicy Beef Mami Instant Noodle Soup
Lucky Me! Spicy Beef Mami is a newer product I’m pretty sure. A couple neat things about this one is tyhat they use Labuyo pepper. It’s also known as Bird’s Eye chilli as well a cili padi (chilli paddi) in Indonesia and Malaysia. What’s more, this is another instance of instant noodles being referred to as ‘mami.’ As far as I know, this in a purely Filipino thing; never seen instant noodles called mami anywhere else (although there is a Malaysian company called Mamee, (a play on mee and MAMA) and a Thai brand called MAMA (for the same reason). I thought I’d see what Wikipedia has to say about the various meanings of mami and got this list:
Meet The Manufacturer: #1529: Lucky Me! Special Instant Curly Spaghetti With Yummy Red Sauce
I have tried a few quick spaghetti in the past – from South Korea, Japan and Indonesia, but never from the Philippines! I had a look to see if there’s a particular way in which spaghetti is enjoyed in the Philippines and as it turns out, I found some recipes that included hot dogs. Interesting! Well, let’s have a look at this unique instant variety = Lucky Me! Curly spaghetti!
Meet The Manufacturer: #1528: Lucky Me! Supreme Pinoy Chicken Instant Noodles
As you can see, Lucky Me! not only makes packaged instant noodles but cups as well (they also produce bowls). This one is a variety called Supreme Pinoy Chicken. From what I gather, these are supposed to be adobo chicken flavored instant noodles. What’s adobo chicken? Let’s ask Wikipedia:
Meet The Manufacturer: Re-Review: Lucky Me! Chicken Na Chicken Instant Noodles
Chicken instant noodles are known the world over. In fact the first instant noodles ever sold were chicken flavored! Seems like chicken is a very accessible flavor for people. I reviewed this one over 3 years ago the first time – let’s see how Chicken na Chicken by Lucky Me! fares this time around!
Meet The Manufacturer: #1526: Lucky Me! La Paz Batchoy Instant Noodle Soup
I’ve always thought La Paz Batchoy sounded interesting, but really never dug in to figure out what it’s all about. Here’s what Wikipedia has to say about it:
Meet The Manufacturer: Re-Review: Lucky Me! Instant Pancit Canton (Chow Mein) Chili & Citrus
It’s been a while since I had any Lucky Me! Pancit Canton. This is a re-review of the 40th instant I ever reviewed! That puts it around 2002 or 2003 being the last time I tried this one. Not only that, it’s been about 1,000 reviews since I had any Pancit Canton. So what’s Pencit? Wikipedia has this to say:
#1525: Pama Instant Kua Teow Tom Yam
Yet another one got in Malaysia during our trip! Thank you, Thomas! A popular dish in Penang is Char Kuay Teow, fried rice noodles. It’s kind of like the mee goreng of rice noodles. Kua Teow is rice noodles – and this is rice noodles with tom yam broth. From what I found online, it’s more a popular Thai dish. Either way, this sounds really good! Let’s dig in to some spicy stuff from Malaysia!
#1524: Nissin Chu Qian Yi Ding Spicy Sesame Flavour Instant Noodles With Soup Base
This is one by Nissin Singapore. Thomas from MyKuali got me a bunch of instant varieties during our trip to Malaysia – this was during our trip to the Econsave in Chain Ferry, Butterworth. I thought today would be a good day for a really short geography lesson.
#1522: Vifon Instant Porridge Seafood Flavour
The first thing you’re going to say is ‘porridge isn’t ramen.’ Well aware of that, dude. Then again, these often show up on the instant noodle aisle of an Asian grocery and as such, I thought it could use some attention. This is a Vietnamese seafood porridge, much like what they call congee in China. Here’s what Wikipedia has to say about Vietnamese rice porridge:
#1519: Ching’s Secret Manchurian Instant Noodles
Here’s a brand I’ve been hoping to review for a while but have had a seriously hard time finding. Ching’s Secret is a company from India that produces Chinese inspired foods. This flavor is a little puzzling though – Manchurian? What flavor is that? I consulted Wikipedia and got some information:
#1517: Katoz Instant Noodles Spicy Chili
Here’s another one sent to me by a reader in Sweden – thank you! This is a Swedish brand – Katoz and is manufactured by MAT Kompaniet. Swedish instant noodles are a new thing to me; this is the second review I’ve ever done involving instant noodles from Sweden. One unique thing about Swedish instant noodles – they are really into the metric system. Usually on the instruction for preparation, the amount of water is called for by cups (more Western) or cc (cubic centimeter) or mL (milliliter). Well, in Sweden the go with decaliter, which is 100cc. This one requireds 4 dl of water, or 400cc/400ml. I’ve NEVER seen decaliters used before, and the only reason I knew what was going on was from elementary school. Yes kids, I know it seems ridiculous at the time, but you will use this information later in life – especially when making Swedish instant noodles! But I digress. Let’s check out these Katoz Spicy Chili noodles from Sweden!
#1516: Men-Sunaoshi Miso Ramen
Been quite a while since I’ve had some miso ramen, and this will be only my second Sunaoshi review. This one was in my hamper asking to be reviewed today and so I thought why not give it some attention. Ready? Set? Miso.
#1515: Nongshim Neoguri Udon Seafood & Mild
It’s a really cold day today and I think a big bowl of seafood noodles sound good. This is a Nongshim Neoguri I got up in Canada. It’s made in South Korea and it’s the milder version of Neoguri. Raccoons I say raccoons! Why do I say raccoons? Well, check out the video at the end of the post – it’ll all become clear I think. Let’s dig in to some Nongshim Neoguri!
#1513: MAMA Instant Noodles Tom Yum Pork Flavour
Last night was my son’s teacher conference. I remember when I was a kid – I always dreaded these, knowing I’d probably get a lecture or something. Well, I am proud to say my son is doing absolutely wonderful in school this year. He’s had some problems in the past, but they look to have really gone by the wayside and I couldn’t be prouder of him. We love you, Andy – keep up the good work! You rock!
#1511: Long Jun Hang Tainan Yi Mien With Sesame Oil Sauce
We tried this new grocery store (new to me at least) in Bellevue called Asian Food Center. Thought we’d give it a peek and found they had quite a few neat things. This is one of the noodles I found. I want to send a really big thank you to Bobby Y. up in Canada for help translating this one – mystery solved, thank to you! Now here’s a note on contention between me and the entire country of Taiwan. If you look in the lower right corner, you’ll see a little warning. It reads: This product is not the instant noodles. Please boil the noodles before eating. They can’t be steeped; okay, we got that. What is kind of ridiculous is the fact that they only take 3 minutes to cook. That’s the same amount of time as noodles that can be steeped. Logically, the amount of time needed to cooking something should be relevant to whether it is deemed instant as well, don’t you think? I would call these instant noodles – that require a different cooking method than other instant noodles. But I digress – I don’t think Taiwan is going to get on board with this, and that’s alright with me. I’m thinking next year I might to a split Taiwanese Top Ten list – half the ones that can be steeped and half the ones that can’t, basically a pair of Top Five lists. It seems to really matter to them, and far be it for me to poo-poo any country with such a fervent passion for noodles. Let’s proceed!
#1510: Knorr Quick Serve Macaroni Wonton Broth
Next Friday is Halloween and we’ve got some plans with Andy this weekend! Thought he might like this one for breakfast today! He’s been curious about expanding his palate a little bit lately since our trip to Malaysia – something I really like. It took me a while to get to the age that I wanted to be more adventurous with food, and it’s great to see him starting to explore.
#1509: Nissin Donbei Kitsune Udon Mini
It’s kind of hard to tell the size of this little mini Kitsune Udon, so let’s have a look at this.
#1507: Nissin Chu Qian Yi Ding Prawn Flavour Instant Noodles With Soup Base
Here’s another one the nice folks at MyKuali got me on our trip to visit them in Malaysia! Thanks again! Wow – I must say I really miss Malaysia! Was such a vibrant place – and the food! These noodles are made made in Singapore. Singapore is at the far southern border of Malaysia, so it makes sense they’d sell them in Malaysia too. Anyways, yeah – this is one of the special packs I brought back so I’m excited to eat it! Let’s check it out!
#1506: Nissin Cup Noodles Mug Noodles Spicy Vegetable
Yesterday my wife and I headed over to Bellevue to check oput some new spots for Asian foodstuffs. We came across and Indian supermarket and lo and behold, they had instant noodles! What’s awesome is that they had quite a few Nissin varieties – which I’ve been searching for for quite a while. There are a lot of different way instant noodles are transmitted to the end user: a pack that has contents cooked in a bowl or pot on the stove, cups that are steeped, trays, bowls etc. A few however are made to be steeped in a mug, and here is one of those. This is a relatively small sized package, and hails from India! Let’s have a look.