Category: * Stars 4.1 – 5.0

#4902: Ramen Bae Dried Ramen Toppings – Veggie Mix – United States

#4902: Ramen Bae Dried Ramen Toppings - Veggie Mix - United States

Was asked by a reader if I’d tried this product before and I hadn’t, so I reached out to the company and they sent some samples – thanks! A lot of the questions I getg regularly are about what to add to instant noodles to spruce them up. Dried vegetables come up from time to time, so this sounds like a good bet. Let’s find out! ...see full post

#4892: Acecook Super Cup 35SHU no Spice de Shiageru Negi-Shio Yakisoba – Japan

#4892: Acecook Super Cup 35SHU no Spice de Shiageru Negi-Shio Yakisoba - Japan

Here’s one that came in a Zenpop.jp box. Here’s what they had to say about it – ‘Do you like spices? This cup is for you. Acecook went big for their 35th anniversary of Super Cup (スーパーカップ), and they used just as many spices for this delicious serving of yakisoba. It’s perfect for those last few days of summer, with refreshing flavors of lemongrass, rounded noodles that are a perfect match for the sauce and all those unique aromas. 🍋 The seasoning has a solid salt base, together with a mix of chicken, pork, and garlic. They opted for something simple so that the 35 spices could really do their job and magnify all the flavors. All of them have been blended in an original furikake (ふりかけ) that’ll leave you a lovely aftertaste in your mouth. The dish is topped with fragrant sesame, a sprinkle of green onions, and red pickled ginger.’ ...see full post

#4884: Yoko Street Pork Ramen (Tonkotsu Shoyu Ramen ) – United States

#4884: Yoko Street Pork Ramen (Tonkotsu Shoyu Ramen ) - United States

Yoko Street reached out to me recently and asked if I’d be interested in sampling their ramen products. They ship fresh and so that sounded interesting. I’ve seen quite a few of these kind of everythig you need setups in past years but it’s been a little while – so of course I was interested. Well, let’s put it together and give some tonkotsu shoyu a try! ...see full post

The Ramen Rater’s Top Ten Instant Noodle Bowls Of All Time 2024 Edition

This is a list I come out with every year – what’s different this year is now there’s a new rule: only one product per company. Seems fair to me – and also a way for more things to be seen. I don’t think it’s a bad idea and honestly, I think insofar as this list goes, it won’t be very hard to pull off. Anyways, here we go with The Ramen Rater’s Top Ten Instant Noodle Bowls Of All Time 2024 Edition! ...see full post

#4867: Seventeen EatsOn Sweet & Spicy Topokki – South Korea

#4867: Seventeen EatsOn Sweet & Spicy Topokki - South Korea

Looks like we have a Korean boy band with a ton of dudes. Yep. There’s a lot of these tie-ins in Korean varieties. There used to be one that was called DJ Doc which was a tteokbokki and ramyeon variant that was really great – that was the first one I’d seen. Anyways, can’t complain about tteokbokki, that’s for sure. Let’s give it a try! ...see full post

#4859: Paldo Gompaghetti Korean Beef Flavored Noodles – United States

#4859: Paldo Gompaghetti Korean Beef Flavored Noodles - United States

This one came by way of James from Lakeside, California – thank you again, sir! So, this is a combination of gomtang, a creamy beef soup, and instead of being a soup, this is a dry version, so there’s your paghetti part of the name. It sounds good, and apparently milk can used instead of water which I intend to try. Let hit it up – I’m expecting good things. ...see full post

#4822: Ginding Batagor Kuah Express – Indonesia

#4822: Ginding Batagor Kuah Express - Indonesia

Here’s another one from Pher Engi – thank you! This is one she sent a picture of and asked if I wanted to try it to which I said yes. I also got this when searching Batagor kuah on Google from a generated AI response – ‘Batagor kuah is a soup made from batagor, an Indonesian dish that’s a shortened form of “bakso tahu goreng” (fried meatball and tofu). The soup can be made by boiling chicken broth. Batagor is traditionally made from minced tenggiri (Spanish mackerel), although other types of seafood such as tuna, mackerel, and prawn may also be used. The fish paste is stuffed into wonton skins or filled into tofu, and then deep fried in palm oil. Batagor is a popular street food in the city of Bandung in West Java. It began appearing in various Indonesian cities throughout the country in the 1980s, and is believed to have been invented in 1968 in Bandung. According to legend, batagor was created as a way to salvage unsold bakso meatballs. ‘ ...see full post

#4819: Pamana Ginataang Mais – United States

#4819: Pamana Ginataang Mais - United States

Finishing up a week of reviewing today (it’s Friday for me) in early October, 2023. It’s pretty nutty – I’m now over 200 reviews ahead, and I’ve got a feeling this is coming out in late March of 2024, maybe April. While this isn’t ramen, it’s another thing you might find on the noodle aisle. It’s a Filipino porridge made in the United States. Let’s give it a try! ...see full post

The Ramen Rater’s Top Ten Instant Noodles Of All Time 2024 Edition

The Ramen Rater's Top Ten Instant Noodles Of All Time 2024 Edition

Every year I pick my favorites out of all the reviews I’ve done. In the past, I’ve had lists that have multiple companies with multiple entries. I decided this year that I would change that. Starting with this list, only one entry per company will be on the list. I’ll mention other noteworthy varieties in the text of each one which I think will give more opportunities for folks to try new things. This new way of doing things will be reflected in this list, the upcoming Bottom Ten, Top Ten Bowls, and Top Ten Cups lists. ...see full post

#4807: Maggi Oats Masala Noodles – India

#4760: Maggi Oats Masala Noodles - India

I was down to three varieties to review, then two boxes of noodles showed up, then after doing Chuck E. Cheese’s for Miles’ 8th birthday, turned out a few feet from there was an Indian grocery in Bellevue, WA called Apna Bazar. Found this and five other varieties I’d not reviewed – so that’s pretty good! This is a Maggi Masala with oats in the noodle. Let’s cook them up! ...see full post

#4805: Red Chef Penang White Curry Mee – Malaysia

#4805: Red Chef Penang White Curry Mee - Malaysia

An emperor gets some new clothes! This has been a brand whose products have graced my top tens for a while now – and they’ve changed their packaging. It looks as though their recipe has changed as well. Malaysia is a place where flavors are changed and improved upon often, and I’m curious how this one will be. Well, let’s give it a try! ...see full post

#4746: Current Instant Noodles Chatpata Masala – India

#4746: Current Instant Noodles Chatpata Masala - India

An interesting name for an instant noodle range. It could be construed in different ways; pertaining to it being in the now, or having to do with weather. It also says ‘yummy & mummy’ on there – never heard this phrase before – mummy? In the UK, a ‘yummy mummy’ means an attractive mother. Couldn’t find exactly what this meant in India except possibly a slang pertaining to children that are picky eaters and that mothers could give them this and they’d eat it? Fascinating. Let’s cook – I’m doing the fried directions on this one. ...see full post

#4739: Samyang Vegetasty Noodle Soup – United States

#4739: Samyang Vegetasty Noodle Soup - United States

You ready for a historic roadshow in a cup? This variety has gone by a few names and packaging wordings, but I’d say this is my favorite.. For example, here is review #695 – savory vegetable flavor. But wait – here’s good old review #1030 – this one is ’60 ingredients’ flavor!  Back in 2011, I reviews the 60 Ingredients cup – review #553! Well, now this one’s called Vegetasty. They’ve dropped the whole looks how many ingredients and given it a very interesting name. I think this one is a troublemaker. The reason I say this is because they want to market it – and indeed it’s been pretty good – but as far as export, it’s a tough one to come up with a good name for perhaps. Vegetasty is kind of catchy, but for a Western audience, it might be a little tricky to pull off. It does bear the Vegan logo on there which is a good thing. Vegetasty sounds very monolithic; like it’s from a sprawling corporate empire. I would say completely revamp. Show farm imagery – crops being cared for or rolling fields in the sun as a background, then in the foreground a basket being held containing lots of different vegetables. Maybe a rustic theme. Then a better name – something like  Nature’s Delight or Back To Nature Vegetable Noodle Soup – granted those aren’t taken already. Either way, vegetable and in particular Vegan varieties are very popular. I;ve been asked many times by companies my thoughts on how to name something for Western markets – a real honor I have to say. Anyways, yeah – let’s cook it – maybe I’m ruminate on the episode on Instant Noodle Recipe Time that appears at the bottom of this post – the finest show in the universe – and you all want to like and subscribe to. Yeah. ...see full post

#4738: Maruchan Seimen Goma Abura Kaoru Toridare Hiyashi – Japan

#4748: Maruchan Seimen Goma Abura Kaoru Toridare Hiyashi - Japan

Here’s one that came in a Zenpop.jp box -here’s what they had to say about it – ‘This is a delicious cup of chilled Mazesoba.🍜 The noodles have a chewy texture, combined with a flavorful chicken sauce infused with sesame oil and green onions🍗✨ It’s a refreshing and savory dish, perfect for summer.🏖️🍉 冷やし中華 (Hiyashi Chuka) is a popular Japanese summer dish.🌞 It features chilled noodles topped with ingredients like cucumber, ham, and eggs, drizzled with a tangy soy-based sauce. This Toridare Hiyashi takes inspiration from this dish, offering a unique twist with its chicken sauce and sesame oil😊🍽️ Enjoy this delightful, cool meal to beat the heat!👊🌞 ‘ ...see full post