Category: Taiwan

Meet The Manufacturer: Product Samples From Little Couples

Meet The Manufacturer: Product Samples From Little Couples

During my trip in November 2017 to Taiwan, I met some folks at a booth that had a slew of different noodle varieties. They knew who I was and were keen on me giving their products a try. They wanted to hand me samples but I couldn’t – my luggage was full and so I recommended a Meet The Manufacturer series – and here we are. ...see full post

Meet The Manufacturer: Interview With Little Couples Q Noodle

#2800: Vedan Original Beef Flavor Noodle

#2800: Vedan Original Beef Flavor Noodle

Here’s one I brought back in my suitcase from Taiwan from my November 2017 trip to Taiwan for the Taiwan International Food Expo. I really hope to live in Taiwan someday. No joke – it’s really that neat there. Let’s crack this meaty beast open and see what’s inside. By the way, no, you’re not going to find this in the United States – it’s got a retort pouch full of meat and that kind of makes it off the table for export. Let’s begin. ...see full post

The Ramen Rater’s Top Ten Instant Noodles Of All Time 2018 Edition

NEW LIST FOR 2019 – CHECK IT OUT HERE

The Ramen Rater's Top Ten Instant Noodles Of All Time 2018 Edition

Well, it’s that time again. Since the last The Ramen Rater’s Top Ten Instant Noodles Of All Time list came out , I’ve reviewed 383 different varieties. I want to thank the companies and individuals who have sent me varieties I could not easily get. Incidentally, all of these are reviewed the same way – I follow instructions to the letter and taste each variety before I add any external garnish.. I figure that a naked bowl of noodles every day would be quite boring, plus it has given many ideas on what to add to them. As always, if you are an instant noodle company  or a reader who wants me to try one that I’ve not, please contact me. With that, let’s have a look at the top ten for 2018 – the finest and most memorable instant noodles I’ve tried. ...see full post

#2798: Indomie Instant Noodles Mi Goreng Fried Noodles (Taiwan-only Version)

#2798: Indomie Instant Noodles Mi Goreng Fried Noodles (Taiwan-only Version)

Alright so about these – I received a 5-pack from the nice folks at the Indomie booth at the Taiwan International Food Expo in Taipei, Taiwan in November 2017. I asked a little about them. This pack you see here is specifically for Taiwan. So, what’s different? Well for starters, lots of Chinese on the pack. The main difference however is the actual soizie of the package. This one’s a little bit bigger than the ones found elsewhere, and this is unique to Taiwan. You can’t get them like this anywhere else in the world. Period. A huge difference? No, but still a difference. Here’s a little info from Wikipedia – ...see full post

Unboxing Time: Guanmiao Noodle Samples From A-Sha Of Taiwan

Unboxing Time: Guanmiao Noodle Samples From A-Sha Of Taiwan

five years ago, there was a big kerfuffle involving myself and the entire island of Taiwan. They weren’t on the Top Ten 2013 Edition and they were angry – to put it mildly. I decided that a little noodle diplomacy was the ticket here and so put out a call for Taiwanese companies to contact me, send me samples and see how it goes. A-Sha was the first company to come calling and since then they’ve kept me updated on their new offerings – let’s have a look at their new Guanmiao noodle! ...see full post

Meet The Manufacturer: #2781: Mr. Noodle Onions Mushroom Spice Taste Noodle

Meet The Manufacturer: #2781: Mr. Noodle Onions Mushroom Spice Taste Noodle

This one sounds interesting. While not a big fan of mushrooms, I do find that the onion is probably my favorite vegetable next to bell peppers. Well, maybe at par with bell pepper. I really like onions and bell peppers, let’s just leave it at that. Let’s take a look inside and see how it is. ...see full post

Meet The Manufacturer: #2777: Mr. Noodle Sichuan Flavor Spicy Hot Noodles

Meet The Manufacturer: #2777: Mr. Noodle Sichuan Flavor Spicy Hot Noodles

Sometimes it’s hard for me to pick what I want to review. I mean, I have quite a few options sitting next to me in the high security noodle vaults… So I took the box of samples over to my wife and opened it. There are six in all and the tops have different colors but no mention of what they are on top. I asked her to simply pick three. Well, here’s the first one. ...see full post

Meet The Manufacturer: Interview With Mr. Noodle

Unboxing Time: Mom’s Dry Noodle Samples + Taiwanese Snacks

Unboxing Time: Mom's Dry Noodle Samples + Taiwanese Snacks

Today, we’ve got a box from Mom’s Dry Noodle. Mom’s Dry Noodle has been on my Top Ten Taiwanese Instant Noodle lists for a few years now. Really nice folks who work really hard on their products – and it shows in their quality. If you want to check them out, here you go! Also, some snacks in here! Let’s crack it open and take a look! ...see full post

#2773: Vedan Minced Pork Noodle

#2773: Vedan Minced Pork Noodle taiwan

Brought this back from Taiwan. Pretty much everything I brought back came through the rigors of baggage handling unscathed; but not every single thing did. Alas, this was one of them that didn’t. To be quite honest, it did better than some I’ve brought back before from abroad – a little crushing of noodles isn’t bad – I’vbe had ones whose noodle blocks were reduced to crumbs. Let’s have a look at this one – I found it at RT-Mart in Taipei. ...see full post

#2772: Happy Noodle Noodles With Minced Beef Sauce In Spicy Oil & Pickled Mustard Greens

#2680: Happy Noodle Noodles With Minced Beef Sauce In Spicy Oil & Pickled Mustard Greens - Taiwan

Here’s the second of the Happy Noodle varieties sent to me from Taiwan. The first one was really quite good and so curious about this second one. The box is interesting – kind of looks like a tissue box in a way but definitely nothing like that inside. There are four packages inside and they are accompanied by four sachets. Let’s take a look at this unique variety from Taiwan! ...see full post

#2764: Vedan Double Bang Thick Beef Broth Noodle

#2764: Vedan Double Bang Thick Beef Broth Noodle - Taiwan Taiwanese

This one’s got horns and flying saucers on the packaging – something that denotes… Well, horns and flying saucers I suppose. I guess it more likely denotes ‘hey look at me – I’m on the store shelf!’ The double bang is for the two noodle blocks. The other variety I reviewed in this series had two in it as well and called for (like this one) 700ml boiling water. Guess we will see how this one goes as well! I remember seeing these on store shelves – I think I got all but one of the varieties (sniff) but hey – got some pretty fascinating ones. Taiwanese beef noodles, it is your time to shine. ...see full post

#2756: TTL Carbonara White Wine Sauce Instant Noodle

#2817: TTL Chicken Alfredo White Wine Sauce Instant Noodle

This was one variety I didn’t want to leave Taiwan without. I was lucky – we walked around the food expo in Taiwan last November and didn’t see it. Then We went through the beer, wine and spirits section and boom – there it is! A huge booth for TTL (Taiwan Tobacco & Liquor) and a guy asks is he could answer any questions. ‘Where are the noodles?’ Well, I showed him my event badge and he knew who I was which was very cool. Nice guy who went by the name of Ben – if you see this Ben, contact me – would love to do an interview about this product line! ...see full post

#2733: Jinbo Selection SOul Spicy Noodles

#2733: Jinbo Selection SOul Spicy Noodles

Was emailed in October 2017 by a representative of this company about trying their samples. I thought hey – of course, I’ll try them. I don’t know if I’ve ever turned down samples – the only time I do usually is when there’s a variety that’s just noodles – no flavoring. Although I’ve done reviews of just noodles and just broths that can be mixed and matched though. ...see full post

#2730: Little Cook Braised Beef Noodles With Tendon & Meat

#2730: Little Cook Braised Beef Noodles With Tendon & Meat 小廚師牛肉麵母親節禮盒

I received this as a gift from a representative of the Little Cook brand in Taipei, Taiwan at the Taiwan International Food Expo! Thank you very much! She also accepted the third place award from The Ramen Rater’s Top Ten Taiwanese Instant Noodles Of All Time 2017 Edition – Little Cook Green Curry –  at the awards show. ...see full post

#2724: Vedan Double Bang Thick Pork Broth Noodle

Here’s one I brought back from Taiwan in November 2017. There are four different ones with different illustrations of different expressions – they’re pretty interesting. Now,m there’s scant few characters on this bowl I can read, so I’d like to thank everyone on Facebook for the help in translation! Much appreciated! So double bang – why double bang? Well, there’s two noodle blocks. Bang! Noodles! Bang! Noodles! Makes sense to me. Really excited as this isn’t the first one I brought back from Taiwan I’ve reviewed, but this is the first Taiwanese variety I’ve brought back from Taiwan I’m reviewing – let’s have a look! ...see full post

#2700: Vedan Jhen Mian Tang Spicy Hot Noodle

#2700: Vedan Jhen Mian Tang Spicy Hot Noodle - Taiwan - The Ramen Rater - instant noodles

NOTE: At the bottom, there is a kind of documentary about how I review instant noodles – from picking the variety to photography, editing, research, cooking and reviewing. Hope you enjoy it!

So here’s one I found while coming back from our big family drive to California this summer. I found it in the Beaverton Uwajimaya actually. I got about 10 varieties or so there during our pit stop on the way home. ...see full post