#4760: Kracie Popin’ Cookin’ Tanoshii Ramen – Japan

Kracie Popin' Cookin' Tanoshii Ramen - Japan

This one was for a special occasion – the 2,000th episode of Instant Noodle Recipe Time. I thought hey – why not let my wife and daughter have some fun making this one. I figure I’m not going to be doing a great job on this one lol – gooey and gummy stuff sounds frustrating, so I figured I’d leave it to them. They’ve never done an episode together either, so I thought hey – why not? The episode is at the bottom. Let’s check it out! ...see full post

#4758: Samyang Buldak Chicken Vindaloo Curry – South Korea

#4758: Samyang Buldak Chicken Vindaloo Curry - South Korea

Well, look at this! Thanks to The Fat Hipster for sending this over! It’s kind of funny – this is the first of three varieties sent and I’ve been kind of slow to get to them as they’re not instant noodles, they’re curry sauces. However, lately I’ve been making curries constantly lately. I’ve learned the way of black cardamom too. But here we have one by a company also known for their spicy instant noodle. I actually made butter chicken last night too. Let’s see how this one goes. ...see full post

#4755: Indomie Mi Goreng Rasa Cakalang – Indonesia

#4755: Indomie Mi Goreng Rasa Cakalang - Indonesia

A big thank you to Pher Engi for sending these along! I’m getting really low on varieties to review at this point – I’ve been doing four reviews a day lately and have been trying to do so all the way up to my kids going back to school. Twenty days to go until they’re back! They’ve had a lot of fun this summer, but they miss their friends from school of course. So – what is cakalang? It’s skipjack tuna. Many years ago, you could easily find an Indomie variety here (among others you can’t anymore) which mentioned skipjack tuna flavor. Let’s give this one a try. ...see full post

#4753: Samyang Buldak Butter Chicken Curry – South Korea

#4753: Samyang Buldak Butter Chicken Curry - South Korea

Well, look at this! Thanks to The Fat Hipster for sending this over! It’s kind of funny – this is the first of three varieties sent and I’ve been kind of slow to get to them as they’re not instant noodles, they’re curry sauces. However, lately I’ve been making curries constantly lately. I’ve learned the way of black cardamom too. But here we have one by a company also known for their spicy instant noodle. I actually made butter chicken last night too. Let’s see how this one goes. ...see full post

#4749: Knorr Shrimp Broth Quick Serve Macaroni – Hong Kong

#4749: Knorr Shrimp Broth Quick Serve Macaroni - Hong Kong

But that’s not ramen! The throng of people screamed in unison! They wept openly. Well, that was silly – this one could be found on the instant ramen aisle . This is popular stuff in Hong Kong and I found it locally and figure hey why not. Macaroni only seems to enjoy the company of cheese here, but not elsewhere. Let’s cook. ...see full post

#4735: Nissin Cup Noodles Veggie Miso Japanese Style Soup – Germany

#4735: Nissin Cup Noodles Veggie Miso Japanese Style Soup - Germany

See, I have a problem. I love vegetarian friendly products – however, I tend to add meat to them. The thing I like about these products is that they usually have a smoother flavor. I’m curious about this one. I also just cut 81 slices of chashu this morning, a ton of narutomaki, and I have marinated soft boiled eggs in the refrigerator. Let’s use the resources! ...see full post

#4731: Vedan Jhen Mian Tang Garlic Pesto Noodle – United States

#4731: Vedan Jhen Mian Tang Garlic Pesto Noodle - United States

This is great – I saw this at S*Mart and couldn’t resist. I generally resist purchasing multipacks as I usually just need one, maybe two package to do a review. I was thinking though perhaps my daughter might like this one so there will be extras. Definitely made in Taiwan, packaged for US sale. One thing too – you might think this is pronounced Vey-dan – it is not. The ve is pronounced ‘way’. So now you know – let’s cook! ...see full post

Zenpop.jp Ramen Unboxing – February 2024 + Coupon Code

Zenpop.jp Ramen Unboxing - February 2024 + Coupon Code

It’s time to unbox a Zenpop.jp box – you get seven varieties of instant noodles to try! I would say that almost every time I’ve gotten one of these, I’ve never tried any of them before which is really awesome. Great as a gift or to hoard for yourself! Use coupon code THERAMENRATER for a groovy discount! Let’s check it out! ...see full post

#4730: Pink Rocket Original Rapokki – United States

#4730: Pink Rocket Original Rapokki - United States

Well, here we are. The standard stuff. This was found at GMart in Lynnwood, Washington. So, what is it? It’s a combination of ramyun and tteokbokki – which are tubes of rice flour that are chewy and truly wondrous. Anyways, these really have been hit and miss on preparation – either dry or exploding in the microwave. Let’s give it another try. ...see full post

Ramen Bae Sends Amazing Ramen Toppings

Ramen Bae Sends Amazing Ramen Toppings

A reader asked if I’d tried Ramen Bae recently and I hadn’t, so I reached out to the company. I got a reply from founder Jonathan Tan and a nice note mentioning he’d send some samples, and here we are. Since this unboxing, I’ve tried both and they’re really quite wonderful – if you’re looking for something like this, this is great stuff. I should also mention he sent another box with the Spicy Garlic version which I’ll share soon! Let’s check this one out. ...see full post

#4728: Bulramen Artificial Spicy Chicken Flavor – South Korea

#4728: Bulramen Artificial Spicy Chicken Flavor - South Korea

This is the third one of these. They’ve all been kind of Buldak copycats but definitely not the same heat level by any means – the extra spicy was spicy indeed, but not as spicy as 2x, yada yada yada. I really dislike comparing any individual variety to another, however this is such an obvious copy of a well known product that I’m going slightly rogue. I’m curious though – since this looke to be about the same style as the original Buldak, will it be as hot? Will it taste good? Well, let’s find out. ...see full post

#4727: Maggi 2-Minute Noodles Masala – United States

#4727: Maggi 2-Minute Noodles Masala - United States

Yet another packaging design – it should also be noted that this one doesn’t say spicy masala and just masala. I found this at Indian Sweets & Spices in Shoreline, Washington yesterday. Yesterday was a day of finding particular things. I’ve been doing a lot of curry lately and I got some nice basmati, some noodles, some black cardamom and mango pickle there. I also went and got a half pork belly at Double DD Meats, a great butcher shop and holy grail for hot sauces and all things spicy. I must note that while this is made in India, it’s certainly an export version specifically for sale in the United States.  Anyways, time to cook. ...see full post

UPDATE #3: The Ramen Rater Humbly Asks For Your Help

UPDATE 2/8/2024 – It’s pretty daunting. The end is in sight though. Currently, just paid for the security package for the blog – $200. It’s a lot but after being hacked a couple years ago, that’s one thing that can’t go unpaid or delayed. $2 to my name. They just started charging for my wife’s meds out of the blue – sounds like a new year thing. So we’re both in the crapper as it were. Tax return should be alright but about a month til we’ll see that we reckon. Want to thank everyone who has helped so much – without your kindness, we’d be is an even worse spot than we are, although pretty grim currently. Hopefully the next update will be much better, but for now if you can send something it would be appreciated. Been broke since October. Tough thing to get used to. ...see full post

Meet ‘The Ramen Conqueror!’

A friend of mine shared a link with a great article today about a guy who I haven’t heard from in a while. Ramen Conqueror Piki! He saw what I was doing and decided he needed to do the same over in South Korea! Below is an interview I did with him in 2017 – he was kind enough to include pictures of me and my family in the book . This is from six years ago. Hope he’s doing well! ...see full post

#4726: Chewy Seafood Flavour Quick Serve Macaroni – Hong Kong

#4726: Chewy Seafood Flavour Quick Serve Macaroni - Hong Kong

Another one found at S*Mart. I know, it’s not ramen or instant noodles per se, however it’s something you might find on the instant noodle aisle as I did. Usually these aren’t bad – definitely not a thick broth or anything, but a nice flavor and thin walled macaroni. First found this kind of thing years back in Canada with some Nissin varieties. Anyways, let’s proceed. ...see full post

#4725: Acecook Light Tonkotsu Ramen – South Korea

#4725: Acecook Light Tonkotsu Ramen - South Korea

This one is definitely a trip – so it’s made in Vietnam for the South Korean market. Found it of course at the famed S*Mart – that’s right kids – shop SMart – shop S*Mart! I really don’t think any people in that Korean store have seen Army Of Darkness, but honestly I think they’d get a kick out of it. Anyways, let’s commence. ...see full post

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

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

This one usually comes out in January, but a little late this year on edits. However, this one’s ready to go! This is my list of favorite South Korean varieties from my reviews up to number 4,650. Definitely want to try more South Korean varieties – especially those only found in South Korea – not export versions if at all possible. Anyways, let’s boil some water and check out The Ramen Rater’s Top Ten South Korean Instant Noodles Of All Time 2024 Edition! ...see full post

#4720: Trader Joe’s Garlic Sauce Thai Noodles – United States

#4719: Trader Joe's Garlic Sauce Thai Noodles - United States

Well folks, this is the last of the Trader Joe’s stuff I had. Honestly, these pouch noodles and sauce bowls have been surprisingly decent. The only problem are the bowls – you can’t just cut it up and scan it before you use it – rather irritating for yours truly, however my issues with the bowl itself probably aren’t an issue for 99.99% of those eating this. Let’s see how the garlic one is. ...see full post