So this awesome box came today!
Ah I see – it was two boxes connected together!
Opening a box, you are greeted by this little sheet (click to enlarge)
Six different varieties (click to enlarge)!
Hey – what’s this?
Chopsticks (click to enlarge)!
A tube!
Mr. Lee’s Noodles – UK (click to enlarge)
Yesterday, I reviewed a chilli chicken offering from Kabuto Noodles. Today, its just chicken ramen. I’m curious if it will just be a less spicy taste or something completely different (yesterday’s pot mentioned it having a lime element while this does not). Either way, sounds good to me. By the way – in the United Kingdom, they refer to noodle cups as noodle pots! Let’s go!
Detail of the side panels (click to enlarge). Contains chicken. To prepare, remove lid and add boiling water to fill line. Cover loosely and let sit 3-4 minutes. Stir well and let sit another minute. Stir and enjoy!
Detail of the lid (click to enlarge).
The noodle block.
Some of the included seasoning in the pot.
Finished (click to enlarge). Added leftover fried chicken meat, hard boiled egg and spring onion. The noodles are the standard Kabuto egg noodles – thin and a nice chew. The broth has a very homemade chicken flavor – it comes together more as a homestyle chicken noodle soup taste, but in a Japanese kind of presentation. 4.25 out of 5.0 stars. EAN bar code 5060250610058.
Kabuto Noodles Chicken Ramen (85g) – Pack of 6
The Kabuto Noodles folks challenge eachother to different feats – this time it’s skydiving!
Chilli chicken, eh? This sounds interesting – not a flavor I think I’ve seen coming out of the UK before (and I’ve seen a lot of interesting ones). By the way – if you’re wondering what coriander is, it’s the same thing as cilantro. Okay – let’s have a look inside this neat ‘pot’ of noodles!
Detail of the side panels (click to enlarge). contains chicken. To prepare, remove lid and add boiling water to fill line. Cover loosely for 3-4 minutes. Stir well and let sit an additional minute. Stir and enjoy!
Detail of the lid (click to enlarge).
The noodle block – pre-seasoned.
Some of the seasoning from the inside of the pot.
Finished (click to enlarge). Added leftover fried chicken meat, coriander and red bell pepper. The noodles have that great chew and abundance I’ve been finding very much to my liking – they’re egg noodles and come out very good. The broth is full of little bits of vegetable and has a very nice note of spiciness and the lime is definitely there as well. 4.0 out of 5.0 stars. EAN bar code 5060250610164.
Kabuto Noodles Chilli Chicken Ramen (85g) – Pack of 2
A Kabuto Noodles advertisement.
Here’s one that Joe B. and Sarah B. sent me from Nottingham, UK – thanks! Tesco’s a big grocery store chain in England. One thing I’ve found that is a little difficult are European nutrition facts on instant noodles. It’s odd; they like to do a per 100g showing, then a per serving. The number often seem ridiculously off; a lot of the time it’s a calorie vs joule issue (yep – they use a different measure of energy over there too). Let”s see how this chicken and mushroom flavor cup goes!
Here’s a detail of the side panels (click image to enlarge). Says it is ‘suitable for vegetarians.’ To prepare, Add boiling water to fill line and let sit 2 minutes. Give it a good stir, and then let sit for another 2 minutes. Stir again and enjoy!
Detail of the lid (click image to enlarge).
No seasoning sachets – simply a cup of uncooked noodles and seasonings.
Finished (click image to enlarge). Added chicken and mushrooms. The noodles were floppy; more like an egg noodle. The liquid turned into a sauce (which is standard to British varieties). The flavor was almost nonexistant; extremely bland and begged for salt. Not to my liking. 0.5 out of 5.0 stars. UPC bar code 5051898316952>.
Check it out – over two hours of old British TV advertisements!
British noodles! Thought maybe this would be a good one to let my son try today. Not spicy (at least I don’t think it will be) and pretty mellow. Right now he’s knee-deep in LEGO blocks and listening to a video game documentary. A good day! Let’s check this one out.
Here are the side panels (click image to enlarge). Looks to be meat free but check for yourself. To prepare, add boiling water to the fill line and let it sit for 2 minutes. Stir, then let it sit 2 more minutes. Stir. Enjoy!
The lid (click image to enlarge).
The noodles in the cup are loose and have a powder all over them. UK cups usually feature a lot of this powder, which is mostly flour. British noodles feature more of a sauce than a broth.
Finished (click image to enlarge). Added corn and carrot. The noodles are short and thick. They have an interesting crumble to them. The sauce has a very light flavor; pretty bland. It’s hearty though and that’s it’s saving grace. 2.0 out of 5.0 stars. UPC bar code 5052109748135>.
TESCO is a big chain of supermarkets in the UK – here’s a documentary film about them.
Here’s one that Joe B. and Sarah B. sent me from Nottingham, UK – thanks! I’m getting towards the end of the noodles that they sent – been a lot of fun trying all sorts of British varieties! I usually get some cues on what I’ll ad at the end from a picture on the front of a package, but this one doesn’t have any ‘suggested serving’ or anything like that, so I have to go with my gut. I looked around on Google for ‘peppered steak British’ and found quite a few leads. The peppered steak there looks to be basically steak with a decent amount of black pepper. Sound simple enough. Of course, things like a dash of brandy aren’t readily available, so I think pepper is going to be my friend for this one. Anyways, let’s see what’s within.
The back of the package (click image to enlarge). Looks to be meat free but check for yourself. To prepare, boil 300ml water and add the noodle block and contents of sachet. Cook for 4 minutes or until water is absorbed. Enjoy!
The noodle block.
The sauce base sachet.
As I’ve mentioned before, British instant noodles seldom are full of broth. They usually involve the liquid reducing to a sauce.
Finished (click image to enlarge). Added steak sauteed with sweet onion and Jane’s Krazy Mixed Up Pepper and crushed garlic. The noodles are pretty decent – not anything to call home about, but they have a good texture for their environment. The sauce is very bland. The flavor is regrettably very light in strength – so much so that I ended up adding salt to it! What flavor it had was peppery. 1.5 out of 5.0 stars.UPC bar code 5000354404054>.
Here’s a funny advert for Batchelors Super Noodles from the UK.
Here’s one that Joe B. and Sarah B. sent me from Nottingham, UK – thanks! This is a common variety you would find at a store called Sainsbury’s. Sainsbury’s is a chain that can be found throughout England which sells pretty much everything by the looks of it. British varieties usually tend to be on the blander side, as is the way with a lot of food from over there, but sometimes they’re really good. Let’s see which end of the spectrum this one falls into.
Here’s the back of the packaging (click image to enlarge). Has a V for Vegan friendly on the front of the package. To prepare, add noodle block (broken into 3-4 pieces) and contents of sachet to 250ml of boiling water. Cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring often. Enjoy immediately.
Here’s the noodle block. Did pretty well for such a long trip!
The soup base sachet.
A medium-granular affair.
Finished (click image to enlarge). Added chicken, corn, carrots and peas. The noodles have a bit of a crumble to them. They’re alright but a little off. The broth has a bland chicken flavor – bland, yes – but it does have a nice chicken flavor. The broth is almost non existent as is the way of most British instants – it’s either skint on broth or more of a gravy and this Sainsbury’s variant is no different. 2.75 out of 5.0 stars.UPC bar code <01854619>.
I haven’t seen any packaged noodles touting their support of sustainable palm oil (I believe these from Sainsbury’s are the first). Palm oil is used in lots of things, but often instant noodles. Palm oil production has a side effect of taking up valuable habitat for animal life as well as depletion of forests/jungles around the world. Here is a short presentation about sustainable palm oil by the World Wildlife Fund.
Here’s one that’s been hiding in the noodle bin for a while! Thanks to Martin A. of Devon, UK for seonding! Let’s check it out!
The back of the package (click image to enlarge_. Looks to be meat free but check for yourself. To cook, put everything in a bowl and add 300ml water. Cover and let sit for 3 minutes. Give it a stir and it’s done.
The noodle block.
Soup base sachet.
Has a salty and veggie scent.
Finished (click image to enlarge). Added peas, leeks, sweet onion, kamaboko, narutomaki and big ugly carrot. The noodles were a little more crumbly than I like, but not too bad. The broth had a decent flavor to it; many vegetable versions end up with a bitter aftertaste but not this one. 3.5 out of 5.0 stars. UPC bar code 5023751105058.
A short vid about the history and flavor of Marmite.
Here’s another one from Joe B. of Nottingham, England – thanks! Sainsbury’s is a chain of supermarkets in the UK that were founded in 1869. They make two lines on instant noodles – the basics and a more premium version. Let’s check it out!
Here’s the back of the pack (click image to enlarge). Says it’s veggie and vegan friendly. To prepare, empty seasoning sachet into 200ml water and boil. Break up noodle block into 2 or 3 pieces and cook for 2 1/2 minutes.
The noodle block.
Seasoning base sachet.
Has an interesting scent that kind of makes me think of curry, but only kind of.
Finished (click image to enlarge). Added hard boiled egg and baked chicken with garlic salt. The noodles are a little more crumbly than I usually prefer, but they’re not too bad. The flavor is not as bland as many British instants; in fact, it’s got a decent taste to it. Not exactly chicken curry, but honestly not too bad. 3.25 out of 5.0 stars.UPC bar code 628635401148053.
[AMAZONPRODUCTS asin=”B0000TA3BW”]Wow this looks like a big box of goodness from the UK![/AMAZONPRODUCTS]
A video Sainsbury’s sponsored showing people in the UK’s Christmases from 2012. Yeah, I know we just got done with Christmas, but it did seem interesting.
Andy decided to pick this one to try today after I told him we had shrimp. I know, I know – shrimp aren’t prawns but he likes both and they’re both sea crawlies so he’s happy. Let’s check this one out.
Here’s the back of the package (click image to enlarge). Looks to be vegetarian friendly but check for yourself. To cook this one, put the noodles and seasoning in a bowl and add 250cc boiling water. Cover and after 4 minutes, you have your noodles.
The noodle block.
The soup base powder sachet.
Smells like prawns…
What can I say the boy likes noodles.
Finished (click image to enlarge). Added shrimp I sauteed with a little garlic salt. The noodles are pretty decent; a little slight funk during the chew. The flavor is rather bland; fitting in the way of most of the British instants I’ve had, although this one is made in a country where bland would be the exception to the rule. Andy has said that these noodles get 5 point thirty stars. I differ. 2.5 out of 5.0 stars. UPC bar code 5023751102057.
Music and visuals from Thailand.
Here’s another Joe B. of Nottingham, UK sent – thanks! Low fat noodles eh? I’ve actually been on a diet and exercising a lot lately – down 15 pounds already – and yes, I’m eating an instant noodle every day too! Let’s see how this low fat variety is…
Here’s the back of the package (click image to enlarge). Contains milk. To make it, add everything to 300ml of water and boil until all of the broth is absorbed by the noodles.
The noodle block.
The seasoning sachet.
Has a funky chilli chickenny scent.
Finished (click image to enlarge). Added baked chicken that I seasoned with Mexcene and salt, peas and some big ugly carrot. The noodles are a slightly larger gauge than your standard instant. They are crumbly and really not very good. They kind of end up like an odd paste in the mouth. The flavoring is very light and has a slight spiciness to it. 1.0 out of 5.0 stars.UPC bar code 5000354401763.
An advert for Batchelors Mushy Peas!
Here’s one sent to me by Xavier over at Ko-Lee in the UK – thanks! These are made in Thailand for the UK market. Has directions for dry noodles as well as with soup – I’m going to prepare the latter. Let’s check this out!
Here’s the back of the package (click image to enlarge). Looks to be meat-free but have a look for yourself.
The noodle block.
A dual packet – left is chili powder, right is the soup base.
Soup base with the reddish chili powder on top.
An oil packet.
Says it contains rice bran oil, shallot and paprika oil.
Finished (click image to enlarge). Added baked chicken with Tony Chachere’s Creole Seasoning, red bell pepper, a fried egg and some Vidalia sweet onion. The noodles steeped to a nice point after the 4 minutes – they’re plentiful, have a decent backbone and a slight crumble that was enjoyable. The broth has a nice curry flavor with a nice little kick of spiciness and a little extra oomph of heartiness from the oil. 3.75 out of 5.0 stars. UPC bar code 5023751105645.
I thought I’d go with some music today. This is quite possibly my favorite album out of the psychedelic 60’s. Most people think of The Wall and Dark Side Of The Moon when they think Pink Floyd, but I’m not really all that into the newer stuff. I think this one’s where it’s at.
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