Here’s the second of three new Top Ramen bowls from here in the United States. At first I though ‘okay, it’s just Top Ramen in a bowl.’ But the extras in these are very interesting. Definitely excited to try ’em. Let’s do it!
Nissin Top Ramen Shrimp Flavor Bowl – United States
Detail of the side panels (click to enlarge). Contains shrimp. To prepare, add powder and vegetable sachets into the bowl along with room temperature water to the fill line. Microwave uncovered for 3 minutes at 1000W. Let sit in the microwave an additional minute. Add in wet sachet contents. Finally, stir and enjoy!
Finished (click to enlarge). Added shrimp, Salad Cosmo mung bean sprouts, spring onion, sesame seeds, and chili flake. Noodles came out of the microwave pretty well. Broth was nice – especially with that garlic oil. Really tied the place together. Included vegetables were primarily carrot and bell pepper. 3.5 out of 5.0 stars. UPC bar code 070662026106.
First off, I’m writing this on my son Miles’ birthday – happy birthday to you, dude! We’re so proud of you and you’re a neat person!
This is really neat. I’ve been sampling Vite Ramen’s products since the prototype stage and been really impressed by them as well as the folks who created them. This is version 1.1 – there will be some changes! One thing that’s not changed is the healthiness – lots of protein, lower sodiu, and full of vitamins and minerals. Looking forward to trying this – in fact, I just got it two days ago so I’m on it. Let’s give it a try.
Vite Ramen Garlic Pork Instant Noodle Soup v1.1 – United States
Detail of the packaging (click to enlarge). Contains pork. To prepare, boil noodles in 1.5 cups water for 3 minutes. Drain. Add 1 cup hot water and sachet contents. Finally, stir and enjoy!
The noodle block.
A dry seasoning sachet.
A wet sachet containing canola oil.
Finally, a dry sachet of vegetables.
Finished (click to enlarge). Added Salad Cosmo mung bean sprouts, spring onion, chashu pork, egg, sesame seeds, chili oil, soy sauce, and shichimi. The noodles are chewy – very chewy – and I liked this. They had an extremely hearty nature to them. The broth had a nice pork taste which seems to be upgraded, however there was a strong bitter back to it I just didn’t like so well. 4.0 out of 5.0 stars. No bar code.
This one was in a Ramen Trunk subscription box.These boxes are full of extremely high end varieties that you’ll never find in the United States or anywhere outside Japan! Check out this link and use coupon code RAMENRATER20OFF for 20% off any single box or subscription!
This is simply called a Chinese style ramen – don’t really know much else about it. Let’s give it a try!
Marutai Chinese Style Ramen – Japan
Detail of the packaging (click to enlarge). Probably contains meat but check for yourself. To prepare, cook 1 bundle of noodles for 3 minutes in 450ml water. Add in one of each sachet. Finally, stir and enjoy!
Two bundles of noodles.
Two dry sachets.
Two wet oil sachets.
Finished (click to enlarge). Added egg, scallions, Salad Cosmo mung bean sprouts, Sichuan pepper powder, and chili oil. The noodles are just fantastic in this one. Chewy with a great texture and feel. The broth was kind of odd to me; oily and had a little saltiness and sesame taste. Seemed like something was missing. 3.0 out of 5.0 stars. JAN bar code 4902702008000.
Here we have the last of the three bowls sent on ice by Nona Lim – thanks again! The first two were pretty good – green curry was great and the dan dan was alright – how will this one be? Let’s give it a spin in the microwave and find out!
Nona Lim Spicy Miso Ramen Bowl – United States
Detail of the side panels (click to enlarge). Contains bone broth. To prepare, put noodles in bowl and add broth on top. Microwave without lid 2~3 minutes. Finally, stir and enjoy!
What you see when you remove the cardboard sleeve.
Fresh noodle pouch.
The broth.
Finished (click to enlarge). Added Salad Cosmo mung bean sprouts, spring onion, egg, shichimi, pepper flake, and sesame seeds, The noodles came out quite nicely – good chew and texture to them I quite liked. Unfortunately, that’s where the good ended as the broth was violently acidic with a strange sort of smoky flavor just wasn’t anything remotely as the title imparted to me. Disappointing. 0.5 out of 5.0 stars. UPC bar code 859792002590.
Today we have a Zenpop.JP variety – so what’s Zenpop? They’re a subscription service for all things Japanese! Definitely, check them out. By the way, use coupon code RAMENRATER to get $2 off! Here’s what they had to say about this one – ‘This ramen has a soup base made with red and white miso combined, and with pork bone broth and added ginger it gives a deep flavor to the miso taste. Included is a packet of special flavor oil called ‘Drop Of Rich Deliciousness’ that adds sweetness and rich flavor. Add as much or as little as you like. The toppings include a combination of diced meat, cabbage, corn, and cut leek that matched perfectly with the rich miso taste.’
I’m a little confused by this one as it does look on further research that it might be chicken shoyu? I dunno. I guess the proof will be in the tasting – miso and shoyu are definitely very different flavors, but I’m going with the descriptor from Zenpop on this one. Let’s give it a try!
Myojo Rich Miso Ramen – Japan
Detail of the side panels (click to enlarge). Contains meat. To prepare, add boiling water to line and cover for 3 minutes. Finally, add in sachet contents, stir, and enjoy!
Finished (click to enlarge). Added spring onion, Salad Cosmo mung bean sprouts, egg, naturomaki, and chashu pork, Noodle was lackluster; a bit on the spongy side sadly. The broth was kind of odd – seemed more shoyu than miso for sure. 2.5 out of 5.0 stars. JAN bar code 4902881414784.
Alright so this one is made in Singapore, but it’s made for the Hong Kong market. It’s funny how products are made elsewhere for other countries, right? Well, you honestly should be used to it by now – Take the myriad of products in your home. If you have a Big Mouth Billy Bass on the wall, it’s made in China. Singing bass don’t seem like something very popular in China – could be wrong but who knows. Anyways, let’s crack this open and see what we have.
EDO Pack Sesame Oil Flavour Noodle – Hong Kong
Detail of the packaging (click to enlarge). Looks to be meat free but check for yourself. To prepare, boil noodles in 450ml water for 3 minutes. Add in sachet contents. Finally, stir and enjoy!
The noodle block – non fried.
A dual sachet – dry base on the left, wet oil sachet on the right.
Finished (click to enlarge). Added Salad Cosmo mung bean sprouts, spring onion, narutomaki, egg, chashu, sesame seeds, and nanami togarashi. The noodles are plump with a nice light chew. The broth has a great salty sesame oil taste to them. Full on umami bomb. 3.75 out of 5.0 stars. EAN bar code 4895058312788.
This one was in a Ramen Trunk subscription box.These boxes are full of extremely high end varieties that you’ll never find in the United States or anywhere outside Japan! Check out this link and use coupon code RAMENRATER20OFF for 20% off any single box or subscription!
Here’s what they have to say about this one – “
Onomichi is a small city of 136,000 in Hiroshima prefecture known for it’s ancient temples. It is a hilly city southwestern coast of Honshu island, the main island of Japan.
This Ajihei ramen is characterized by it’s soy sauce (shoyu) based broth cooked with fish to imbue a unique but light seafood flavor to round out the broth. Although noodles in the region typically are wide and flat, Ajihei ramen sticks with a more traditional thin-medium noodle thickness to not over power a lighter shoyu based broth.”
Let’s have a look at this fancy premium variety from Japan!
Kubota Men Onomichi Aji Hei Ramen – Japan
Detail of the packaging (click to enlarge). Contains fish (and almost certainly pork). To prepare, boil noodles on high heat for 30 seconds, then turn to medium heat and cook 1 minute. Combine soup base with 300ml boiling water. Drain noodles. Finally, add noodles and soup to bowl and enjoy!
Two servings of noodles.
Two servings of soup base.
Finished (click to enlarge). Added soft egg, narutomaki, chashu, spring onion, Salad Cosmo mung bean sprouts, sesame seeds, nanami togarashi, and chili oil. The noodles are thin and quite nice – they’ve still got a backbone with a light kind of disposition at the same time which was nice. The broth is very rich and has a great oiliness to it. Impressive! 5.0 out of 5.0 stars. JAN bar code 4972874209840.
People have been asking me for a list of healthy varieties for a long time. I decided to give it a try, and had mixed results. I’ve found things ramen/instant noodles, and things that aren’t and listed them here. There aren’t ten things, but over the next year I’m guessing more will present themselves. It appears this is an ever-evolving market as a couple that were going to be included went off the market while I was editing this list! Not everything presented is for everyone, but I’m really hoping there’s something that will work and interest everyone. If you have any ideas for things that should be on next year’s list, please email me. With that, here (in no particular order) is The Ramen Rater’s Healthy Options 2020 Edition.
The Ramen Rater’s Healthy Options 2020 Edition
Video Presentation
A special video presentation of The Ramen Rater’s Healthy Options 2020 Edition.
The Ramen Rater’s Healthy Options 2020 Edition
Yamachan Ramen Z
This year, it appears as soon as I created this list, it was obsolete! This product is no longer being produced, but I was told something similar with different preparation will replace it soon. This one however contains konjac/konyaku – it’s an almost zero calorie noodle that when made with the right gauge is pretty decent. Paired with a miso broth, I was really impressed – and only 136 calories, guessing from the soup base sachet mostly. Original review
NuTek Salt For Life
I first found out about NuTek a few years ago. They reached out to me and asked if I’d fly out and visit their operation in Omaha and try out their product first hand in a blind taste test (being partially sighted, every taste test I do is kind of blind har har). I was immediately sold on this stuff. I should mention I did some consulting with them for a little while but no longer do. I get a lot of people asking me about lower sodium noodles and this and their other products bring the promise of this without replacing saltiness with a funky taste. In fact, the way it works gives a slight delay in how the tongue senses saltiness – a fraction of a second – which makes the food itself more flavorful. Definitely a neat thing. Original review
Vite Ramen
This one was a no-brainer for this list. Take one brother who loves instant noodles and one that follows the healthy life and get their heads together on combining the two and you’ve got Vite Ramen. Tim & Tom Zheng introduced their idea on Kickstarter and were greeted with a huge response to get their business off the ground. So, what is Vite Ramen? It’s low sodium, high protein, high fiber, and had more vitamins and minerals than you can shake a menagerie of sticks at. If you’re looking for an ultra healthy ramen, this is the best I’ve seen yet. Original review
Nissin Cup Noodle Light+ / Cup Noodle Nice
If you’re looking for a healthy Cup Noodle, Light+ and Cup Noodle Nice are the ticket. First off, they’re low cal and feature a different noodle style – one that’s really quite good. They’re from Japan so you’ll have to dig on eBay and eBay Canada most likely to track them down. But it’s worthwhile as they’re incredibly good. Original review
Fit Mee
I was contacted by a distributor here in the United States about this one and got to give it a try. They’re got two varieties, one around 150 calories and the one above at around – get this – 50 calories. This is another variety made with konjac noodles – and it’s really good! one with a spicy Korean noodle flavor and the other flavor is Indonesian Soto – a kind of spicy and lime and coconut and chicken hit to it. I’ve seen these on Amazon at they’re rather pricey, but I’m guessing they’ll be more widespread and cheaper soon – they’re absolutely excellent and ultra tasty! Original review
Hakubaku Japanese Pearled Mochi Barley (Mochi Mugi)
In the past year, I’ve gone on a diet and exercise tear and lost a lot of weight (I’ll be doing the second installment of my The Ramen Rater Diet series very soon). I knew I needed to do this for a long time, but my doctor talked to me about it the right way at the right time and off I went. He was concerned about my cholesterol levels and told me unless they went down I’d need to go on a statin drug. I don’t know anything about those really, but I’ve never heard anything about them that include hearts and smiley faces connected to them. During the last year, I started working with Hakubaku a little bit and trying their products. They make really great ramen varieties which I’ve reviewed. They also make barley tea – my first try at making sun tea went pretty well. But most notably for me was trying their mochi barley. It’s ultra high in soluble fiber, and I consider it to be a big part in my arriving after six months at a clean bill of health for cholesterol as a result of my diet and exercise regime. Original review
KOKA Delight
Looking for a noodle low in fat and not fried? KOKA makes Delight. It’s interesting – first off, this is the kind of noodle block that’s not hard as a rock like your standard non-fried noodle – you could take a bite out of the block if you wanted to. Not only that, these are really quite good – with flavors like tomato, curry, a spicy sesame and more. Original review
Taiwanese Dry Noodles
If you’re looking for a range of noodles with less ingredients and wonderful flavors, you should check out Taiwanese dry noodles. The noodles themselves are dried by the sun or with big industrial fans – not fried. Plus they’re made with very few ingredients in a way that’s been done for generations. The seasonings that come with them often are few ingredients as well. I’ve often referred to the Taiwanese instant noodle makers as ‘masters of simplicity’; they can produce such tasty varieties with few ingredients. Original review
Nongshim Soon and Kimchi Vegan Varieties
If you’re looking for Vegan varieties, I highly recommend these two. The Soon Veggie Noodles (kind of like a smoother version of Shin Ramen) and the Kimchi (tangy and tasty) are marked with a seal of approval from a Vegan foods authority. Really great flavor and quality that you can add more vegetables to and end up with a sumptuous feast. Original review
…a couple more that weren’t in the video
Prima Taste Wholegrain
If you’re looking for wholegrain varieties, this is the best out there in my opinion. It’s been holding the #1 spot on my top ten list for 4 years! That’s my favorite out of over 3,000 instant noodles I’ve reviewed. The noodles have this rustic and hearty chew and taste without being gritty or funky. It makes a lot of food in each pack and so share with a friend – or an enemy as if you make this, they won’t be your enemy for long. Original review
Sakurai Foods Vegan Approved Varieties
There are a few varieties in this range, but by far my favorite was this one, the spicy soy milk noodle. With a badge from a Vegan authority, you’re definitely going to enjoy these as part of your Vegan lifestyle. Original review
So there you are – the first healthy list. If you want to make some recommendations of things that aren’t on here or are a company who produces products you think should be here, drop me a line and we can talk. Thanks for check the list out!
This one was in a Ramen Trunk subscription box.These boxes are full of extremely high end varieties that you’ll never find in the United States or anywhere outside Japan! Check out this link and use coupon code RAMENRATER20OFF for 20% off any single box or subscription!
Here’s what they have to say about this one – “With it’s main shop located in Kawagoe, Saitama tasting a bowl of Ganja Ramen take some time and persistence to get to with over an hours train ride from Tokyo. Nevertheless the trip is well worth it. Knows for both their ramen as well as tsukemen (noodles and soup serves separately) Master Oohashi-san has crafted unique bowls that people from all over Japan line up for.Master Oohashi comes from a long line of noodle makers and prepares the noodles for his shop every morning to ensure the freshest noodles. The noodles in this box of ramen are strong and thick. The soup base is a unique “tonkatsu-gyokai” mix of pork-bone and seafood. The density of the broth perfectly complements the thickness of Master Oohashi’s noodles
The soup is rich and fatty with small morsels of meat and seafood that will cling to the thick noodles.”
Sounds impressive – let’s find out!
Kubota Men Ganja Saitama Ramen – Japan
Detail of the back (click to enlarge). Contains meat and seafood. To prepare, boil noodles for 5 minutes. Combine soup base with 300ml boiling water. Drain noodles. Finally, add noodles and soup to bowl and enjoy!
Two servings f noodle.
Two wet broth sachets.
Finished (click to enlarge). Added egg, chashu, spring onion, Salad Cosmo mung bean sprouts, nanami togarashi, narutomaki, and black sesame seeds. The noodles are very thick and have a very authentic chewiness which is just right. Broth is like a kind of fatty cured pork and soy sauce flavor with a oiliness and richness. 5.0 out of 5.0 stars. JAN bar code 4972874209963.
Today, we have one that was part of Japan Crate’s Umai Crate. So Japan Crate is a subscription service which has all sorts of different options for you. Pretty neat stuff from Japan! There’s a coupon code for you too – just use THERAMENRATER to get a special discount at check out.
So here’s what the folks at Japan Crate had to say about this variety -“Hakata is an area in Japan famous for tonkotsu ramen. Hakata style ramen has a rich white pork bone base and hard noodles. Make your own smooth and flavorful bowl of Hakata ramen.”
Itsuki Kurume Hotomeki Ramen – Japan
Detail of the package (click to enlarge). This variety is animal-free. To prepare, add noodles to 450ml boiling water and cook for 1 minute. Add in powder sachet contents and stir. Add liquid sachet contents. Finally, stir and enjoy!
The straight ramen noodles.
A dry powder base sachet.
A wet sachet.
Finished (click to enlarge). Added chashu pork, spring onion, Salad Cosmo mung bean sprouts, sesame seeds, and fried garlic. The noodle is very thin with a chewiness that wasn’t expected but enjoyed. Broth was a salty tonkotsu. 3.75 out of 5.0 stars. JAN bar code 4901726014387.
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