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 – ‘If you want to enjoy festive food stalls of yakisoba, you can go to Asakusa or have Asakusa come to you! The fresh sizzling flavor of worcester sauce will whet your appetite and get your taste buds excited. The furikake seasoning contains nori seaweed and tempura pearls.’
Alright, let’s give it a try!
New Touch Sauce Yakisoba – Japan
Detail of the packaging (click to enlarge). Contains pork and chicken. To prepare, add in cabbage sachet and boiling water to line. Cover for 4 minutes. Drain. Add in liquid and stir. Finally, sprinkle garnish on top and enjoy!
Finished (click to enlarge). Added Salad Cosmo mung bean sprouts, spring onion, barbecue pork. The noodles are quite good here – not spongy or anything and have a thick and round gauge. Yakosoba sauce coats nicely with a strong flavor. Furikake is on point with a nice crunch from tempura and flavor from seaweed. 3.75 out of 5.0 stars. JAN bar code 4903088012186.
Here’s something new from Taiwan! I really like spicy and definitely like shallot. Let’s check it out!
Yonghai Dried Noodles With Chili & Shallot Sauce – Taiwan
Detail of the side panels (click to enlarge). Looks to be meat free but check for yourself. To prepare, boil noodles for 3~5 minutes. Drain. Add sachet contents. Finally, stir and enjoy!
The pack contains four of these individual serving packs.
A wet sachet of spicy oil.
The shallot component.
Finished (click to enlarge). Added egg, spring onion, and sliced chashu. The noodle has a thicker vein down the center and a flanged outer line which is thinner giving a dual texture. Flavor was a spicy Sichuan peppercorn hit which was really nice although it was strong anwould have liked to have felt the the shallot element a little more. Nevertheless, it’s very good and I enjoyed this one a lot! 5.0 out of 5.0 stars. EAN bar code 4713510260869.
I got an email asking if I’d like to try a new noodle and of course I said yes. Turns out the fellow who wants to distribute it is up in Vancouver, BC. So I emailed him while we were up there and we met up at Foodyworld in Richmond. He gave me this and another variety as well as a pack with different kinds of noodles that contain vegetable – like a purple yam noodle, pumpkin noodle, etc. This was really cool – we chatted for a few and two days later, I’m giving these noodles a try. Let’s check them out! By the way TIEasy is short for Take It Easy.
TIEasy Sesame Sauce Handmade Noodle – Taiwan
Detail of the side panels (click to enlarge). Mentions being vegetarian. To prepare, boil noodle block for 6~7 minutes. Drain. Add in sachet contents. Finally, stir and enjoy.
One of the four included packs.
The dry noodle block.
A wet sachet.
A thin liquid.
A second wet sachet.
A sesame infused liquid.
Finished (click to enlarge). Added soft egg, spring onion, fried onion and black sesame seeds. Noodles had a good chew after 6.5 minutes cook time. Flavorings coated evenly and had a nice flavor of sesame paste with a slightly bitter aftertaste. 3.75 out of 5.0 stars. No bar code.
The second of the Fantastic Noodles varieties getting a look in this Meet The Manufacturer. I’ll be the first to say I really like scallion sauce noodles from Taiwan. Curious how these will fare – only one way to find out!
Fantastic Noodles Scallion Sauce – Taiwan
Detail of the side panels (click to enlarge). Looks to be meat free but check for yourself. To prepare, cook noodles in 1000ml boiling water for 3~3 1/2 minutes. Drain. Add sachet contents. Finally, stir and enjoy!
The noodle block.
A liquid base sachet.
An oily sauce.
A smaller oil sachet.
Has a strong garlic scent.
Finished (click to enlarge). Added scallion, fried onion and chili flake. Noodles had a nice chew and gauge to them I enjoyed. They went well with the sauce which was salty, savory, and sweet. 4.0 out of 5.0 stars. No bar code.
Today, we have a traditional Italian variety – from Taiwan? Yup – Italian noodles from Taiwan! Here’s what Wikipedia has to say about bolognese –
Bolognese sauce (UK: /ˌbɒləˈneɪz, –ˈnɛz/, US: /ˌboʊlənˈjeɪz/;[1] known in Italian as ragù alla bolognese, pronounced [raˈɡu alla boloɲˈɲeːze; -eːse], ragù bolognese, or simply ragù) is a meat-based sauce originating from Bologna, Italy, hence the name. In Italian cuisine, it is customarily used to dress tagliatelle al ragù and to prepare lasagne alla bolognese. In the absence of tagliatelle, it can also be used with other broad, flat pasta shapes, such as pappardelle or fettuccine. Genuine ragù alla bolognese is a slowly cooked sauce, and its preparation involves several techniques, including sweating, sautéing and braising. Ingredients include a characteristic soffrittoof onion, celery and carrot, different types of minced or finely chopped beef, often alongside small amounts of fatty pork. White wine, milk, and a small amount of tomato concentrate or tomatoes are added, and the dish is then gently simmered at length to produce a thick sauce.
The earliest documented recipe of an Italian meat-based sauce (ragù) served with pasta comes from late 18th century Imola, near Bologna. A recipe for a meat sauce for pasta that is specifically described as being “bolognese” appeared in Pellegrino Artusi‘s cookbook of 1891. The ragù alla bolognese that is now traditionally associated with tagliatelle and lasagne is somewhat different from Artusi’s recipe. Many traditional variations currently exist. In 1982 the Italian Academy of Cuisine registered a recipe for authentic ragù alla bolognese with the Bologna Chamber of Commerce (incorporating some fresh pancetta and a little milk). In Italy, ragù alla bolognese is often referred to simply as ragù.
Outside Italy, the phrase “Bolognese sauce” often refers to a tomato-based sauce to which minced beef (or pork) has been added; such sauces typically bear less resemblance to ragù alla bolognese being more similar in fact to the ragù alla napoletana from the tomato-rich south of the country. Whereas in Italy ragù is not used with spaghetti,[2] so-called “spaghetti bolognese” has become a popular dish in many other parts of the world.
Alright – let’s give it a try!
TTL Bolognese Red Wine Sauce Instant Noodle – Taiwan
Here’s the back of the package (click to enlarge). Contains pork. To prepare, cook noodles in 500ml boiling water. Tip – place retort pouch in to heat it as well. Cook for 3 minutes. Add soup sachet to 200ml boiling water to make soup. Drain noodle after 3 minutes cooking and combine with retort pouch contents. Finally, stir and enjoy! Note – soup is not combined with noodles but served alongside as shown in image below.
The noodle block.
The soup sachet.
A light powder.
A liquid sachet.
Red wine.
The retort puoch.
Thick with a tomato scent.
Finished (click to enlarge). Added parmesan cheese, habanero curry shichimi and scallion. The noodles hydrated nicely and have a soft tooth. The flavor from the retort pouch is quite nice – a zesty tomato sauce with little pieces of pork in there. The red wine works well here, but it’s overwhelming. The sipping soup wasn’t altogether to my liking; it reminded me of frozen pizza with its flavor. 4.0 out of 5.0 stars. EAN bar code 4710199110904.
Here’s another of the Russian varieties that were found in Uzbekistan and sent by the kind folks at halalfoodblog.com – thank you! They’re in Singapore – so to sum up: Some nmice Singaporean folks visited Uzbekistan and found Russian instant noodles then mailed them to me here in the United States. Truly a well-traveled pack of noodles! Let’s take a look!
Big Bon Chicken & Salsa Sauce Instant Noodles – Russia
Here’s the back of the package (click to enlarge). Unsure whether it contains meat – check for yourself. To prepare, add noodles and dry seasonings to a bowl along with 300ml boiling water and cover for 3~5 minutes. Stir. Finally, add sauce sachet content and enjoy!
The noodle block.
The soup base sachet.
A very light powder – made me sneeze!
Liquid sauce base.
Looks interesting.
A vegetables sachet.
An interesting mixture.
Finished (click to enlarge). Added chicken baked with NuTek Salt for Life and black pepper and spring onion. The noodles were surprisingly thick in this one. The flavor was a kind of tangy tomato chicken – interesting. Not spicy in the slightest. 3.25 out of 5.0 stars. EAN bar code 4605496003984.
Today I try a straight dry noodle in the Man Dashi (mian da shi) range . The name translates to ‘noodle master.’ Here’s a little info from Wu-Mu about this one –
The shape of the noodle is fine and round, and the taste is delicate and smooth. ●The Black rice vinegar is made of the carefully selected 100% glutinous rice and 18 natural ingredients such as vegetables, fruits, oranges, carrots, garlics…etc. ●Sweetness, saltiness and light spiciness blend perfectly, creating distinctive tastes. ●Rich fragrance creates easily the flavor of cooking master.
Here’s the back of the two serving package (click to enlarge). Unsure whether it contains meat. To prepare, boil noodles for 4 minutes and drain. Add in sachet contents. Finally, stir and enjoy!
The bundles of noodle.
One of the two liquid base sachets.
Smells good!
Finished (click to enlarge). Added spring onion, cucumber and Sichuan pepper flake. The noodles are thin with a light chewiness which was enjoyable. The flavor had a kind of sweet and vinegar hit to it which was quite good as well. 4.5 out of 5.0 stars. EAN bar code 4710175567913.
With the advent in the popularity of the Taiwanese dry noodles sector, larger companies have entered the fray. For those of your that don’t know, dry noodles basically are noodles with a sauce – dry meaning that they do not include a broth. They’re also not fried but either air or sun dried. They’re gaining popularity – let’s have a look at this mainstream Taiwanese brand’s take on a standard dry noodle variety.
Here’s the back of the package (click to enlarge). Unsure whether this contains meat. To prepare, add noodle block to 600ml boiling water and cook for 4 minutes. Drain. Add in contents of liquid sachet. finally, stir and enjoy!
The noodle block.
The liquid base sachet.
A thick sauce.
Finished (click to enlarge). Noodles are nice – broad and very thin – thinner than most dry noodles I’ve had. They have a nice chew, but in all honestly almost a slight leathriness to them. The flavor is very much on point though and works nicely. Would love to see a noodle like this in a broth – some kind of beef noodle with real meat capacity. Tasty! 4.0 out of 5.0 stars. EAN bar code 4710110232029.
So a couple months ago I read an article mentioning this high end fancy instant ramen. Having never seen nor heard of it, I thought I’d better investigate. I mean, how can I be The Ramen Rater if I’m not going to hop on board for something like this? I got some eBay gift cards for Christmas and thought I’d seek this one out.
Alright so I ordered this on eBay a few weeks ago and it arrived a couple weeks later. I’ve seen this around for $8 a pack. Yeah – $8… I got it off of eBay for $14.98 with ‘free shipping.’ I’ve baked shipping into the price before on eBay when I used to do eBay – everybody does. All I can say is this stuff better be good! I love tonkotsu and so hopefully this is an excellent one. Let’s dive in.
Ichiran Ramen Curly Noodles including Original Red Dry Sauce【Only in Fukuoka】 – Japan
Here’s the back of the package (click to enlarge). Contains pork. To prepare, I was lucky to get some help from a friend to the site for years – a fellow named Marvin – thanks! I mean, who wants to cook a practically $15 pack of instant noodles incorrectly?
Here are the instructions for the Ramen. The time regulates the firmness of the noodles :
Cooking Instructions
ICHIRAN Ramen Curly Noodles including Original Red Dry Sauce【Only in Fukuoka】
Necessary Items
ICHIRAN Ramen Curly Noodles including Original Red Dry Sauce【Only in Fukuoka】
Pot
Large Bowl
Favorite Toppings (green onions, pork slices, etc.) 1 Boil 500ml (about 2 cups) of water in pot. firmness (Estimated Boiling Time) Extra Firm (as desired) Firm (2min.30sec.) Medium （3分） Soft （3分30秒） Extra Soft (as desired) 2 When the noodles start to separate, turn off the heat and add the “① soup powder” and the “② special oil”. Stir well. ※Refer to the chart below for the level of richness, and adjust to your liking. Level of Richness None (None) Light Taste (as desired) Medium (Half packet) Richness (Whole packet) 3 Put soup/noodles into large bowl. Add “Spicy Red Powder”. !) The powder is very spicy, so adjust amount to your preference. Spiciness None (None) Half (A little) Medium (Half packet) Double (Whole packet) Add your favorite toppings like pork slices, green onions, kikurage mushrooms, !) Contents are hot after heating, so please handle with care. !) Please eat in a timely manner after opening the package. Finally, stir and enjoy!
The noodle block.
A powder sachet.
Lots of powder.
A liquid base sachet.
Thick and milky.
The red dry sauce.
Looks kind of like chilli powder.
Finished (click to enlarge). Added sesame seeds, Salad Cosmo Mung bean sprouts, sesame seeds, spring onion, narutomaki and chashu pork. I cooked the noodles for 3 minutes. They retained a good backbone and were of good quality. The broth was milky but not thick and to be honest I would have like a little more thickness to it. It had a pork and spicy hit to it plus an very good oiliness. Impressed. Worth paying $15USD per pack on eBay? I wouldn’t go that far, but it was pretty darn tasty stuff. 4.5 out of 5.0 stars. JAN bar code 4562214820899.
Chacharoni is a play on words. Jjajang kind of sounds like ‘cha cha’ and the roni calls to noodles. There are other plays on words in the South Korean industry when it comes to jjajangmyeon. So basically what you have here is a thick noodle with a black bean sauce – also known as jjajang. Here’s a little about jjajangmyeon from Wikipedia –
Detail of the side panels (click to enlarge). Looks to be meat free but check for yourself. To prepare, add boiling water to fill line and let steep for 4 minutes. Drain. Finally, add in liquid base sachet and stir well – enjoy!
Finished (click to enlarge). The noodles hydrated nicely in the 4 minutes directed. They have a good ramyun gauge and chew. The sauce coats everything well and has a good black bean flavor. Included vegetable and bits of TVP did well too. 3.75 out of 5.0 stars. EAN bar code 8801073210783.
About 3 weeks ago I got a message from a guy named Peter in Taiwan asking me if he could send me a sample of a new sauce he’s making there. I never would turn down a sauce to try, and after a couple weeks here it is! Let’s see what’s inside!
Sauce & Noodles From A Reader – Taiwan
Mine, my son’s and daughters feet are all in this picture of the open box (click to enlarge)!
Instructions on making the sauce for noodles (click to enlarge).
Here’s how it looks all made (click to enlarge)! The sauce is pretty complex – there’s oil and bits of all sorts of things going on in there. I liked it – had a very good taste. Thanks, Peter!
Here’s another left over from the Nissin Hong Kong Meet The Manufacturer. Here’s a little about XO sauce from Wikpedia –
XO sauce is a spicy seafoodsauce that originated from Hong Kong.[1] It is commonly used most in southern Chinese regions like Guangdong province.
Developed in the 1980s in Hong Kong for Cantonese cuisine, XO sauce is made of roughly chopped dried seafoods, including scallops, dried fish and shrimp, and subsequently cooked with chili peppers, onions, and garlic. This dried seafood-based sauce bears similarity to the Fujianese Shacha sauce. Spring Moon, the Peninsula Hong Kong‘s Chinese restaurant, often gets credit for the invention of XO sauce, although others claim the sauce’s origin in the urban area of Kowloon.[2]
The name XO sauce comes from fine XO (extra-old) cognac, which is a popular Western liquor in Hong Kong and thought by many to be a chic product there. In addition, the term XO is often in the popular culture of Hong Kong to denote high quality, prestige and luxury. In fact, XO sauce has been marketed in the same manner as the French liquor, using packaging of similar colour schemes.[3]
You might notice that the picture of the cup here is a little different. I found a way to take picture in low light and up the exposure recently – review #2349 was the first featuring this, and it’s seemed to work out pretty good so far. Update – on second thought, the colors just get funky so that’s that. Let’s check out this massive seafood cup!
Nissin Cup Noodles Big XO Sauce Seafood Flavour – Hong Kong
Detail of the side panels (click to enlarge). Contains seafood. To prepare, add water to fill line and microwave at 800W for 4 minutes (for different wattage microwaves, use this tool to calculate for your model). Stir and enjoy!
Some of the loose garnish and seasoning from the cup.
Finished (click to enlarge). There’s a whole lot of noodles in this one and they come out of the microwave piping hot. They’re soft and tasty. The broth has a very nice seafood and pork characteristic with a little sweetness. There’s shrimp, bits of pork and lots of other bits in there which round things out very nicely. 4.0 out of 5.0 stars. EAN bar code 4897878630080.
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