Over 5,000 Instant Ramen Noodle Reviews Since 2002
It took a little finagling to wrap my head around this one – insofar as translation. Bar code was a no-go and the only English text referred to the caloric content and not much else. But what helped was that phone number with the 070 prefix. Boom! They were even kind enough to have an English version of their website. So, let’s check out this South Korean variety!
Here’s one that was sent by James from Lakeside, CA – thanks! I’ve been on a reviewing tear the last week – actually the past couple of weeks. I’m trying to empty bins of varieties I’ve not tried yet. This was in a box above the bins. Anyways, yeah – this is made in South Korea for the US market. Let’s check it out!
Here’s the second of the two varieties I’ve rushed out that arrived in the mail from MH from the Ramen Junkie group. So… Four cheese… This one’s interesting. First, this is made in South Korea, but packaged for sale in the United States. Second, Hochi looks like she’s dressed up for Halloween. During my research on this one, I found that it’s been in South Korea as well. I also found people trying this variety four months ago – kind of interesting. I wonder if they’ve just been test marketing these in a limited fashion prior to now. In the mukbang video below, I mention I thought I’d only 2 varieties not tried, however that’s not the case. In addition to the creamy carbo and the rose, there’s a jjamppong and a ‘lovely’ variety. Would like to add them to my reviews if anyone’s got some to donate! I did read that someone thought carnitas would go very well with this, and luckily my wife made some last night so I ended up with some nice garnish. Let’s cook these up – don’t forget to watch the mukbang at the bottom as well!
Welcome to my newest installment of my experimentation with instant noodles and breads/pizza dough! This one was a real win IMHO – both came out exceedingly well! First, I made an Indomie pie which presented some questions – how do I make the sauce? Butter. How about a cold pizza with Paldo Bibim Men? Never baked a pizza that would be refrigerated before serving. It’s summer and really hot here right now. Cold sounds good. I’ll give you the recipes for both which are pretty simple. Let’s hit it!
Okay so for those of you who don’t know what tteokbokki is, you needsta figure that out because it’s really quite nice! This is both tteokbokki and ramyun; hence, rabokki. Let’s give this a try.
I found this yesterday while looking for Lunar New Year specials at a big Asian grocery store. I immediately knew what I was looking at when I saw the font. These are from eMart. They’re a really big hypermarket chain in South Korea which now is opening stores in the United States. Now, this is a private label product, so one of the big companies in South Korea is making it for them . Not sure which one, but in the past it’s been Samyang. Let’s check it out!
Thanks to Jessica K. for clueing me in about this stuff! She said it’s good stuff and I got a good deal on it on Amazon so figured what the heck. Anyways, this is a dry version of Paldo’s Teumsae and a mukbang sounds good – only 18 degrees Fahrenheit outside right now. Let’s give it a try!
Here’s one from James in Lakeside, CA – thanks again! Wow – this looks burly. I had to read around to verify cooking instructions and they aren’t hard to cook – just wanted to do it right. This will be my first mukbang I’ve done in ages – not only that, I’ve been hardcore on diet and exercise lately, so not only will it be spicy, it’s going to be a gut buster. Egad. Let’s give it a shot!
Thanks as always to James from Lakeside, CA for sending this over! I like this brand – wonder who Mr. HOO is though. Whomever he is, he must have a moustache. Let’s give it a try!
Here’s one that came by way of James of Lakeside Californica – thanks again! This brand has particularly good kimchi varieties – curious how this one will be. Let’s check it out!
Back in 1986, a South Korean company called Nongshim 농심 (which translates to Farmer’s Heart), introduced a product called Shin Ramyun. Since then it has been one of the most popular varieties around the world. In this post, I’ll do a deep dive into the product – a tear down of the package and it’s contents, my tips of preparation, and some things you might not know about it. While not my favorite variety I’ve tried, chances are it may be yours. I run a group called Ramen Junkies on Facebook and the topic and focus of the bulk of posts on there surround this product.
Another one sent by The Fat Hipster – thanks again! So this is by the same folks as did the other Devil Of Fire Bulmawang variety, however this one is without broth. Very curious how this will go. Let’s find out – mukbang below!
A big thanks and shout out to The Fat Hipster for shooting this one over – been curious about it and thought today would be a good day to see how strong the burn is. The name translates to King Of Hell – let’s see how fiery this guy is.
One thing I’ve noticed – spicy is in. This list tends to be the most popular on my website The Ramen Rater every single day. People just want to get all the spicy they can get. Why is that? Spicy is intense. Spicy compliments flavor. Spicy will knock you on your butt. The challenge and chase for the endorphin rush that ultra spicy things give people is extremely tempting for many. These are the spiciest varieties I’ve had the opportunity to sample as of my 3,950th review. Ready to burn? Let’s get to The Ramen Rater’s Top Ten Spiciest Instant Noodles Of All Time 2022 Edition.
I’ve seen a lot of these Yopokki variants lately and this one definitely piqued my interest and my wife loves tteokbokki and cheese – and then there’s ramen in there too! It’s a win, win, win! Found this at Asian Family Market on Aurora and 130th in North Seattle – rad store – go check it out! Let’s crack this big pack open and see what dwells within!
Yesterday we found ourselves in Bellevue and about to go home, Kit asked me if there was anywhere we should go over there before we left. I looked to see if there were any Asian grocery stores I’d not been to and found a few, but one had a name that stood out. S-Mart. Yeah – if you’re familiar with the film ‘Army Of Darkness,’ you know why this piqued my curiosity. It seemed that Korean grocery stores usually have a letter followed by the word Mart. It was only a matter of time; we have an HMart nearby, and a GMart (formerly KS Mart), and there’s more of them. Well, we decided to shop smart and shop S-Mart. That’s where I found this one – something I’ve never seen before. It always floors me – I’ve been to tons of Asian grocery stores in this area and then whammo – one that has a variety I’ve never seen around here. In fact, I found a few of them. Let’s give it a try!
Last time this came across the desk was June of 2011. This one came from an Exotic Noods subscription box. You can get one or a subscription to them and they’ve got all sorts of neat varieties in them. Use coupon code THERAMENRATER for a discount! Let’s delve into this one!
Here’s one that came via Exotic Noods – check ’em out and use coupon code THERAMENRATER for a discount!
Had this just over 7 years ago – it can take another shot. Well, this is one I’ve enjoyed very much in the past – a Top Ten list variety. I think revisiting this with a heap of cheese is the right thing to do.
Wow – it’s been forever since I had this one, so it’s getting a fresh and new review today. Namja mean’s it’s for men in Korean – sorry ladies! I dunno though, it could be an ingenious marketing ploy – tell women it’s not for them, they might just go and eat copious amounts of it to prove that they can handle the heat and garlic. What’s interesting is that I would say when it comes to gender specific ramen, I would say I’ve seen more that are purposefully geared towards women. Anyways, let’s check this one out!
I left it to the folks over at the Ramen Junkie Facebook group to pick which #ramenbread would be next for me. I really wanted to do something that incorporated a South Korean variety – last time I tried that though, it was a big fail as I tried to make flour with the noodles. I’ve learned that is definitely NOT the way to go, but using cooked noodles and bread flour in a good mix makes for a nice moist cake and crisp crust. Well, here it is! Best loaf yet and infused with chashu, cheese, and egg. Let’s see what happens when I try to put a ton of stuff in a little loaf of bread with a big block of ramen in it!
Here’s one that was inside a subscription box from Exotic Noods! Exotic Noods (www.exoticnoods.com) has monthly subscription boxes with varieties from around the world! Really nice assortments! Check em out and use coupon code THERAMENRATER for a discount!
Found this one at Evergreen Asian Market up in Everett, Washington. I don’t often make my way that far north for instant noodles but I did find one or two things there (including Chocolatey Tree Stumps). This one is made in the Russian Federation for the US market – even says on the label which I find interesting. Anyways, let’s check this one out!
Well look at this! I’ve seen something like this before…
I did a post way back in April of 2013, extolling the virtues of Chapaguri! No clue where I’d heard of it back then – maybe from Nongshim, IDK. I’d long forgotten about it and then I saw this and was like ‘hey – that’s the logo I made!’ It’s a pretty easy conclusion to do something like this from a design perspective and I think it looks nice. If they got the idea from me, I’m honored, but I’m guessing they had the idea of it when it was a popular item back then. Well, let’s see how it tastes!
This one arrived in an Exotic Noods subscription box – check ’em out and use coupon code THERAMENRATER for a discount!
Did an interview for a Korean magazine and they wanted me to include a shot of various Korean instant noodles on my desk and this was one my wife picked up for me the other day. Let’s check it out!
After one very turbulent year, The Ramen Rater’s Top Ten Instant Noodles Of All Time is back. My mother died, we had an auto accident, the kids missed in-person schooling, and of course the pandemic. It’s been a really rough go but we’re back. Vaccines are rolling out everywhere and hopefully we can all get back together someday son. One thing I’ve found inspiration and enjoyment from during these times is a book I’d been hoping to find was sent to me by a noodle company exec called Momofuku Ando Speaks. It’s a book of quotes (kind of like the Ferengi Rules Of Acquisition if you’re a Star Trek fan) by the inventor of the instant noodle. I’ve been reading one on my show Instant Noodle Recipe Time every day – a lot of fun and a very interesting perspective. Little things like that have been really important as of late. Today, I’m proud to announce the show hits its 1000th episode!
This one came by way of Exotic Noods! Check ’em out and use coupon code THERAMENRATER for a nice discount! While made in South Korea, this one’s made for North America and distributed by Ottogi’s American arm. Sounds like fun – let’s give it a go!
Oh boy, oh boy… I did a big sort of all the noodles I had in my hampers and one thing I found was a huge amount were expired – not just a little, but like expires in 2018 (it’s 2020). Now that my noodle hoard has dwindles (I think I tossed a good 50 packs/cups/bowls), I saw someone else touting this one as a new add to their stash. Well lo and behold, this one made the cut – it expires next week, so I’d better get on it. Not only that, this sounds like a mukbang if I’ve ever heard of one. Let’s do it.
This one came once again by way of Daniel over at Exotic Noods – use coupon code RAMENRATER15 for a discount – thanks!
Here’s one that came via Exotic Noods – check ’em out and use coupon code RAMENRATER15 for a discount!
Last year, I was way behind schedule on everything. This year however, it’s going to be the opposite. Last week, I kind of decided to go nuts on Top Ten Lists. I did more than one. I did up SEVEN OF THEM! So that should make 2021 a little better for everyone. I’m calling to all South Korean noodle companies – send me your stuff! I have been hoping to review more stuff from South Korea but it seems to be harder to come by – at least newer varieties as of late. Drop me a line! This list is current as of review #3,702. let’s check out The Ramen Rater’s Top Ten South Korean Instant Noodles Of All Time 2021 Edition.
Here’s a pho bowl that came by way of the folks at Exotic Noods – use coupon code RAMENRATER15 for a discount over there! South Korean pho – I’ve come across this before and it was good. Let’s give it a go!
Well, I thought I had one more of the other brand to do a mukbang of but it turns out I don’t. Hmm.. Well, I do have this one – thanks to The Fat Hipster (check him out n YouTube) – thanks, man!
A little while back, Samyang Foods produced a variety called Buldak Mini. It was a smaller noodle block, however it clocked in at 12,000 SHU. Since people like to go big or go home, they came out with this – Challenge Buldak. This time it’s a full size noodle block, and it is served cold. Again, this one comes in at 12,000 SHU. They even have a hashtag mentioning this challenge attribute. I decided to give it a go and in the video below, you’ll see I conquered in in just over 3 minutes. Let’s give this one a look!
Here’s a variety that’s perfect for the summer month – this one’s served cold. Here’s a little something from Wikiward on this one –
Here’s another one from the folks at Exotic Noods. They ship great subscription boxes full of noodles every month – use coupon code RAMENRATER15 for a discount!
I really like tteokbokki – fat finger tubes of chewy rice flour. Well, rabokki is what you get when you take the sauce for tteokbokki and mix it with noodles. Let’s check it out!
Well, here’s the first of a whole slew of new Buldak varieties. If you’ve never seen or heard about this range (you’ve probably been under a rock), just know these are probably the most popular spicy range of products around when it comes to noodles. They came out with a Christmas themes variety – meat spaghetti. I’m wondering if this one will be similar? Let’s find out.
Well, well, well. Here we are yet again. Just not hot enough for you, eh? Well, maybe this will do it for you. I mean look – Hochi (the Buldak mascot) is right there, tears streaming, breathing fire… 3x Spicy – so what it 1x spicy? Well, 4,400 SHU (scoville heat units). 3x would be 13,200 SHU – I guess we’ll have to see if that’s spicy. I know it will be. Time to burn!
