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Another I picked up in Butterworth, Penang during my Malaysia trip last year. That Econsave was really great – so many varieties! Trying to run through them before they expire! Not this one’s a little interesting – you might say the logo kind of looks familiar… Well, it’s made in Thailand for the Malaysian market by President Rice Products. They make all of the MAMA branded rice vermicelli – and in Malaysia their products go under the name PAMA. Simple really. Anyways, let’s check this one out!
Here’s another one that was sent to me by James B. from The Netherlands – thanks! So this one is made in Thailand but definitely for the Dutch market. Tom yum is a classic Thai soup flavor, but what makes creamy tom yum creamy? Traditionally, when a creamy tom yum is made, the ‘cream’ doesn’t come from a dairy product, but from boiling the shrimp heads. It has a creamy look to the broth.
Here’s yet another one I got from the 7-Eleven next to our hotel from last May’s Bangkok trip. Like some others, this one got banged up pretty good, but still made it through in good enough condition to review. What’s a trip about this one is that it’s showcasing Manchester United. I’ve seen a few products with Manchester United footballers on them. As far as the flavor, I looked aoround and it sounds like Moo Manao is a popular dish with pork and lime. Let’s check it out!
Here’s another one I found at the 7-11 in Bangkok during my trip in May. I’m going to guess this may be a little spicy, judging by the eye with the teardrop. Hey – no crying in baseball – or instant noodles! Time to take this one on! Let’s check it out!
I’m happy to report that this is the first post I’m doing using my new computer setup. Took a while to get everything all happy but now it’s quite happy as am I. Anyways, we found these in Lynnwood, WA at a store called BigLots. I’ve found varieties there in the past – kind of like a liquidation place. This one seems to definitely be for the western market although made in Thailand. Let’s check it out.
Something I found at the local HMart a few weeks ago. I went out with my wife this week for tom yum at a local restaurant – good stuff! Some rice on the side to mix in – really tasty! Tom yum has a strong lemongrass and spicy flavor to it which is really great – let’s check this one by Little Cook out!
Some of you are going to say ‘hey this is a re-review!’ But actually, it isn’t. This is the MAMA Shrimp Creamy Tom Yum for the Cambodian market! Yup – Cambodia. A lot of new countries lately which is awesome! I got these sent to me when I saw them during my visit to Thailand at the Thai President Foods European Agent Meeting in May! Let’s have a look at this one for the Cambodian market.
Here’s another one I got at 7-11 on our recent trip to Thailand. There were so many varieties there; didn’t really know what was what, but luckily found some English text on the back of the package. Let’s have a look!
Today I’m posting the last of my series of travelogues covering my trip to visit the folks that manufacture MAMA noodles, Thai President Foods. Being a resolute fan of instant noodles from the world over, the ability to visit where they’re manufactured anywhere is really fascinating to me. This one in pack version was on my Top Ten Instant Noodle Of All Time 2014 Edition. I was lucky enough to be next to a convenience store where we stayed the bulk of our stay in Bangkok.
A few years back, I started noticing a lot of people leaving comments about MAMA Shrimp Creamy tom Yum. The first time I had it I wasn’t keen on it. They kept saying ‘dude, try it again – this stuff is awesome.’ So I did and was blown over – awesome stuff. I think the first time I tried it was a review in the low 100’s. It’s funny; after trying so many kinds, your tastebuds look for different things and your palate kind of matures. MAMA Shrimp Creamy Tom Yum was on the 2013 Top Ten Instant Noodle list. This cup was a neat one to find – I got it at a place I’ve wanted to visit for quite a while – an Asian 7-11.
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After some sleep, we headed down to breakfast. The Chatrium had a big breakfast buffet which was really nice – I would say my favorite part was all the fruit . One thing I’ve found is that when you’re in Asia, you’ve got to eat a lot of two things: seafood and fruit. Because it’s good there. Damn good. I ended up trying some dim sum and some other interesting things.
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A few months ago, I received an email from Ms. Pojjanee over the Thai President Foods. They make MAMA instant noodles and I had recently done a Meet The Manufacturer series with them. It was just after New Year’s and she asked if my wife and I would like to visit their factories in Thailand! There was one hitch though – my wife would be in her third trimester of her pregnancy at the time of the trip and we both agreed that it might be a little too much for her unfortunately. My sister was happy to take her place if it was alright, and it was. With that, here we go on our trip!
I got this one during my trip to Thailand. I was absolutely stoked to find out there was a 7-11 right next to the Chatrium hotel in Bangkok! To many, this will be a ‘so what?’ but to me, visiting Asian 7-11 stores have been something I’ve wanted to do for a very long time.
I’ve often wondered about this one. I’ve seen chand clear soup as well and not exactly able to find anything online about it. I did see what to add to it, but if anyone has any info of the origin of clear soup, please let me know. This is made in Thailand by President Rice Products, one of the factories I’ll be visiting on my upcoming Thailand trip!Let’s have a look at this one.
This one’s interesting – a Thai take on a Japanese classic! Tonkotsu! Here’s what wikipedia says about tonkotsu:
Everyone (well maybe not everyone) has heard of tom yum, a very tradition Thai soup. If you don’t know about it, here’s something about it from wikipedia:
Tomorrow morning is the big moving day for us – can’t believe it’s here already! I thought I’d have something I know I like today – tom yum. This one’s made by Thai President Foods, a company who’s invited me and my sister to visit Thailand in May! I must say that it’s really quite a surprise to open your email and be asked if you want to go to Thailand to visit instant noodle factories! Of course I said yes! It’s going to be tough though – my wife Kit is pregnant and so it’d be a little much for her to take the trip – I’m going to miss her immensely. Won’t be for too long though! So we’re going to visit their wheat noodles factory in Bankok and then the President Rice Products factory in Ratchaburi. Of course I will take lots of pictyures and share when we return. It’s still a couple months off though, but can’t wait! So today in anticipation of the trip, I thought I’d have some MAMA tom yum. Last time I had this was over four years ago! Let’s have a look!
Here’s a new one I found a couple days back locally! I’m really excited – going to go visit Thai President Foods’ and President Rice Products’ in May! I’ll have more info on the trip soon! This product is made from rice vermicelli. It sounds very interesting – the wheat noodle version made the top ten list in the past – let’s check this rice vermicelli version out!
Recently, I did a Meet The Manufacturer with Thai President Foods, makers of MAMA brand instant noodles. They’re located in Thailand and have a quite enjoyable range of products. Well, I’m happy to announce that I’ve been invited to visit their factory and visit ThaiFex, a big fhood expo in May! I’ll have more on that soon. Very exciting! I’ll have more info about the trip soon, but for now, let’s check out this cup from Thailand!
Duck! What’s awesome is that we went out for a special dinner the other day and got some braised duck. Leftovers! i can actually make duck instant noodles accompanied by the duck! Awesome. Let’s do this! I think there’ll be a couple ducky reviews for the next couple of days!
I believe my wife got me this one for Christmas last year – thanks sweetie! What’s so nice about instant noodles is that they have such a long shelf life, and so they can sit in my noodle hamper for a while before I have to get to them. Anyways, here’s one that sounds good today – Thai Pavilion Pad Thai. This one is made in Thailand but made for the US market. Let’s check it out!
So when I do a Meet The Manufacturer, I always try and see if I can get the company to autograph a poster for me and send it along. Well, Thai President Foods did!
Yay! A box from Thailand! What’s inside?
Coasters!
Awesome keychains!
They also sent a couple of these t-shirts! Too small for me but not for Kit! Thank you very much!
Here’s one sent to me by Marvin R. – thanks again! This was one of a series I’ve been looking for for a long time. I kept seeing them online, but only looked to be available in Thailand. These are now available here in the USA and the last one I had (tom yum shrimp) was pretty good. Let’s check it out!
Last night was my son’s teacher conference. I remember when I was a kid – I always dreaded these, knowing I’d probably get a lecture or something. Well, I am proud to say my son is doing absolutely wonderful in school this year. He’s had some problems in the past, but they look to have really gone by the wayside and I couldn’t be prouder of him. We love you, Andy – keep up the good work! You rock!
Usually if I’m really trying to get my hands on some noodles to review, I’m going to find a way. There have been a couple though which have eluded me for a while. This is one of them – Wai Wai’s Quick Zabb. There are four of these varieties, all with a different main color and different character. They’re kind of like Powerpuff Girls, but a little meaner looking. I’m stoked – got all four at a store only 5 minutes away yesterday! Sometimes walking down that noodle aisle you’ve been down a million times before with no luck pays off. Let’s check it out!
I was a little surprised today to realize that this is the last of the Thai President Foods Meet The Manufacturer! I’ve gotten used to having something ‘tom yum’ almost every day for a couple weeks now. It’s gonna be interesting to going back to the rotation of varieties from my hampers of noodles! Well, let’s check out this one and bid a fond farewell to this Meet The Manufacturer. I still have more varieties they make that I’ve not reviewed yet, so you’ll see them coming along.
Moo Nam Tok – this sounds familiar… It looks like I reviewed a rice vermicelli version a while back. So, what’s Moo Nam Tok? Let’s consult Wikipedia:
Thai Chef is a line by Thai President Foods that’s sold in Germany and the surrounding area. Everything on the pack is in German. Seems that people all over the world are big fans of instant noodles! It still surprises me to find varieties in areas I wouldn’t have expected them. Beer and sausages are what I come to think of when I think of German food choices, but I’m finding out more and more that people around the world are looking east to try new things. Let’s have a look at these noodles!
Here’s another of the Bamee line, one that appears to be for the Northern European market. Bamee looks to mostly be comprised of classic flavors – beef chicken and duck. Chicken seems to be one meat that people in just about every country eats as well as makes in an artificially flavored form such as this. I think a nice relaxing cup of chicken noodles sounds nice. Let’s have a look!
This is one of the easiest to find varieties of MAMA noodles here in the USA. The ubiquitous ‘silver pack.’ What’s different about this one is it’s the 90g Jumbo Pack as opposed to the smaller 60g size. If you’ve been following my recent Thai President Foods reviews, you’ll note that there are lots of Tom Yum variations. Here’s a list with some different ones to note:
Here’s a good one – it’s on The Ramen Rater’s Top Ten Instant Noodles Of All Time 2014 Edition! Seriously good. One thing that will confuse many is the name – it certainly did confuse me. Yentafo? Mohfai? Tom Yum – that I knew, but the others… Here’s what Wikipedia has to say about yentafo:
When I think tom yum, I think spicy, seafood and citrus flavors. When I think extreme thrown into the mix, I’m guessing that it’s going to be ultra spicy. One thing that Thai varieties tend to have in common is that when they say they’re spicy, they really mean it! Let’;s have a look at this new variety for this year by Thai President Foods’ MAMA brand and see what it’s got.
Mi Goreng! It sounds exotic, but it boils down to fried noodles. This is a rather unique one – I don’t think I’ve heard of a masala chicken dry noodle like this before, but it sounds pretty good! It’s been a while since I’ve had any mi goreng, and my son is here today and wants some so I thought why not. Let’s check it out!
MAMA Shrimp Creamy Tom Yum. This stuff is magnificent. So much so that it was on The Ramen Rater’s top Ten Instant Noodles Of All Time 2013 Edition list. What’s nice is that it’s pretty easily sourced. What’s even nicer, this is the Jumbo Pack! I was told once that the reason this is called ‘shrimp creamy’ instead of ‘creamy shrimp’ is that when you boil shrimp heads, there is a creamy looking effect and that’s what they’re going after here – not something pertaining to a dairy product. Let’s see how this one comes out – it’s is just a bigger version, then it should be even more wondrous fun!
Soon as I saw this one in the box, I was instantly curious. Spicy cheese flavor from Thailand? I didn’t know they liked cheese in Thailand! Ah, well everyone likes cheese I suppose. Spicy cheese is even better in my book – spicy and tasty’s where it’s at. Well, let’s see what we have here inside this fascinating new cup from MAMA!
Before this Meet The Manufacturer, I really hadn’t known that Thai President Foods made so many different lines of instant noodles. I thought they made MAMA and that was about it – I was definitely wrong about that! Here’s another line for export to Europe, Bamee. This one has quite a few languages on it, more than the Thai Chef I reviewed a couple days ago which looked to be more for the German market. Anyways, beef! Beef sounds like a good one for today – it’s cloudy outside and a bit cooler. I’m wishing we could skip fall and go straight to winter – I really like snow and fireplaces and all of that comfy stuff. Summer is great, but it’s been a pretty hot one here. Beef soups are some of my favorites during winter, which is what made me go on that tangent there. Anyways, it’s still summer but time for Bamee beef noodle soup! Let’s go!
I’ve seen Pad Kee Mao on the menu at our local Thai restaurant but never ordered it. Hmmm. What’s wikipedia have to say about it I wonder?
As I mentioned yesterday, I was nominated by my sister to do the ALS ice bucket challenge – it’s the thing everyone is doing these days to bring awareness and donations for people with this debilitating condition. You have to have a bucket of ice dumped on you! Well, I did it with a little help from my pal Jason Warden – the video is at the bottom, so be sure to check it out and also have a look at www.ALSA.org and consider donating to help find a cure!
