66. Nongshim Budae Jjigae Noodle Soup

I have zero idea how to pronounce this correctly! Anyone who can help?

Budae Jjigae is popularly known as “sausage stew” or “army base stew” in Korea. It was invented in 1954 and the dish was created shortly after the Korean war ended using all the smuggled surplus foods from the US army base. Main ingredients of the original dish are – ham, hot dogs, spam, baked beans, kimchi etc.

It is said that budae-jjigae begun as a buttery stir-fried snack made of sausages, ham, cabbages and onions to accompany makgeolli (rice wine), but later on, anchovy broth flavored with gochujang and kimchi was added to create the stew that is enjoyed today.(sourec : Wikipedia).

 Cooking instructions-

1. Boil 500 ml of water. Add noodles, soup base and flakes.
2. Cook for 4 ½ minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. Remove from heat and serve.

 All the traveling took a toll on this block on noodles (it was supposed to be a round block of noodles). But these still look promising kind of ramyun noods!

The soup base has a beautiful orange color to it and heady aroma of spices.

I was specially excited about the flakes for this one! It has – fish cakes, dried kimchi (!!!) in the form of napa cabbage and red chilli pepper and some dried green onions.

Firstly, and most importantly, the kimchi aka the cabbage was crunchy even after cooking!! Yes, you heard that right. And for someone like me who has zero taste for fish cakes, well you will start developing a taste after eating these ones!

As expected, the noodles are bomb – great quality, good chew and texture!

The broth is all kinds of wonderful too, its spicy but not too spicy and leaving a lingering after taste that I rather like.

All in all, this makes for a perfect bowl of comfort from Korea!

Rating: 4.75/5

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64. Mug Shot – Chicken & Sweet Corn Noodles

 “Oodles of noodles in a creamy chicken sauce with sweetcorn and mushroom.” That’s the description on the pack and it is enough to get entice me!

 Cooking Instructions –

1. Empty sachet into a standard sized mug.
2. Fill to 15mm from brim with boiling water. Stir thoroughly.
3. Allow to stand for 5 minutes. Top up if a thinner sauce is required. Stir thoroughly again.

Additional tip mentioned on the pack in case you like them “thicker” is to ping in the microwave for another 20 seconds. I wouldn’t want to try this suggestion.

And in my opinion cooking instructions need to be specific, leaves lesser room for error. Why not mention exactly how much water to add?

These are wheat noodles which also have egg white in it! Don’t see that often. And the seasoning consists of sweetcorn, dried mushroom, chicken powder and dried chives.

Unfortunately the aroma is more enticing compared to the taste 😦

The noodles taste very artificial and pasty with no chew to them. Did I cook it right? The broth on the other hand is pretty decent and tastes like authentic sweetcorn & chicken soup.

All the points for this broth/soup.

Rating: 1/5

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63. Nongshim Shin Ramyun Noodle Soup (Gourmet Spicy)

After some background check I found out that this is the new packaging for the same flavor by Nongshim. This has been on my list for a while, lets see if it was worthy the wait!

 

Cooking Instructions –

1. Boil 550ml (about 2 1/3 cups) of water. Add noodles, soup base and vegetable mix.
2. Cook for 4-5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. Remove from heat and serve.

I prefer cooking on the stove vs the microwave, but instructions for microwave cooking are also available at the back of the pack.

 The noodles are your standard wheat noodles but thinner than ramyun noodles. The seasoning or the soup base consists of beef extracts and has a pleasant beefy aroma to it. Take a sniff and you know it is going to be at least mildly spicy! Exciting!

The dehydrated veggies consists of – green onions, bok choy, mushrooms, carrots and red chilli pepper.

I could eat this daily!

As soon as the broth comes to a boil it gives off an intense beefy and peppery aroma that fills the kitchen instantly.

The noodles swell well, are plentiful and have a great chew to them. The broth is packed with flavors that linger on your lips long after you have licked your bowl clean. And as the packet mentions, these are spicy but manageable spicy.

The broth is also slightly oily in nature but it works in its favor as it coats the noodles really well and not in an over bearing way.

I did not feel the need to garnish this with any additional meat or veggies. It’s a complete package in itself and I definitely need to stock up on these for rainy evenings!

Rating: 5/5

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62. MAMA Oriental Style Instant Noodles Pork Flavour (Imported)

Picked these up from my local grocery store here in Gurgaon for Rs 35/- !

I have had the minced pork flavor instant noodles by MAMA but the ones you get in Thailand. I liked them a lot and hence I got these. Lets see how these noods taste.

Cooking directions – Add noodles and seasoning to 350ml of boiling water. Cover and stand for 3 minutes. Stir occasionally before serving.

Some thin wheat noodles with soy sauce flavoring which are tasty even when eaten raw.

Seasoning has a heady porky aroma along with bits of dried leek. And the seasoning oil has a pungent fried shallot aroma to it.

How do they mess up the simple flavors?! There is rather unpleasant oily coating along with a weak, salty pork broth. The texture of the noods is standard MAMA stuff; plentiful with a nice gauge to them.

Ideally I would have liked to add some bacon chunks or strips but the entire dish was already too salty. Ended up adding come freshly chopped cilantro. Not too impressive.

Rating: 1.5/5

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61. KOKA Oriental Instant Noodles – Chicken Flavour

As unbelievable as it may sound, but every simple chicken flavored instant noodle variety gets me excited!

 These KOKA noodles are manufactured in Singapore and lately I have seen KOKA products in quite a few stores in India as well! In fact, a lot of KOKA instant noodle flavors are now available in India.

Cooking directions –

1. Place noodles into 400ml of boiling water and cook for 2 minutes.
2. Add seasoning and stir.
3. Transfer to bowl and serve.

Standard wheat noodles, slightly damaged because of long travels.

The soup base has that heady chicken broth aroma (which I love!) along with some dried chive flakes. And the seasoning oil, which has no mention at the back of the packet, seems to be spicy canola oil.

Strangely the packet doesn’t say anything about these being soupy in nature and they also seem to have forgotten to mention about the seasoning oil! Weird. I will take away ½ a point for lack of proper info (which I am very fussy about).

So firstly, while cooking these, I added lesser water than recommended. Secondly, the texture of these noodles is no doubt amazing! They are firm and chewy at the same time.

On the whole the dish looks bland and has a weak chicken flavor. However, the spicy flavoring oil does its job and adds the much needed spicy kick to it.

I was still not happy with how my plate looked, hence decided to add some pan fried spicy chicken sausages!

All in all, this is a bland but slightly spicy plate of instant noodles for you.

I am slightly perturbed by the fact that the information on the pack is grossly misleading and incomplete. I personally like to be sure of what I am buying to eat when not on the job. So I really do hope this review helps you make better decisions J

The products are always rated on their original taste!

Rating: 2.5/5

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59. Bonus Instant Noodles Vegetable Flavour

 

These are from Nepal, bought very kindly by my cook. Thank you Hari bhaiya! Even though he’s not sold by the idea of my noodle blog because now I eat less of what he cooks and more of instant noodles.

Cooking directions –

1. The noodles is pre cooked and it can be eaten directly from the packet.
2. Add noodles to 350ml of briskly boiling water and boil for 2-3 minutes.
3. Add seasoning of the sachets and stir gently.
4. Add fresh garnishing as desire and serve delicious Bonus noodles.

 These are wheat noodles, which have been pre cooked and ingredients, include – soy sauce, onion, tomato sauce and chilli sauce! Wow. Tomato sauce. Amamzing.

The seasoning powder is a mixture of curry powder and spices like – black pepper, turmeric, ginger, clove and cinnamon. Smells very similar to our maggi masala seasoning powder.

The seasoning oil is a vegetable oil with onion flavoring.

Firstly, I did eat these raw before cooking them but did not like them at all.

Secondly, as expected, the cooked version is a simple bowl if noodles. The noodles are thinner than standard instant noodles, springy and of course very flavorful.

The taste is an average “masala” taste. The broth is mildly spicy, flavorful and has an oiliness to it as well.

Rating: 2/5

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58. Nongshim Neoguri Udon Type Noodles Spicy Seafood Flavor

Korean ramyun by Nongshim manufactured in the US of A being eaten by a hungry Indian who dreams of visiting South Korea someday! #globalisation

 Nongshim’s Neoguri made its debut in 1982 and gained popularity for its thick Udon style noodles and distinct spicy seafood flavor.

Cooking directions –

1. Stove Top
   1. Boil 550 mL (about 2 1/3 cups) of water. Add noodles, soup base, and vegetable mix.
   2. Cook for 4-5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
   3. Remove from heat and serve.
2. Microwave (cooking time may vary depending on microwave)
   1. Put soup base and vegetable mixinto a microwavable bowl, then add noodles on top.
   2. Pour 500ml (about 2 cups) of room temperature water.
   3. Cook for 8 minutes. When using hot water, cook for 5 minutes.

 Here we have a broken but beautiful block of thick ramen noodles! Up until the release of Neoguri in 1982, Korean ramyun noodles had always been thin.

The soup base has a slightly spicy and a seafood-y aroma to it. And the vegetable mix contains a generous amount of kelp along with dehydrated seaweed, green onion and carrots.

Delicious, thick and chewy noodles in a flavorful and spicy broth. The broth definitely has a strong seafood flavor to it, like that of shrimp or mussels.

 

With every bite you can taste the warm spiciness and the rich seafood taste. Generous portions of dried kelp and other veggies help give both texture and taste to the soup/broth, adding a layer of flavor to these noodles.

The only thing working against me is the strong fishy/seafood smell. I know I have been complaining about this since long but my tolerance level has definitely increased and I do appreciate these noodles more now than I would have done before.

I decided to add a few strips of bacon and a slice of cheese because why not?

The cheese adds some richness to the broth while the bacon (apart from being delicious) cuts the strong seafood aroma. Feel free to add any veggies or meat of your choice and as much cheese as your heart pleases!

Just cannot wait to try the original in Korea! Fingers crossed!

Rating: 3.5/5

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55. Samyang Cheese Hot Chicken Flavor Ramen

Firstly and most importantly, THANK YOU Samyang Foods for sending all this spicy love my way from South Korea!

The same company, Samyang, sold this same product in a different black colored packaging earlier. They shifted the cheese flavored to a yellow packet because that makes it easier to distinguish, recognize and remember the cheese flavor from the regular one. But as far as I have gathered, the taste and spiciness is still the same!

 Cooking directions as on the back of the pack-

1. Put noodles into the 600ml boiling water for 5 minutes.
2. Please remove the water from noodles (remain 8 spoons of water) and put liquid soup into the noodles, stir-fry 30 seconds.
3. Put cheese powder and stir well and serve.

How I love a nice and fat noodle block! Also I cooked these for about 3 minutes in the boiling water because I like my ramen noods a little springy and with some chew to them.

The spicy sauce smells just great! And the cheese mixed with bits of dried nori and sesame seeds looks just like the Kraft Mac&Cheese cheese! Joy!

I would have preferred the nori and sesame seeds in a different sachet to be able to sprinkle on the top as garnishing.

My beautiful bowl of noodles, which smell fantastically spicy and cheesy!

First bite and I knew I was going to wipe this bowl clean! It is soooo tasty (also I am a sucker for all things spicy)!

The noodle quality is so good and on top of that the sauce is slightly sweet while being spicy and obviously cheesy but not in an overwhelming way! I could also taste a hint of ginger in there. Wow.

The sesame seeds add a bit of nuttiness, which is refreshing. However I did fail to taste the chicken flavor and not that it matters because these noods are delicious as is!

The little bit of cheese adds richness to it and it has a sour cheesy aroma that makes it all the more irresistible. And the best part is that it is not numbingly hot as the heat is manageable and one can still enjoy the flavors.

Lastly, I have more than a few “pro tips” this time –

1. Please be careful while inhaling and eating these noods, you don’t want the bowl too close to your nose. Yes it is that spicy!
2. Keep a few tissues handy.
3. Do not sip water in the middle. Learn from mistakes.

Rating: 5/5

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53. Maggi Magic Asia – Ente (Duck)

Another pack of Maggi from Germany! And these are duck flavored! How exciting!!

I am not a big fan of duck meat, however I did like the Pa-lo duck flavored noodles by MAMA, so lets see what this has to offer.

 Cooking Instructions (the best I could do to translate) –

1. Put the noodles with the seasoning in a small bowl.
2. Add 300ml of boiling water, let it rest for 4 minutes and stir occasionally.
3. Tip: add seasoning according to taste.

The only thing I did differently was that I cooked these on the stove but used the same amount of water mentioned on the pack.

These are fried wheat noodles and are slightly thinner than average instant noodles.

The seasoning has a weak duck aroma and I could spot chunks of green and orange which, I am guessing, are dehydrated green onions and carrots respectively.

What a simple looking bowl of noods!

Unfortunately the broth again is too salty for my liking but the noods have a good crumble and a slight chew to them. The thinness of the noodles compliment the texture of this broth really well.

There is also a hint of lime or sourness (so those green bits could be kaffir leaves too! If anyone knows more on this, do let me know). This combination of lime and duck don’t work for me at all.

I decided to add some freshly chopped spring onions and a spoonful of seaweed and chilli crunch to cut the sourness and add some spice to this bowl.

Definitely a better take on the original noodles, however the rating is based on the unadulterated dish.

Rating: 2/5

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52. Maggi Magic Asia – Curry

First sample of German made instant noodles and another country added to the list! And its none other than Maggi produced in Germany!!

From what I can read on the packet and understand is that this is a “noodle snack” and “curry” flavor the most common word associated with Asian cuisine. And this seems to be mildly spicy as only one red chilli is highlighted out of the total 4.

Also this should be ready in about 4 minutes using hot water!

 Cooking instructions (the best I could do to translate) –

1. Put the noodles with the seasoning in a small bowl.
2. Add 300ml of boiling water, let it rest for 4 minutes and stir occasionally.
3. Tip: add seasoning according to taste.

The only thing I did differently was that I cooked this on the stove.

These are fried wheat noodles and look thinner compared to the Maggi noodle block we get in India.

The seasoning however has an aroma very similar to the Indian version of Maggi masala although this one has a lighter shade. You can also see specks of dried green onions. Or is it leek?

 This does resemble the Indian version of Maggi masala although the noodles are thinner and the “curry” looks weaker.

The noods have a good crumble to them but the curry is way too salty for my liking. I found the broth a little bland as well.

Decided to quickly sauté some mushrooms and chicken sausages in pepper and butter! The mushrooms complement the dish well and the sausages added the much needed flavor! I did manage to finish this bowl though 🙂

However, rating are given on the basis of the original dish.

Rating: 3/5

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49. Nongshim Soon Veggie Noodle Soup

Believe me I am always looking out for vegetarian options even though it might not seem like that considering I have hardly eaten/reviewed veg noods in the last 4-5 months!

 It is so tough coming across good vegetarian options but in Nongshim I believe! So please be nice to me.

Cooking directions –

1. Stove Top
   • Boil 500ml (about 2 cups) of water. Add noodles, soup base and vegetable mix.
   • Cook for 4-5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
   • Remove from heat and serve.
2. Microwave (cooking time may vary depending on microwaves)
   • Put soup base and vegetable mix into a microwavable bowl, then add noodles on top.
   • Pour 450ml (about 1 ¾ cups) of room temperature water.
   • Cook for 7 minutes. When using hot water, cook for 4 minutes.

A big, round, non-destroyed, ramen noodle block and the noodles are thick but not too thick. Just the way I like them.

The soup base has a pleasant aroma and seems to be mildly spicy just like the packet states.

And the vegetable mix is a colorful affair with bits of carrot and choy sum.

 The first thing that came to my mind while cooking these noods on the stove was that it has an aroma similar to Indian Maggi! And I love Maggi!

As expected the ramen noodles are brilliant without a doubt with the right amount of chew to them. The broth does indeed taste similar to Maggi. Also the broth is flavorful and mildly spicy and the veggies hydrated well. What more can you ask for?

I think there should be some kind of a rule to add mushrooms chunks to the vegetable mix of vegetarian noodles!

So I took the liberty of sautéing some shrooms in butter and pepper and I am pretty glad about it!

This is going to my must-have-at-home-at-all-times list.

Pro tip: even if you don’t have or want to add mushrooms, do add a pinch of black pepper post cooking these noods, it elevates the taste to greater heights.

Rating: 5/5

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The Nood Box !!

You know how I keep eating my favorite noodles every other day and then tease you with images of those yummy yummy babies? Not fair right?!

Well that is about to change, because now YOU can eat them too! Yes I need to balance my “karma account” and thus I introduce – THE NOOD BOX !!

The Nood Box has some of my favoritest noodles ever! You can read up more on them by clicking on the links below or scroll through images at the bottom.

NOOD BOX 01 (SOLD OUT)

2 x Indomie Mi Goreng (from Indonesia)

2 x Lucky Me! Pancit Canton Sweet & Spicy (from Philippines)

1 x Metallic pair of Korean chopsticks

NOOD BOX 02 (SOLD OUT)

2 x Indomie Mi Goreng – Satay Flavor (from Indonesia)

2 x Lucky Me! Pancit Canton Sweet & Spicy (from Philippines)

1 x wooden pair of Japanese chopsticks

Priced at Rs 500/- per box inclusive of shipping within India. And accepting advance payment via Paytm only.

Please Direct Message us on Instagram @instantnoodleme !! Now! Now! Now! And i will #sendnoods ! 😛

Hurry because limited stock noodlers!

Regards,

Shruti G.

Indomie – Mi Goreng Fried Noodles

 

Lucky Me! Pancit Canton Sweet & Spicy

 

Indomie – Mi Goreng – Satay Flavor