Favorite Ramen Brand and Flavor

[weinoo]

Every once in a while, I get the urge.  

 

The urge for a bowl of ramen, that is.  

 

Now, I'm fortunate enough that I live within walking distance of probably 10 good ramen places, including Ivan Ramen, Minca, and the new Ramen Lab, to name a few.  As Robert (I don't have tastebuds left) Sietsema will tell you, vis-à-vis Ramen Lab:

 

The shoyu ramen, on the other hand, was one of the most perfect bowls of ramen imaginable, the broth light and dancing with droplets of oil, the pork slices perfectly rendered to be soft and yielding. The fish cake was simply fish cake, but the elements came together in a way that delighted. The noodles, in particular, were perfect. In fact, they grabbed center stage. When was the last time you eagerly ate the noodles in your bowl of ramen until they were gone, ignoring the other elements? The ones in the shoyu broth were gossamer thin, while the ones in the miso were thick and slightly firmer. Really, you can’t get better noodles than these.

 

 

 

Anyway, ever since David Chang gave me the OK (though I refuse to eat them like a Dorito), I sometimes make ramen at home.  And when I can't get the great fresh noodles from Sun Noodle Company, I'll resort to using the classic dried ramen, usually sans the "flavor" packet. I'll gussy it up with some bit of veg, maybe some leftover chicken or what have you, some ginger, some vinegar, some soy, etc. Oh, and an egg.

 

My questions to all of you are:

 

What's your favorite brand of dried ramen noodles? 

 

What "flavor" do you like?

Edited January 13, 2015 by weinoo (log)

[Hassouni]

Myojo Chukazanmai. Not only are the noodles not fried, but rather dried the old fashioned way, but they come out with much better taste and texture. The flavors are far more interesting too. They have a really good shio flavor, and also a plain miso and spicy miso.  

 

A bit more expensive (a couple bucks per pack) but head and shoulders above anything else, and not much more than those big Nong Shim Shin Ramyun bowls.

[GlorifiedRice]

Does this count?

 

https://isleoframen.files.wordpress.com/2010/04/day_58_front.jpg

[johnnytakes5]

I'm a big fan of the Nongshim Ramyum noodles. It's my treat on the weekends. We add our homemade kimchi, an egg, and whatever left over protein that's in the fridge. The consistency and quality of the noodles are solid. It goes well with other broths, whether homemade or bouillon. We can usually find it on sale at our local Korean market. 

[Shel_B]

I'm a big fan of the Nongshim Ramyum noodles. It's my treat on the weekends. We add our homemade kimchi, an egg, and whatever left over protein that's in the fridge. The consistency and quality of the noodles are solid. It goes well with other broths, whether homemade or bouillon. We can usually find it on sale at our local Korean market. 

 

I've never heard of those noodles ... I'll have to look for them.  They sound much better than the supermarket fried ramen packages.  Thanks for posting!

[Hassouni]

Nong Shim is second to Myojo Chukazanmai in my book, but the latter tastes more "real"

[johnnytakes5]

I've never heard of those noodles ... I'll have to look for them.  They sound much better than the supermarket fried ramen packages.  Thanks for posting!

I believe the Nongshim noodles are fried, like traditional instant noodles. I accidentally missed the "dried ramen" portion of the original post. 

 

I'll have to check out the Myojo Cukazanmai's as well!

Edited January 13, 2015 by johnnytakes5 (log)

[huiray]

I think it is a mistake to consider "ramen packs" or "instant noodles" with disdain nowadays, including the flavoring/sauce packs that they come with.  Unless one knows only the "low quality" type of stuff.  My local Chinese grocery, for example, has maybe 30-40 feet of shelves, from ceiling to floor, stuffed full of all sorts of ramen and noodle packs from all regions of E/SE Asia, as well as stuff now made in the USA under the brand names of stuff that originated from E/SE Asia.  Many of them are QUITE GOOD.  Many, MANY of them contain air-dried noodles/ramen, rather than the fried stuff that USED to be the norm.  Myojo Chukazanmai stuff (Japanese) is quite good, but is NOT the only game in town.

 

I don't have a particular favorite.  I use and eat a lot of them, with all sorts of gussying up as desired.  I've posted about many of these on the dinner, lunch (not recently) and breakfast (not for a while now, but I used to) threads repeatedly.  The best "ramen"/noodles I've had (just talking about the noodles) have been, to date, from the Prima Taste (Singaporean) brand and Nong Shim (Nong Shim Black, not the "standard" one) brands.  Better than Myojo Chukazanmai and perhaps even Sun Noodles, in my opinion.

[CatPoet]

Nissin  or Samyang ramen is what I go for because fresh ramen  well I think it is 4  hour west of me or  6 hour north where there is a place that sell fresh,

 

I am most likely the odd one, but I like  sour noodle soup,  Mrs Sakura taught me that and that is what I like,

[Jaymes]

Samyang Hot & Spicy seafood flavor.

 

Our family has loved these since my husband spent a year in Korea several decades back.

 

https://shopping.yahoo.com/1521195145-instant-noodle-ramen-korean-hot-spicy-seafood-flavor-samyang-ganchampong-493-oz-5-packs-stir-fried/?bfr=50.0

[huiray]

The urge for a bowl of ramen, that is.  

 

(snip)

 

...And when I can't get the great fresh noodles from Sun Noodle Company, ...

 

BTW I assume you have used (or are aware of) the packages of Tonkotsu and Shoyu ramen, complete with the seasoning packages appropriate to each, that are produced by Sun Noodle themselves?

 

I've posted about meals using the pre-packaged Tonkotsu Ramen (with said sauce/seasoning packs, which furnish the appropriate MILKY stock), with add-ins as I felt like it, for example here and here.  (and if you have not had these before I would suggest that you NOT throw out the "flavor packages" as you intimate you do in most cases in your OP)

 

Just for the hell of it I add here as well what I had a few days ago (predating this thread) where I made a bowl of Nong Shim Kimchi noodles gussied up w/ kkakdugi, hot capicola, "pull mustard" (雪裡紅), broccoli florets & a couple of eggs poached in situ.

 

(A bowl of "ramen" can encompass a great deal more than a specific type of specifically Japanese food dish, which itself is an adaptation of dishes from other culinary traditions.  ;-) )

Edited January 15, 2015 by huiray (log)

[Shelby]

Myojo Chukazanmai. Not only are the noodles not fried, but rather dried the old fashioned way, but they come out with much better taste and texture. The flavors are far more interesting too. They have a really good shio flavor, and also a plain miso and spicy miso.  

 

A bit more expensive (a couple bucks per pack) but head and shoulders above anything else, and not much more than those big Nong Shim Shin Ramyun bowls.

As soon as I read this thread, I clicked over to my trusty Amazon.com and searched for these noodles.  BAM, there they were and I ordered.

 

I'm testing them this morning for breakfast  I've never had ramen that came with both the dry seasoning packet and a wet one.    I'm very happy with these.  Yes, they are more expensive than some, but they don't leave that "oily" feel in my mouth like the fried ones do.

 

Thank you Hassouni!

 

[huiray]

I've never had ramen that came with both the dry seasoning packet and a wet one.  

 

 

There are a lot of them out there nowadays with dry+wet sauce packets (multiple) in each package, some with ONLY wet packets in them...  Many are quite good.  Shelby, consider spending some time browsing the shelves of the biggest "Asian" market/grocery in Kansas City the next time you are in there for the ramen/instant noodle packs they carry, assuming they have a varied selection.  Perhaps they have various other non-fried noodles/ramen brands/varieties you might consider trying too.  I sometimes forget that large selections of such stuff is not found everywhere.

 

ETA:  In fact, I have various Myojo Chukazanmai packages, different varieties, that languish in my larder (yes, I first tried Myojo Chukazanmai stuff years ago ) - because I seldom prefer them over other brands that I eat and in fact in some aspects don't especially care for the Myojo Chukazanmai stuff when compared w/ some other good ones I go to.  But as they say - to each his or her own.  :-)

Edited January 18, 2015 by huiray (log)

[ChrisTaylor]

Hitting Prima Taste's Singapore Curry for breakfast because, hey, fuck cereal. They're ... good. Really good. I say this as someone that hasn't really enjoyed instant noodles as an adult. The back of the packaging claims you can add chicken, tofu, vegetables and whatnot for an 'indulgent' meal. I thought this was pish but, no, the noodles are good enough doing so would make for a completely respectable midweek meal.

 

The seasoning came in two packages: a powder and a curry paste, the latter being no different in appearance or aroma to a decent quality store-bought paste. Far removed from the little sachet of oil jacked with shallots, garlic and mystery bits (I have to say: if you're new to noodles with a liquid- or sludge-based seasoning, you're really out of the loop--even the cheap and cheerful Indomie Mi Goreng has a kit-built approach to flavouring agents). The noodles--air-dried--have a significantly longer cook time than most instant noodles. Unsurprisingly, considering they're air-dried rather than deep-fried (i.e. pre-cooked). 

 

EDIT

 

I should add that over the past week or so I've picked up a packet or two of most of the noodles described in this thread. Prima Taste is the only one to impress me so far, although the Myojo ones--some kind of potato flavour--weren't bad.

 

EDIT 2

 

Some nice little design touches, too. Like making the cake into a circular shape that'll nicely fit into a medium-ish saucepan. 

[Renn]

Talking strictly about the brick noodles themselves...I tend to prefer those that use potato starch.

 

Back to Nongshim specifically, 2:30 is my personal sweetspot for cooking, and while I know many like to ditch the seasoning packet altogether, if you use it like you would use salt to season a broth, there's a really wonderful complexity hidden within it.  At normal use levels, the spice, salt and MSG blow everything to kingdom come.

 

For something different, I'm also a big fan of Indomie Mie Goreng Kereting Spesial...Indonesian Dry Fried Noodles.

[Beebs]

Nissin all the way.  And not the cup noodles - it must be the package ones that you need to cook.  Growing up, my mom would feed us Nissin for breakfast or lunch.  Now it's comfort food.

 

My go-to flavour is tonkatsu, and there's a black garlic flavour that's tasty too.  They used to carry laksa and tom yung flavours, both really good, but I think they might be discontinued.

 

And I also like the cartoon kid on the package!

[CatPoet]

Did any one try the chocolate pot noodles, when they existed?

 

I remember Nissin making creamy sauces for their noodles and  it didnt catch on here in Sweden.

[huiray]

Today I had Prima Taste Singapore Laksa La Mian, augmented w/ chikuwa, aburaage, mung bean sprouts & chopped scallions.

 

Other posts regarding the Prima Taste Laksa package...here, here and here (scroll down).

 

A post here about the Prima Taste Singapore Curry La Mian, the same package (I would imagine) that ChrisTaylor had above.

Edited January 20, 2015 by huiray (log)