Month: May 2007

Opening myself up to comments over my instant noodle consumption here is a review of the one I ate today.

Picture will be placed here later.

The first thing that impressed me about the noodles was the price. I’m pretty sure they cost something in the neighbourhood of 50 cents, which is pretty damn cheap. Opening it up I find that it has noodles (the wheat kind), a soup packet and a chili oil packet.

The soup is pretty hot. Definitely hotter than yesterday’s. It also has less sweetness and maybe more sour to it. There is no hint of coconut milk in it (real or otherwise). Still, it is a pretty good tasting soup, and would be a good option if you find Thai food to be too sweet.

The noodles scared me. They were the thin wheat noodles that I don’t like. The package states that they are air dried instead of fried, and maybe that’s the difference because as I ate them their texture didn’t bother me.

Soup: 7/10 – A bit of a simpler soup, which while done well would do better as a hot and sour soup instead of a Tom Yam soup. I expect a bit more from a Tom Yam soup.

Noodles: 7/10 – While they were the thin wheat noodles, they were done well.

Overall: 7/10

It’s worth keeping in mind that these noodles cost 1/2 to 2/3 as much as yesterday’s. If I were really broke then I’d prefer these ones for sure, as it is Tomoko can afford the extra 40 cents so I’d take yesterday’s instead.

Yesterday at Sun Wah Tomoko and I went a little overboard in the instant noodle section. After unpacking everything at home we resolved to make notes of the noodle’s we got so that we’d know which ones were worth getting again so today I tried my first one.

First looking at the package we can learn many things:

1. These noodles are made with Japanese technology so are obviously a high quality product
2. If the name says the product is good, it must be good
3. They are certified halal by the Islamic community of Ho Chi Minh City (one great thing about SE Asia is that if something can be certified halal it will be, makes things so much easier)
4. Judging from all the languages, this fine product is enjoyed in many countries

Opening it up I am amazed by the number of different packets inside: noodles, soup powder, soup paste, chili oil and dried vegetables (including mini dried shrimp). But following the directions I just empty everything into my bowl, add hot water and wait. Three minutes later it is ready to be eaten.

Before continuing, a word on Tomyum flavour instant noodles. The Tomyum noodle is based on the Thai soup of the same name. The soup is spicy, sour and slightly sweet (from whatever they have in place of coconut milk). Not everyone likes the taste (Tomoko doesn’t) but I do. In Japan there was a brand of Tomyum noodles that I loved which used regular instant noodle noodles. The one I bought yesterday used bean vermicelli, aka glass noodles.

The soup itself isn’t very strong coloured (the one in Japan was a colourful mix of white and red). Picking up some of the noodles in my chopsticks (instant noodles taste better with chopsticks, and are easier to eat too) I don’t see a lot of the soup on the noodles, but I’m hoping that what I can’t see I can still taste. I’m right, the noodles have a good amount of the soup flavour on them. The soup is a good balance of spicy, sour and sweet. Not as spicy as the one I liked in Japan, but that’s a good thing.

That being said, I’m not a huge fan of the noodles themselves – they’re a bit too chewy, but that has more to do with the type of noodle than anything else. Plus they’re straight, and I prefer the wavy shape used by instant wheat noodles. While I’d prefer wheat instant noodle noodles, these ones were still much better than the ones used by Mama brand instant noodles which while being wheat noodles, are too thin and have a strange mouth feel.

I’d give the soup a 9 out of 10. Tomyum is a difficult flavour to make instant noodles out of and these guys did a great job.
For the noodles they get a 7 out of 10. While I would have preferred standard wheat noodles, the bean vermicelli makes a fun change, and definitely isn’t out of place in the dish as a whole.

So the final verdict is an 8 out of 10. A very good instant noodle product that could easily join Shin Ramen as the choice “can’t be bothered to make anything” component of a well-balanced diet.