Korean instant noodles are becoming hugely popular in India. The adventurous young generation is out seeking new exciting flavors and the quickest way to get a taste of faraway lands is through readily available food like instant noodles. There are many varieties of Korean instant noodles. If you are unsure about their taste or want to know more about them, then this Korean instant ramen noodle review is surely going to help you.
Growing up in India, Maggie instant noodles always dominated the market. Other instant noodle brands like Top Ramen, Wai-wai, Yippie, Chings, Patanjali noodles were bought by people who wanted something different than Maggie. But options were limited. Today if you walk into any supermarket, you can find a wide variety of noodles including imported ones like Korean instant ramen.
Korean instant noodles cost a bit more than the readily available Indian counterparts. One packet of Korean instant noodles would cost you INR 70-100. But if you haven’t tried any yet, definitely give it a go. This Korean instant ramen noodle review is there to help you to select the type of noodle according to your taste.
Samyang Buldak Carbonara
Let start with the mildest one. Samyang Buldak Carbonara hot chicken flavor ramen comes in a cute pink packet. These are flat noodles and comes in a round shape. Inside the packet, you will find two sachets containing one hot sauce which contains a wide variety of pepper powder and cheese powder.
Cooking directions are provided at the back of the packet. Put the Samyang Buldak Carbonara noodles into 500ml of boiling water for 5 mins. After 5 mins, leave about 8-10 spoons of water in the noodles and drain the rest. Put the liquid hot sauce first, stir it and then add the cheese powder. Mix it properly and your noodle is ready.
Taste: The Samyang Bulkdak Carbonara is very mild. Although you can detect the hot spicy sauce, the cheese powder balances it perfectly. The noodle texture was good, not hard or too soft. In fact, due to the flat shape of the noodle, it felt like the Korean version of the fettuccine or flat Italian spaghetti noodle. There was no soup in this noodle. The water that was left combined with the hot sauce and cheese powder to become a delicious sauce for the noodles.
Spice rating would be 2 out of 10. Perfectly suitable for people who prefer mild or want to try the cheesy version of Korean instant noodles for a change.
Samyang Buldak Cheese
The Samyang Buldak cheese hot chicken flavor ramen is packed in a cute yellow-colored packet. The round-shaped noodles are packed in a square shape. Inside the packet, you will find two sachets. One containing the hot sauce and the second containing cheese powder.
Cook the noodles in boiling water for 5 mins. After that drain the water while leaving behind 8 spoons of water. Put the sauce and stir fry it for 30seconds. Mix the cheese powder and your Cheese Buldak is ready.
Taste: It was different than my expectations. From the packet and its cheese in its name, I thought these noodles would be more cheesy or similar to carbonara. It was not. These noodles were quite spicy. Flavour was good, the noodle texture was fine, the only part that I wasn’t expecting was the spice.
Spice rating would be 4 out of 10. It was not too hot but had a sharp edge. This would be best for people who love cheese and chili. You can also tweak it a bit by adding some extra cheese.
Samyang Jjajang
The Samyang Jjajang hot chicken-flavored ramen noodles come in a light green-colored packet. Jjajangmyeon is a Chinese-style Korean noodle prepared in black bean sauce. Inside the packet, as usual, there are 2 sachets. One containing the black bean sauce, other contains the seasoning which also includes veggies.
The clothing method is similar to other Samyang noodles. Put the noodles and the flakes(the seasoning containing the veggies) in boiling water and cook for 5 minutes. Leave behind 8-10 spoons of water and drain the rest. Mix the sauce and stir fry it for 30 seconds.
I should start the samyang jajangmyeon review with the main ingredient, the black bean sauce. It was delicious. The entire noodle was coated with the thick black bean sauce bringing out the flavor in every bite. While adding the sauce, you will get a pungent odor but that disappears once the noodles are cooked. You can also see bits of vegetables like green peas, carrots, onion, and more which brings a crunch. Overall, Samyang jjajang lived up to its expectations.
Samyang Jjajang instant noodles have the right amount of heat in them. A 3 out of 10 would justify it.
Samyang Buldak
The stir-fried instant noodle comes in a black packet with an image of a fiery mouth. The hot chicken flavor ramen is undoubtedly on the spicier side of the range. There are 2 sachets inside the pack. One for sauce and the other for seasoning.
To cook the Samyang Buldak, cook it in boiling water for 5 mins and drain the water leaving behind 8 spoons. Put the liquid sauce and stir fry for 30 seconds. Mix the seasoning and enjoy.
As soon as you pour the liquid sauce you can see the dark red sauce posing a huge contrast against the white noodles. As soon as take a few bites you can feel the heat. Flavorful but spicy. The red color noodles mixed with sesame seeds and seaweed flakes are a perfect combination.
In terms of heat, Samyang Buldak is a 6 out of 10. If you want to try spicy Korean instant noodles, then definitely go for it.
Samyang Buldak 2x Spicy
The image of a bomb and lightning flashes on the bright red color packet is enough to make people understand that this noodle is not for the faint-hearted. The Samyang Buldak 2x spicy
Hot chicken flavor ramen is exactly what the packet describes it. Everything is similar to the Samyang Buldak mentioned above. The main difference lies in the sauce.
Cooking instructions are also similar to the Samyang Buldak and the appearance of the 2x spicy is the same. The sauce this time was much spicier and you could feel it from the smell.
From the very first bite itself, these spicy Korean instant noodles start spreading the heat. When you keep eating you can gradually feel the heat on your tongue, throat, lips. A little while later, when I was midway through my noodles, my nose started watering. It is a funny thing that to keep the heat down the amount of water you drink along with this noodle can make you full easily.
By the time you finish the noodle, you can understand why it is trending on social media and why numerous you-tubers have taken up eating this noodle as a challenge. Although they often go overboard, my advice would be to stick to the classic and think twice before you take up any challenge with these Korean fire noodles.
However I would like to add something, the 2x spicy may score well in terms of spice but somehow it fell short in terms of flavor. I think the heat and spicy subdued all the other flavors and that is where the previous one, Samyang Buldak tasted better.
As per my observation, on a scale of 1 to 10, Samyang Buldak 2x spicy measures up to 7. If you like spicy, then try this noodle is a must-try.
Nongshim Kimchi Shin Ramyun Noodle
In the raw form, the kimchi flavored shin ramyun instant noodles are similar to other Korean instant noodles, however, you can spot the difference between samyang and nongshim noodles after they are cooked. It is the seasoning that makes all the difference.
The method of cooking nongshim kimchi ramyun is also different front he samyang noodles. Here you need to boil 500 ml of water and add the noodles, soup powder, and flakes. Cook this mixture for 4 minutes, then serve.
A strong but well-balanced kimchi flavor is the first thing that I would like to mention in my nongshim kimchi ramyun review. The soup and noodles have absorbed the seasoning evenly. You can even find small bites of kimchi in it. While cooking you may get a slight pungent kimchi smell but that doesn’t affect the taste of the noodles. You would not be able to even detect the smell later.
The nongshim kimchi ramyun noodles are good to go in the spice meter too. Rating 3 out of 10, these nongshim noodles are a perfect fit for all.
Nongshim Shin Ramyun
The classic Nongshim Shin Ramyun instant noodle was the most delicious of my noodle lot. I could finally understand the reason behind its popularity after tasting it myself. Comes in a bright red color packet with a big Korean letter in front, you can easily find this noodle in Amazon, Flipkart, and other similar e-commerce stores.
Cooking instructions for nongshim noodles are similar. Hence here too, boil 500 of water and add noodles, soup powder, and seasonings to it. Cook well and serve.
Nongshim instant noodles are soup-based. And that is the best part. While the noodle retains its texture, it also absorbs the flavor from the soup. The soup itself is delicious and complements the noodles by enhancing all the flavors.
Shin ramyun has a low spice level. It would be the same as that of nongshim kimchi and therefore scores a 3 out of 10. But it tasted so good that you would not even notice the lack of heat. Every element comes together to create this yummy instant noodle.