I know what you’re thinking: why am I reviewing something as pedestrian as the Nissin Top Ramen Beef Flavor Bowl? Well, I have my reasons, and they involve getting a proper baseline for the product before I review the Nissin x Bachan’s Top Ramen bowls I mentioned in last month’s news post. I’ve had the pack version of this flavor countless times in the past prior to starting the channel, but I’ve never had the bowl before. Imagine my surprise that this comes with an additional sauce packet, which is completely absent from the pack version.
The Verdict:
| Product: | Nissin Top Ramen Beef Flavor Bowl |
| Origin: | Japan (Manufactured in the USA) |
| Noodle Quality: | 6.5/10 |
| Spice Level: | 0/10 |
| Overall Score: | 6.5/10 |
When I was in my 20s-30s, I wasn’t any kind of fiend for the Top Ramen Beef packs the way I am nowadays with stuff like Nongshim Shin Black Ramyun, but I did always have one or two in my pantry just in case I needed something fast, cheap, and easy to make. I very much preferred the Beef flavor over the Chicken, Shrimp, and Soy Sauce flavors (although back in those days they were still calling it “Oriental” for some damn reason). So I guess I am kind of familiar with this flavor going back a ways, but I haven’t had it in at least 4 years, and I’ve never paid it the same amount of attention I would when doing an actual review, so there’s that.
This flavor is available all over the USA from just about every supermarket around. If you’ve truly never tried it and are interested in it after this review, it isn’t remotely difficult to find.
Inside the bowl, we’ve got 3-minute Top Ramen noodles, which are different from the 5-minute Top Ramen noodles I reviewed in the HotPot Fusions line recently. There’s also a soup powder, sauce, and dried vegetables. There’s no distinction on the ingredients label between the soup base and the cause, but between the two you’ve got beef fat, oyster sauce, egg white, garlic powder, onion powder, soy, vinegar, and various spices. Based on the aroma of the sauce, I’m pretty certain that is where the oyster sauce and vinegar reside. The dried veggies are carrot, corn, green onion, leek, and red bell pepper. The total sodium is 1520mg.
Noodles:
Surprisingly not bad. They’re definitely a step down from the quality in the HotPot Fusions bowls, but they come out of the microwave pretty sturdy and only a little cheap-feeling. Of course like many Nissin noodles, the longer they sit, the softer they get, but I’m not mad at these.
- 6.5/10
Spiciness:
No spice here at all.
- 0/10
Overall:
So look, this isn’t going to win any awards, but it is actually decent enough for what it is. Mostly, I’m surprised by the hefty amount of vegetables in here, which I wasn’t expecting. There’s an absolute ton of carrots and also a good amount of red bell peppers too, giving a good crunch and contrasting texture to the noodles. Plus, they’re flavorful, which is always good. The broth without the sauce packet tasted very similar to, if not identical to, what I recall the pack version tasting like – it’s a salty beef base with a hit of ginger and not much else. It’s also much less powder than what comes in the packet versions (if I remember correctly), so you really need to add the sauce, otherwise the flavor feels very diluted. Once the sauce is added, the broth takes on the sweet and sour aspects that you’d associate with oyster sauce and vinegar, and it certainly livens things up. For my own liking, I’d rather have had the sauce be a little less sweet and a little more savory, and maybe that would’ve put this into the category of something I’d buy a bit more regularly. It’s not bad, and it’s certainly not the cheap-feeling experience I was expecting given my history with the packs, but I would’ve liked just a bit more umami out of it, and even a pinch more salt would’ve been nice. Maybe the Bachan’s collaborations will give this broth base the flavor boost I’m after.
- 6.5/10
Continuing the Journey
- If you’re looking for more Nissin beef noodles with added protein, check out Nissin Cup Noodles Protein Rich & Savory Beef Flavor.
- For a vegan beef option (also with extra protein), you might enjoy Chef Woo Braised Beef Flavor Ramen.
- For a similar cheaper supermarket beef ramen option, there’s also Roland Beef Flavor Noodles Cup.
