Noodle Journey Episode 120: Lotus Foods Millet & Brown Rice Ramen with Red Miso Soup

Time to continue my Lotus Foods run with their Millet & Brown Rice Ramen with Red Miso Soup. It has been a while since I touched this brand because the white miso variety landed in my bottom five and the turmeric curry was only okay. The ingredient choices in the noodles were never the problem with this brand like you might think – it was always the flavor of the soup. I picked this one to review now because I recently saw it on a “healthiest ramen” list and I want to know if red miso, which is usually the most bold, funky of the miso varieties, finally gives Lotus Foods a broth with real character. Here’s a quick primer on miso if you’re unfamiliar: white is mild and sweet, yellow leans earthier, and red is the strongest and most pungent, the kind you often find in ramen shop miso soups.

Inside the pack are millet-and-brown-rice noodles; a powdered soup base with red miso powder, onion powder, seaweed, garlic, ginger, parsley, and chili pepper. Sodium is 920 mg, which is on the low side for anything I’ve ever seen labeled “red miso.” Be warned that this noodle brick is dense and sticky and will take quite a bit of teasing to get it apart during the 4-minute cooking time.

Noodles:
Even after cooking the recommended amount of time, I found the noodles clumpy and not great at clinging to the broth. However on their own, they hold together well and keep a firm, springy bite. The texture itself is solid even though there’s not much interplay with the broth.
• 7/10

Spiciness:
Chili pepper is on the label, but I barely notice any heat.
• 1/10

Overall:
The aroma at first gave me hope. It smells like red miso with seaweed and a little onion, pretty pleasant honestly. But as far as flavor, it felt underpowered. I got red miso, yet without the typical salty pop that miso really needs to shine, so the soup ended up pretty bland for my taste. The seaweed bits were a pleasant surprise and added some texture, but the tiny carrot flecks were few and unimpressive. Onion showed up a little in the flavor profile, while the promised additions of garlic, ginger, and parsley stayed buried as far as I could detect. As a low-sodium, gluten-free option, this is probably the best Lotus Foods cup I have reviewed so far, which is faint praise, but it is something. A pinch of salt or a shake of MSG would help it along. As sold, it’s fine if you need the dietary benefits this brings, but you can probably skip this one if you don’t have gluten issues.
• 6/10