Detailed instant noodle reviews and ratings – watch, read, and discover your next favorite.
Way, way, way back in episode 9 on the channel, I reviewed a classic from Samyang: their plain old original flavor ramen in the orange packaging. And it was really good. At the time, I made a note to myself that I would like to try the South Korean version of Samyang Original Ramen someday to see how it compares to the export version, so lo and behold that day is now! This product dates all the way back to 1963 and seems to be pretty much a staple in South Korea.
This is an interesting-sounding product that Nongshim stealthily discontinued selling in the USA recently during their big website/product line refresh: Nongshim Gamjatangmyun. That's a shame, because at least on paper, this isn't something I've really seen from any other Korean noodle manufacturers. I just so happen to still have one of these I picked up a while back, so this review is here in case Nongshim ever brings this flavor back to the US or if any of you would like to buy it from South Korea. I believe this may also still be available in other markets under the name "Kamjatangmyun."
There's no denying that Samyang's hype machine with their Buldak product line has been a major force in the noodle industry throughout the last several years. For a while, you couldn’t scroll through social media without seeing someone demolishing a bowl of the original Hot Chicken flavor (or 2x or even 3x nowadays). While it seems like that trend has calmed down a bit, Buldak has done something that very few Korean brands had managed to do before now: infiltrate non-Asian grocery stores. Even those big-name supermarket chains that, a decade ago, would've pointed to Frank's RedHot as the spiciest thing in their aisles are now selling Buldak noodles to unassuming consumers. So as with most things with this much hype and exposure, the inevitable backlash has already been in full swing for a couple years now. When something becomes more of a dare than a dish, it stops being about taste and starts being about spectacle, and I feel like that's pushed many consumers into the realm of false assumptions about what Buldak is or isn't.
Since Nongshim Shin Ramyun is what started this channel, I am ending my Shin countdown from the last few episodes with something really special. I'm going to review both of these recent Nongshim x Jay Fai Shin Ramyun Tom Yum flavors that have been made in collaboration with legendary Thai street chef Jay Fai.
This one today is probably one of the more interesting varieties of the Nongshim countdown to episode 200 and it's also taken the internet by storm recently. It is a product that requires a little bit of explanation if you haven't heard of it: this is Nongshim Shin Ramyun Toomba Stir Fry.
Today's review is going to be an interesting one, I hope. I'll be reviewing and comparing the relatively new American version of Nongshim Shin Ramyun Stir Fry spicy beef flavor with its South Korean Shin Ramyun Stir Fry counterpart. A while back I ordered this Shin Ramyun stir fry flavor from South Korea and I didn't get around to reviewing it at the time because other things caught my attention, you know how it goes. Since then, Shin Stir Fry has started popping up in other places around the world, including on American store shelves in new English friendly packaging. Unlike some situations where the American version is made in California, these are actually both manufactured in South Korea but one's specifically for sale in the USA and one's specifically for sale in South Korea. You'd think the ingredients would be largely the same just like they were in the Shin Red and Shin "The Red" that I just reviewed, but they're not. I'll get into the key differences below.
We're counting down to episode 200 with more Nongshim Shin reviews! Today is a double-review of some of the hottest entries in the Shin product line. We've got the version sold in America, Nongshim Shin Ramyun Red Fiery Spicy Beef flavor, and we've got the version sold overseas, Nongshim Shin Ramyun "The Red." Now, I personally, along with many others on the internet, have been calling the original Shin Ramyun "Shin Red" for years now, but that was never its official name. It was something we referred to it as colloquially. So now that these products exist, I guess we all have to stop doing that! There are officially two Shin Reds now, and these are both super spicy versions of the original Shin Ramyun recipe.
Today's review starts a countdown to episode 200 with five Nongshim reviews in a row, and this Nongshim Shin Ramyun Vegan variety is the first one on the list. Aaaall the way back in episodes 1 and 2, I reviewed Shin Ramyun and Shin Ramyun Black. Episodes 100 and 101 were Shin Ramyun Gold and Shin Ramyun Green. I like to give Nongshim a little spotlight on my milestone episodes because they really were the brand that got me hooked on instant noodles a few years back. For the countdown to 200, I’m going through the Shin products I haven't reviewed yet.
Samyang Buldak is such a popular brand that its fans try to seek out every single flavor that has ever existed to make sure they can try them all. A while back on Reddit, I started maintaining an active list of all known flavors and their status. You can now find that list here, along with links to my reviews of each one I've tried. This list does not include offshoot products like tteokbokki, dumplings, or hot sauce, but rather only focuses on noodle products.
Today I've got something super interesting from Samyang: Samgyetang Ramen Soup. This is super interesting to me because I love trying new things as you may well know and this product is Samyang's take on Samgyetang, which is a South Korean soup typically made with ginseng, garlic, and chicken. As I filmed this review, I was a little bit hoarse, so a hearty bowl of chicken soup sounded really good at the time.