Nissin Top Ramen Oriental Flavor

Made by:  Nissin USA
Tools Required:  Saucepan & Range, Bowl, Spoon, Chopsticks
Light Meal Size (380 calories per package)
Rating:  :|

Okay, let's start this blog off in the most boring way possible, shall we?  Today we have the ubiquitous "Top Ramen" that you can get in most grocery stores for around 25¢, in the most generic, non-descript flavor available.  I will admit to having a preference for the higher-end imported noodles, but I can also appreciate the simpler flavors occasionally.  Besides, what better place to start to establish a baseline than the one everyone has probably already had?

The package includes the noodle brick and just one packet of powdered soup base.  We boil 2 cups of water in our saucepan, drop in the noodles and cook for three minutes, and then stir in the soup base just before serving.  Being more used to the imported products, the first thing I notice is how bare the soup looks.  Noodles, broth, and that is it--no little veggies, no little fake meat bits, not even any green herb flecks worth mentioning.

The noodle texture is really not that bad, though they do seem a little stickier than I am used to.  The flavor is certainly unoffensive... I am picking up mainly an onion flavor, along with maybe a bit of soy sauce and probably some chicken flavor or something.  Nothing exciting, but it isn't bad.  I would say it's comforting, in the same way that chicken noodle soup is supposed to be (which is to say that I might want it if I were sick).  Since I am not sick today, I give it a rating of "meh."