The majority of instant noodles I review on my Noodle Reviewooodle page are East Asian – Japanese, Korean and Chinese to be precise. In fact, Japanese instant ramen is where I first discovered my love of soupy noodles and I’ve never really ventured too far away since. The real thing can’t be beaten but the instant version certainly plays a key part in my life. Quick, tasty and comforting. A real fast food love affair.
Anyway, I’ll stop waxing lyrical to tell you that today’s noodle review is Thai for a change. Yep, I’m stepping out with instant noodles from other parts of the world!
Mama – Thai instant noodles
The Mama brand is well known and it’s certainly one I recognise from the packaging but I don’t think I’d ever tried them before! Mama noodles are made by Thai President Foods which has been making instant noodles since 1972! They’re hugely popular both in Thailand and across the world. They come in a huge range of flavours. More than I’ve seen any other instant noodle brand before! You can see and buy them all here. Go on, treat yourself!
This is the Shrimp Tom Yum noodles and I paid less than a pound for them – making these one of the cheaper instant noodles on the market.
How did they taste?
Good! These really packed a punch without being too shrimpy if you know what I mean? Sometimes fish flavour can be too much, like how a bag of prawn cocktail crisps can repeat on you all afternoon? Because of that, I tend to go for meaty flavours but these were really nicely balanced.
Given that the name includes ‘tom yum’ I’d have preferred a little more hot and sour notes – a bit more zesty acidity would have worked well. But, remembering that this is a packet of instant noodles costing less than a pound, I’d say the flavour is pretty good and I’m interested in trying more of the range. You certainly get a hit of salty shrimp which likely comes concentrated flavour sachet (as well as the powder).
Making the noodles
Unlike many of their instant noodle counterparts, the Mama noodles aren’t cooked in a saucepan. You put the noodles and seasoning into a bowl, add boiling water (recommended amount is 400ml) and cover for around 3-4 minutes until the noodles soften and you can stir it all together.
This method isn’t any quicker I don’t think, but it results in less washing up and I guess that’s a good thing right? In total this took around 5 minutes so full points for speed.
Scores on the doors
There are loads of flavours available in this range and so far I’ve only tried this one. I’m keen to try more, and will definitely buy these again. Sure, the Tom Yum flavour isn’t quite there but for instant noodles, they ain’t bad!
- Flavour – 7/10
- Texture – 6/10
- Ease of making – 9/10
TOTAL: 22/30
Buy again? Yes!
Want more instant noodles?
See more reviews and decide which instant noodles you’re going to eat next on my Noodle Reviewooodle page! Fancy writing a guest post? Drop me an email on hello@gingeybites.com and let’s get something sorted!
Dave