Today’s instant noodles are departure from my more usual East Asian choices. We’re headed to Thailand with the Wai Wai brand. Specifically, their palo duck noodles which are cheap as (cheaper even) chips at around 50pence a packet.
Palo refers to a stew or slow cooked meat dish (usually pork belly) with boiled eggs and vegetables but in this instance, duck is the meat of choice. It’s based on Chinese ingredients like five spice, cinnamon and star anise – all of which I could taste in the rich broth.
Time to cook(ish!)
The palo duck noodles come with two sachets – garlic fat or oil and the dry seasoning powder which cleverly has the spicy bit separate so if you don’t want the heat, you don’t have to use it.
I made this at work for lunch al desko – covering the noodles and seasoning with boiling water (all praise the hot water tap in our office!) and then covered plate – leaving for three mins and then stirring before eating. The suggested amount of liquid is 320ml but as I was in the office I had no idea how much I went for. It seemed like the right amount. And if I’m honest, I rarely measure these days!
You can also make these on the hob of course (350ml boiling water, simmered for 2 minutes)- and apparently, in the microwave (320ml covered for 5 mins at 800w). I’ll have to give that one a try as it’s a first for me!
The taste test
Despite looking ‘rough as’ in the bowl, these were genuinely surprisingly delicious. A really deep and flavourful broth which I loved (and did slurp from the bowl when no-one was looking). The noodles still had a slight al-dente to them which I enjoyed. For 50p this was a tasty, warming lunch. Next time, a boiled egg and maybe a handful of spring onions would take it to the next level, I’m sure!
Now that I’ve tried these palo duck noodles, I am going to keep my eyes peeled for others in the Wai Wai range. If you want to get your hands on some but can’t find them in your local Asian supermarket, there’s available on the Starry Mart website!
Scores on the doors:
- Flavour – 8/10
- Texture – 8/10
- Ease of making – 10/10
TOTAL: 26/30
Buy again? Yes, 100%.
Want more instant noodles?
See more reviews and decide which instant noodles you’re going to eat next on my Noodle Reviewooodle page. A fan of instant noodles yourself? I’d love your guest review. Drop me an email at hello@gingeybites.com
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