I Still Function! (I'm just lazy)

Happy New Year!

It's my second post and I've already  become lazy. Over the last few weeks,  I've eaten many things that I've been meaning to talk about. However, so much time has elapsed, memories have become fuzzy, I wouldn't be able to do those fine foods justice. But, fear not! Like a flaming zombie Jesus commanded by Zeus to "Raise from your grave!", I have returned!

I'm still playing everything by ear. I still haven't locked down a decent color scheme, much less a good rating format. Also remember, context is key: If I give a cup of noodles, say, 23 Schlitz out of 24, it is within the context of low-cost, instant food. It's not something that stacks up against a bowl of ramen prepared by Iron Chef Morimoto. Anyway, pardon the mess and please bear with me. 

Let's get down to business.

Today's doubleheader is brought to you by Nissin (technically pronounced "nisshin"). I found both of these while shopping at a local dollar store.


Nissin Cup Noodles: With Shrimp Picante Style

Arriba! Little known fact: cup noodles are very popular in rural Mexico. (Look it up, I read it in a National Geographic!) Perhaps this is their attempt to capitalize on that market? I don't know. What I do know is that this is the first time I've ever come across this flavor, and frankly, I was a little excited.

Nutrition.

Contents. Blogger doesn't like tables, so we have to do it like this.

Upon opening, the first thing I noticed was the lack of seasoning. Also, look at the contents of this cup and compare with the Hong Kong version in the post below. America really gets the short end of the stick.

After removing the nasty dried peas (eww), I boiled up some water and soaked the noodles. After pulling back the lid, I was overwhelmed with a stank, seafood-esque aroma. I figured something with such a pungent smell must have some flavor, right? Wrong. The noodles were bland and any flavoring contained was left to the underwhelming broth. Boring!

Area Found: One of those "dollar or more" stores (where everything is usually "more").

Price: 50 cents

Rating: *1/2 (out of *****) DON'T BUY!

Next!

Nissin Cup Noodles: Spicy Chile Chicken Flavor

In order to round out my purchase to a dollar, I decided to pick up an old favorite. If you check out the next photo, you will immediately notice a an immediate increase in the amount of flavoring used. I used to eat these noodles often as my lunch many years ago at a former job, so with a bladder full of anticipation, I ripped open the cardboard sheath like a 14 year old boy given the key to a princess's chastity belt.

Again, sparse with contents--but look at that flavor!

As you can see the flavoring in nearly bursting through the lid (covering its underside in fact). So how did it stack up? Meh. Perhaps something changed with the ingredients, or I have moved on, but either way I was disappointed. I even let the noodles soak much longer than  I normally would in order to allow them to adsorb the broth. The noodles here suffer a bit of the same problem as the ones in the last flavor (not surprising since they are from the same company). However, this is probably going to be the best-of-the-best if you live in rural America, and if you want something a little different than the normal meat and chicken, you can't go wrong.

Best paired with the above.

Secret Recipe: Back in a former life, I used to do this in order to make the heartier, budget-meal: (1) while soaking noodles, microwave a cup of instant chili (I recommend Hormel brand) (2) after soaking the noodles in boiling water, drain completely, (3) add a cup of warmed chili and mix (4) add a dash of your favorite pepper and/or hot sauce and enjoy!

Area found & price: Same as above

Rating: 2.5 to 4.5 cans out of a sixer of PBR tallboys (depending on your experience with instant ramen).

 Authentic Ramen Soup (Chinese Style)

I'm not going to really get into reviewing this, but this is more for the benefit of those who have never seen a real bowl or ramen before. I have the benefit of both having lived in Japan and now currently living close to a Chinatown. This is a picture of a bowl of seafood hand-drawn (that's what ramen or lamian means) noddle soup that I purchased at one of my favorite noodles houses in the world: Nan Zhou. If you ever come to visit me in my neighborhood, and you want to go somewhere to eat, you'll probably find me trying to pull you in the direction of this restaurant. The only fault of the place is they don't serve dumplings. Thankfully, that can be rectified by going to a neighboring restaurant called David's. It just sucks that the two aren't conveniently combined. Well, dumplings and beer sounds pretty good right now, so I'm going to sign off.

Adieu