Nissin Cup Noodles Curry Review: Don't try it 'till you read this

This is an instant noodle sold by Nissin.

The soup of these noodles have a nice thickness and mild spicy curry taste with some sweetness.

I think about these noodles all the time when I am outside of Japan

They were always stocked up in the cupboard at my parents' house in Japan.

Why? Because they made a great snack, the perfect lazy lunch, and great emergency food for typhoon days when we can't go out to buy groceries.

There was an instant noodle vending machine around my high school, 

And when I skipped math class, I ate this curry flavored ramen noodles at the park with a small plastic fork.

Growing up, this was my comfort food.

I was pleasantly surprised when I found this ramen online in North America.
There are so many instant noodles out there, but the instant noodle that I always come back to is the Nissin Cup Noodle Curry Flavor. What about you?

I have a lot of fond childhood memories with these instant noodles and every time I eat them as an adult, I catch glimpses of my childhood.

This instant cup noodle is sold by Nissin Food Products Co., Ltd. which was found in 1948 in Osaka. This Cup Ramen Nissin Curry flavor was released in 1973.

After opening this package, you can already see toppings and seasoning in the cup with the noodles.

There are...

Dried pork
Fried potatoes
Dried minced pork
Carrot
Green onion

So, these noodles have protein toppings unlike other instant noodles!

Let's get started.

1. Pour hot water into the cup and wait for 3 minutes.
(There is a lot of soup powder, and toppings, so pour the water slowly. Sometimes, hot water doesn't get absorbed into noodles quickly, so take your time until the water penetrates the layers of seasoning. Fill the water until it reaches the line inside the cup.)

Done!

After 3 minutes, you will be able to see perfectly cooked noodles, and delicious toppings in the cup. There may be some chunks of soup powder on top that has not yet been mixed in with the soup, so let's mix it together...

After mixing, the soup became thicker and the aroma is much more fragrant!

The cup is thin and tall, so you can easily hold the cup and eat at the same time. 

Broth ★★★★★

The flavor of the cup noodles is Japanese curry flavor, so it is not spicy Indian curry flavor, but it is on the side of sweet and savory. Even if you cannot tolerate spicy food, I think you will still enjoy these.

The base of the soup is pork broth and vegetable, which brings the taste of sweetness into this mildly spicy soup. The three elements of pork, veggies, and spices complete this thick and satisfying soup.

This thickness that is present in the curry is perfect. You will find a depth of flavor in this seasoning. The soup has a lot of rich flavours, with mild heat and it is smooth and creamy...

This soup is very thick, but it is not too strong or fatty. You will want to eat this on a regular basis. It has great balance!

This soup will warm you up, comfort you, make you feel full, and satisfied.

Even when I don't have much of an appetite, I am still able to eat these noodles. The flavours of the broth is very enticing!

Noodles ★★★☆☆

I thought all flavors of Nissin Cup Noodles use the same noodles, but after some research, I found out that actually they are all slightly different.

They try to match the thickness of the noodles with the soup and umami. Thick soup like this one goes well with thicker-than-average noodles, so I find the noodles and the soup pair well together.

They are slightly tougher and chewier than other noodles of this series.

The soup coats the noodles well, and the flavor and umami of the soup spread into your mouth in every bite and the aroma of the spice comes after into your nose.

Toppings ★★★★☆

These toppings are a great way to amplify these instant noodles. They add to the volume to these soup noodles.  

Dried pork cube: This dried pork cube meat has great umami flavours inside and it goes well with the soup. The meat absorbs some soup, so when you chew it, you can feel the juices from the pork and it is satisfying.

Fried potatoes: These fried potatoes in the soup are a great touch. The surface has the texture of fried food, and when you chew on them, it feels soft and fluffy inside. You feel like you are taking a bite out of a real potato. The potato goes really well with this curry flavor.

Dried minced pork: There is some minced pork in the cup too. It adds a different layer of flavour to the noodles.

Carrots and Green onion
There are small pieces of carrots and green onions in the cup. They are a good accent of the taste, and gives aesthetic appeal to this curry soup.

If you want to add something else, you might want to use different toppings like...

Eggs

Green onion

Shichimi

Aroma ★★★★★

The smell is infectious...
Late night one day, when I was about to go to bed, my brother came back home from a party. He started to make this cup noodle (curry flavor) in the kitchen. The smell spread throughout the house. Of course, now I want to eat it too!

My Thoughts Overall ★★★★★

It is flavorful and creamy. The flavor profile of Nissin’s curry-flavoured cup noodle is complex and delicious. You will not get tired eating this often. Thicker-than-average noodles can be nicely coated by spicy curry soup. The balance of soup, noodles, and toppings is perfect. You cannot ask for a better balance in a cup. 

When you have craving for ramen or curry, you can easily make this. You just need to pour hot water and wait for 3 minutes. 

After eating the first cup, you can easily down another cup without a second thought. (I did!)

Maybe you should try the Japanese version after you've tried the American version. I find it is a little different from the American version.

Grab a cup today!

Nutrition Facts (from the packaging)

Carories 422
Noodles, Toppings 363
Soup 59

Protein 9 g
Fat 20.4 g
Carbs 50.6 g
Sodium 4.4 g

Vitamin B1 0.21 mg
Vitamin B2 0.20 mg
Calcium 108 mg

Due to Covid, a lot of good ramen restaurants have closed

It makes me feel very angry.

I used to eat ramen out frequently,

But in this situation, 

Ramen shops have started to shorten the hours, limit the number of customers, or even closed their shops.

It has affected the industry so much.

I am afraid good ramen will be gone

But meanwhile, you still can enjoy ramen in the comfort of your own home.

Here are some of my recommendations for ramen lovers.

1. Sapporo Ichiban Shio Flavor

MY THOUGHTS OVERALL ★★★★☆

In truth, Sapporo Ichiban delivers a good quality shio ramen experience.

Actually, it is very difficult to find good shio ramen.

Do you know why?

Because it is very difficult to make it since it is very simple.

There are many good shoyu and miso flavored instant noodles out there.

But I feel specifically, the shio flavor market is monopolized by Sapporo Ichiban.

Think about this for a moment having good shio ramen for your dinner with your favorite ramen toppings.

Now, you want some, don’t you?

2. Nissin Raoh Shoyu Flavor

MY THOUGHTS OVERALL ★★★★★

It is nearly impossible to make restaurant quality noodles at home without the right tools and equipment.

How can you beat that?

Using Raoh’s shoyu flavour will help you achieve this easily. This is top-notch ramen hands down!

One pinnacle of instant noodles is the soy sauce flavor. It is expensive compared to regular ones but let me tell you, it deserves every single penny.

In a nutshell, I loved every bit of it.

...And I am sure you will too.

3. The problem here is that no toppings come with these packets.

Here are some topping options and recipes for you.

Boiled egg (Ajitama)

Green onion

4. Have you ever faced these issues...

A lack of large, high-quality soup bowl sets at home?

Are you still struggling with...

😢 ...small bowls that aren’t large enough for soups, noodles and toppings.

😢 ...spillage every time you eat out of your bowl.

😢 ...low-quality tableware and utensils that don’t compliment your food.

Look no further, 

Our best-selling bowls are here to fix all the issues you face with small, inefficient tableware.

After struggling with spillage and leakage during dinner time, 

We decided to introduce APEX S.K’s large soup bowls to the market.

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About the Author

Kei is a self-proclaimed ramen lover, blog writer and founder of "Apex S.K. Japanese tableware".

"I am from Ibaraki, Japan.

Ramen is great! It can bring you a sense of happiness and satisfaction that no other food can. I have been eating ramen for 30 years.

If there is no ramen, my life would be miserable.

Ten years ago, I worked as an office worker. The job was really stressful - excessive working hours, low wages, unpaid overtime work, and constantly being yelled at by my boss.

I was new and alone, no girlfriend, no friends, and felt very lonely.

My only oasis was the ramen shop near the office. For me, the ramen chef there was literally an angel. I saw a halo on his head. (No joke)

Tonkotsu shoyu ramen was my all-time favorite. He made ramen with broth chock-full of umami flavor, nice chewy handmade noodles, and tender chashu.

My greatest dream is connect people with ramen through my blog. I want to share a lot of interesting and funny stories and ramen trivia with you.

Knowing more about ramen can help you appreciate your ramen and make it taste extra delicious."

Did you know that we offer more than just a ramen blog?

We also have an exclusive collection of ramen-inspired t-shirts and hoodies that any true noodle lover will adore.

Head over to ApexRamen and check it out for yourself.

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