This is a list of instant noodle brands.

Instant noodles Instant noodles, or instant ramen, is a type of food consisting of noodles sold in a precooked and dried block with flavoring powder and/or seasoning oil. The dried noodle block was originally created by flash-frying cooked noodles, which is s ...

are a dried or precooked

noodle Noodles are a type of food made from unleavened dough which is either rolled flat and cut, stretched, or extruded, into long strips or strings. Noodles are a staple food in many cultures and made into a variety of shapes. The most common noo ...

block, usually sold with a packet of flavoring powder and/or seasoning oil. Dried noodles are usually eaten after being cooked or soaked in boiling water, while precooked noodles can be reheated or eaten straight from the packet/cup. The instant noodle was invented by Momofuku Ando of Nissin Foods in Japan."Inventor of instant noodles dies"

BBC News BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs in the UK and around the world. The department is the world's largest broad ...

. 6 January 2007 They were launched in 1958 under the brand name Chikin Ramen.

Instant noodle brands

By country

Instant noodles are a popular food in many parts of the world, undergoing changes in flavor to fit local tastes. In 2018, the World Instant Noodles Association (WINA) reported that 103,620 million servings were consumed worldwide.

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

(and

Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...

) consumed 40,250 million servings and

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...

consumed 12,540 million, the three areas dominating world instant noodle consumption. South Korea tops the world in per capita consumption at 75 servings per year. It is followed by Vietnam at 54 servings, and Nepal at 53.

Australia

The most popular manufacturer of instant noodles in Australia is San Remo Macaroni Company, whose Fantastic and Suimin brands hold a 30% market share. Other brands include Indomie, Indomie Mi Goreng,

Maggi Maggi (, ) is an international brand of seasonings, instant soups, and noodles that originated in Switzerland in the late 19th century. In 1947, the Maggi brand was acquired by the Switzerland, Swiss giant Nestlé. History Early history ...

, Mr Lee's Noodles, Wai Wai, Nissin's Demae Ramen, and Nongshim's Shin Ramyun. Instant noodles are often referred to as "two-minute noodles" in Australia, a reflection of their preparation time.

China

According to industry trade group World Instant Noodles Association,

is the world's largest instant noodle market, with demand reaching 40.25 billion servings in 2018.

Colombia

Instant noodles were introduced to Colombia in 2010 by Nissin Foods. On 13 September 2013, Nissin Foods opened its commercial office in

Bogotá Bogotá (, also , , ), officially Bogotá, Distrito Capital, abbreviated Bogotá, D.C., and formerly known as Santa Fe de Bogotá (; ) during the Spanish Imperial period and between 1991 and 2000, is the capital city, capital and largest city ...

, investing

US$ The United States dollar (Currency symbol, symbol: Dollar sign, $; ISO 4217, currency code: USD) is the official currency of the United States and International use of the U.S. dollar, several other countries. The Coinage Act of 1792 introdu ...

6 million in its corporate offices.

Hong Kong

Cantonese people have a long history of cooking yi mein, a noodle invented in the

Qing Dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing, was a Manchu-led Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China and an early modern empire in East Asia. The last imperial dynasty in Chinese history, the Qing dynasty was preceded by the ...

. However, modern instant noodles were only publicly introduced to

in the late 1960s by Winner Food Products Ltd. as "Doll Noodles" (). Although the company was bought out by Nissin in 1984, and other brands from many different countries have become widely available, the name "Doll Noodles" remains ubiquitous and has since become a

synonym A synonym is a word, morpheme, or phrase that means precisely or nearly the same as another word, morpheme, or phrase in a given language. For example, in the English language, the words ''begin'', ''start'', ''commence'', and ''initiate'' are a ...

for instant noodles, irrespective of brands. Most supermarkets offer a broad selection of both domestic and international brands, including Shin Ramyun of South Korea, Nissin Chikin and Demae Itcho of Japan, Indomie of Indonesia, Koka of Singapore, and Mama of Thailand. Besides instant wheat noodles, supermarkets also sell instant rice noodles and Cantonese egg noodles. Some noodles are also marketed as a snack that does not need to be cooked; consumers eat the noodles directly out of the packaging, similar to

crisps Potato chips (North American English and Australian English; often just chip) or crisp (British English and Hiberno-English) are thin slices of potato (or a thin deposit of potato paste) that has been deep fried, baked, or air fried until ...

Hungary

Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...

is 43rd in the world in consumption of instant noodles, according to the World Instant Noodles Association (WINA), having consumed 20 million packages/ cups of noodles in 2014. Thai President Foods, manufacturer of MAMA noodles, opened an instant noodles factory in Hungary in 2013. The Hungarian factory's two production lines have a capacity of 4.5 million noodle packs per shift per month. It produces "Thai Chef" and "Asia Gold" brand noodles for the European market.

India

According to World Instant Noodles Association (WINA), in 2018, India was the third largest consumer of instant noodles after China/Hong Kong and Indonesia. This segment had total sales of $1,040.4 million in 2019 and is predicted to grow at a CAGR of around 5.6 per cent to $1,293.7 million in 2023. On 5 June 2015, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) banned all nine approved variants of

instant noodles from India, terming them "unsafe and hazardous" for human consumption. As per FSSAI, Nestlé had launched the products without completing the process of risk assessment, and Nestlé committed three violations: Despite a six-month ban on Maggi in 2015 for high monosodium glutamate (MSG) and lead content, Nestlé India regained strength and rallied 149 percent from lows of Rs 5,011 per share hit in March 2016. India is Nestlé Maggi's largest market. Other brands of instant noodles in the country include Patanjali Ayurved, Ching's Secret, Knorr, Sunfeast Yippee, Top Ramen, Indomie, Joymee, Nissin, Maruchan, Horlicks, Wai Wai, Yumiraa Instant Noodle and several domestic and regional names. Many brands from East and Southeast Asia, such as Koka, Picnic, Nongshim, Samyang, Jin Ramen, and Yum Yum also started flooding the Indian market after various free-trade agreements.

Indonesia

According to WINA,

is the world's second largest instant noodle market after China, with demand reaching 12.54 billion servings in 2018. An early instant noodle brand in Indonesia was "Supermi", introduced in 1969 by PT Lima Satu Sankyo (later renamed PT Super Mi Indonesia in 1977 and PT Lambang Insan Makmur in 1989). After the success of Supermi, other instant noodle brands appeared: " Indomie", introduced in 1972 by PT Sanmaru Food Manufacturing Co. Ltd., and " Sarimi", introduced in 1982 by PT Sarimi Asli Jaya. In 1994, these brands (as well as factories) were merged into Indofood Sukses Makmur, one of the largest instant noodle producer in the world. At least twenty instant noodle companies compete in the Indonesian market, with Indofood, Wings Group, Olagafood, ABC Holding, Jakarana Tama (Gaga and Arirang), Mayora, Lemonilo (Unifam), Tiptop, and Suprama thriving in the top nine. In 1999, the figure was about 90%; their market share declined following the introduction of " Mie Sedaap" by Wings Food in 2003. Strong local preferences contribute to the low volume of sales of Japanese and other foreign instant noodles in Indonesia. Popular instant noodle flavours in Indonesia include chicken curry, onion and chicken, bakso (beef meatball), mie goreng, and chicken soto, a traditional Indonesian chicken soup. In the past, Indomie tried to produce thirty different flavours to reflect various traditional dishes of

Indonesian cuisine Indonesian cuisine is a collection of various regional culinary traditions by various ethnic groups that formed in the archipelagic nation of Indonesia. There are a wide variety of recipes and cuisines in part because Indonesia is composed ...

, but the product line was discontinued after disappointing results, with only a few variants remaining in production. Indonesians usually add ingredients such as boiled Chinese green cabbage, boiled or fried eggs, corned beef, bottled sambal chili sauce, pepper, or fried shallots to their meals. Most of the market share is owned by the product Indomie Mi goreng, a dry instant noodle meant to replicate traditional Indonesian mie goreng, or fried noodles. In November 2019, ''

LA Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper in the U.S. and the large ...

'' named Indomie Barbecue Chicken flavour and Indomie Mi Goreng as among the best-tasting ramen in the world. Although originally targeted at families eating at home, nowadays instant noodles are also served in '' warung'' (simple shops). These shops serving instant noodles are customarily called ''warung indomie'' or ''warmindo'', despite the fact that the brands of instant noodles served there are not necessarily Indomie.

Japan

Japan is the country of origin of instant noodles, and the dish remains a "national" light food. The average Japanese person eats forty packs of instant noodles per year. After their invention by Momofuku Andō in 1958, instant noodles became very common in Japan. In the 1970s, makers expanded their flavors to include such examples as ''shio'' (

salt In common usage, salt is a mineral composed primarily of sodium chloride (NaCl). When used in food, especially in granulated form, it is more formally called table salt. In the form of a natural crystalline mineral, salt is also known as r ...

), ''

miso is a traditional Japanese seasoning. It is a thick paste produced by fermenting soybeans with salt and kōji (the fungus ''Aspergillus oryzae''), and sometimes rice, barley, seaweed, or other ingredients. It is used for sauces and spreads; p ...

'', or

curry Curry is a dish with a sauce or gravy seasoned with spices, mainly derived from the interchange of Indian cuisine with European taste in food, starting with the Portuguese, followed by the Dutch and British, and then thoroughly internatio ...

. Beginning in the 1980s, manufacturers also added dried toppings such as shrimp, pork, or eggs. Today, instant noodles are divided into two groups: "traditional" cheap ( ¥70 to ¥200) noodles with few toppings and expensive (¥150 to ¥350) noodles with many toppings, which are often packed into a pouch. Various kinds of instant noodles are produced, including

ramen is a Chinese noodle dish popularized in Japan. It includes served in several flavors of broth. Common flavors are soy sauce and miso, with typical toppings including , nori (dried seaweed), menma (bamboo shoots), and scallions. Ramen h ...

udon Udon ( or ) is a thick noodle made from wheat flour, used in Japanese cuisine. There are a variety of ways it is prepared and served. Its simplest form is in a soup as with a mild broth called made from dashi, soy sauce, and mirin. It is usual ...

soba Soba ( or , "buckwheat") are Japanese noodles made primarily from buckwheat flour, with a small amount of wheat flour mixed in. It has an ashen brown color, and a slightly grainy texture. The noodles are served either chilled with a dipping sau ...

yakisoba (, , ) is a Japanese noodle Stir frying, stir-fried dish. Usually, soba noodles are made from buckwheat flour, but soba in are Chinese-style noodles () made from wheat flour, typically flavored with a condiment similar to Worcestershire sauce ...

, and

pasta Pasta (, ; ) is a type of food typically made from an Leavening agent, unleavened dough of wheat flour mixed with water or Eggs as food, eggs, and formed into sheets or other shapes, then cooked by boiling or baking. Pasta was originally on ...

. Major instant noodle brands in Japan include: * Nissin Foods 日清食品, whose products include " Chicken Ramen" and "

Cup Noodles A cup noodle is an instant ramen product in a disposable cup, first developed in 1971 and manufactured by the Japanese food company Nissin Foods. The product was first introduced in the United States as "Cup O' Noodles" in 1972, before being ren ...

". The brand has a 40.4% market share . * Tōyō Suisan 東洋水産, under the brand name Maruchan, whose products include "Akai Kitsune" and "Midori no Tanuki"; 19.2% market share. * サンヨー食品; " Sapporo Ichiban"; 11.5% market share. * Myōjō Foods 明星食品, ''Charumera'', has a 9.9% market share. * エースコック; "Super Cup"; 8.3% market share.

South Korea

''Ramyeon'' (), is the Korean equivalent of instant noodles. The first ramyeon brand in South Korea was Samyang and Shin Ramyun (신 �� literally "spicy") is the bestselling brand in South Korea. The leading manufacturer of ramyeon in South Korea is Nong Shim ( ��心 literally "Farmer's Heart"), which exports many of its products overseas.

North Korea

In 2004, over 600,000 boxes of Shin Ramyun were sent to North Korea as part of the aid relief program when the Ryongchŏn train station exploded, injuring many people. Insider sources have said that most of the noodles were sold on black markets, making their way to

Pyongyang Pyongyang () is the Capital city, capital and largest city of North Korea, where it is sometimes labeled as the "Capital of the Revolution" (). Pyongyang is located on the Taedong River about upstream from its mouth on the Yellow Sea. Accordi ...

instead of being distributed as aid. North Korean visitors to China also frequently purchase South Korean ramyeon, where Shin Ramyeon is known as "Korean Tangmi Ramyeon." Local production of ramyeon in North Korea began in 2000. The first brand was "Kkoburang guksu", which literally means "curly noodles" in. Later, a joint venture between North Korean and Hong Kong-based companies began producing "Jŭksŏk guksu" (), which literally means "instant noodles". Ramyeon is popular among North Korean

elite In political and sociological theory, the elite (, from , to select or to sort out) are a small group of powerful or wealthy people who hold a disproportionate amount of wealth, privilege, political power, or skill in a group. Defined by the ...

s who live in Pyongyang and

Nampo Nampo (North Korean official spelling: Nampho; ), also spelled Namp'o, is a major city in North Korea which is the country's List of cities in North Korea, fourth-largest by population. The city is an important seaport in the country as it lies ...

. In contrast to hot and spicy South Korean noodles, North Korean varieties have a much milder and brothier flavor.

Tofu or bean curd is a food prepared by Coagulation (milk), coagulating soy milk and then pressing the resulting curds into solid white blocks of varying softness: ''silken'', ''soft'', ''firm'', and ''extra (or super) firm''. It originated in Chin ...

is commonly added, and accompanied with alcohol as a snack or meal. In accordance with

party A party is a gathering of people who have been invited by a Hospitality, host for the purposes of socializing, conversation, recreation, or as part of a festival or other commemoration or celebration of a special occasion. A party will oft ...

policy, prices for domestically-produced ramyeon are significantly lower than imported Chinese and South Korean noodles, the latter of which is the most expensive.

Nepal

Per capita consumption of instant noodles in

Nepal Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mainly situated in the Himalayas, but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China Ch ...

is the third highest in the world, at 53 servings. In the early 1980s, Gandaki Noodles of Pokhara city introduced Rara, an instant noodle brand named after the largest lake in Nepal. It was a success among urban populations. Around 1985, Chaudhary Groups entered the market with Wai-Wai, a Thai brand of instant noodles, which became a big hit. Over the years, the popularity of instant noodles has grown and consist of a major part of the dry foods sold in Nepal.

Nigeria

Since its introduction in 1988, Indomie is the most popular instant noodle brand in

Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...

. Instant noodles are now eaten in most households across the country. By 2008, nine other brands of noodles had appeared in Nigeria. Affirming Indomie's hold on the market, Christopher Ezendu, a distributor at the popular Oke-Arin market on

Lagos Island Lagos Island () is the principal and central Local government areas of Nigeria, Local Government Area (LGA) in Lagos, Nigeria. It was the capital of Lagos State until 1957. It is part of the Lagos Division. As of the preliminary 2006 Nigerian ce ...

, reported that these other brands are aspiring to be like the market leader. In 2013, a wholly-owned and managed Nigerian company based in Abuja, Royal Mills and Foods limited, launched a new brand of instant noodles, De-Royal Instant Noodles, with two flavors, chicken and onion chicken. According to the World Instant Noodle Association, Nigeria was the eleventh largest consumer of instant noodles in the world in 2019.

Pakistan

Instant noodles are not a traditional part of Pakistani cuisine but have become popular in flavors such as masala and chicken. There are three prominent brands of instant noodles in Pakistan: Nestlé's

was the first to enter the market in 1992, followed by Knorr of

Unilever Unilever PLC () is a British multinational consumer packaged goods company headquartered in London, England. It was founded on 2 September 1929 following the merger of Dutch margarine producer Margarine Unie with British soap maker Lever B ...

in 1993; in 2012, Shan Food Industries introduced "Shoop". Knorr is the leader, with 55% market share; Maggi's market share is 45%.

Philippines

Instant noodles were introduced in 1989 by Monde Nissin, with the introduction of Lucky Me!, the leading instant noodle brand in the Philippines. A year later, Zest-O Corporation also introduced their own instant noodle brand, Quickchow in 1990, followed by Payless in 1995 and Ho-Mi in 2002. In 1997,

Universal Robina Universal Robina Corporation, abbreviated as URC and also known as Universal Robina, is a Philippine company headquartered in Quezon City. It is one of the largest food and beverage companies in the Philippines, along with San Miguel Corporat ...

partnered with Japanese company Nissin Foods to form the joint venture Nissin-Universal Robina Corporation with Nissin Cup Noodles as their first product.

Poland

Instant noodles began appearing on Polish store shelves during the early 1990s. Despite being called "Chinese soup", the first brands on the market were produced in Vietnam and had a somewhat spicy, garlic-flavored taste. The noodle packages contained pouches of flavored soup base, spicy oil, dried vegetables, or even minuscule shrimps. The product gained particular popularity among students due to its affordability and convenience. "Kaczka łagodna" ("Mild duck"), "Kurczakowa łagodna" ("Mild chicken"), and "Krewetkowa ostra" ("Spicy shrimp") were the most common flavors. Today, the local Kim Lan and international Knorr brands offer varieties ranging from cheese-and-herb-flavored noodles to local Polish specialties like barszcz czerwony or żurek. Ngoc Tu Tao, who emigrated to

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

from

Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...

and established the Tan-Viet Group in 1990, is credited with introducing instant noodles to Poland. His Vifon brand holds a 35% share of the Polish instant soup market, selling over 100 million packages a year. Ngoc Tu Tao has appeared in '' Wprost'' magazine's annual ranking of the 100 most wealthy Polish citizens.

Russia

Russia's most popular instant ramen are from local brand Rollton and the Korean Doshirak. Instant noodles have been popular in Russia's eastern regions since the late 1980s and made their way west in the early 1990s. In Russia, like most noodle products, they are still considered a lesser-quality option to turn to in lean economic times and are popular among college students.

Sri Lanka

A variety of instant noodles are available in Sri Lanka and appeal to local tastes. Examples include rice noodles or kurakkan noodles, as well as

-flavoured and kottu-flavoured noodles. Over 8,000 tonnes of instant noodles are consumed in Sri Lanka each year. Maggi, Sera, Harischandra are some the biggest brands in Sri Lanka.

Taiwan

Instant noodle inventor Momofuku Ando was born in Japanese Taiwan. According to statistics from the International

Ramen is a Chinese noodle dish popularized in Japan. It includes served in several flavors of broth. Common flavors are soy sauce and miso, with typical toppings including , nori (dried seaweed), menma (bamboo shoots), and scallions. Ramen h ...

Manufacturers Association, Taiwan is the world's twelfth-largest instant noodle market, with an annual NT$10 billion (US$300 million) in sales. This translates into an annual total of 900 million packs, or forty per person. Uni-President (aka President or Tong-Yi, 統一) takes the largest market share of instant noodles in the country, and is a major player in the global instant noodle market. Major makers Taiwanese instant noodle manufacturers include: * Uni-President is the first instant noodle maker in Taiwan. In 1970, the company launched their original product. Uni-President has the greatest market share in Taiwan and is also one of the largest instant noodle makers in mainland China. * VEDAN (味丹;

Pinyin Hanyu Pinyin, or simply pinyin, officially the Chinese Phonetic Alphabet, is the most common romanization system for Standard Chinese. ''Hanyu'' () literally means 'Han Chinese, Han language'—that is, the Chinese language—while ''pinyin' ...

: Wei Dan) is a Taiwanese food company headquartered in Shalu District, Taichung City. Vedan started its business mainly by producing sodium glutamate ( MSG). It is currently one of the top ten MSG manufacturers in the world. In addition, the company has successively invested in instant noodles, beverages, and many other food products since 1973. * Wei Lih (維力) is a well-known food company in Taiwan founded in 1970. It is headquartered in

Changhua County Changhua (Wade-Giles: ''Chang¹-hua⁴'') is a Taiwanese County (Taiwan), county that is the smallest on the Geography of Taiwan, main island of Taiwan by area, and the fourth smallest in the country. With a total population of 1.24 million, Chan ...

. Its main product is instant noodles, and it also produces snacks, beverages, seasonings, and biotech products. Wei Lih is famous for its Zhajiangmian (炸醬麵) and Good Good Eat Noodles (張君雅小妹妹).

Thailand

Thailand's instant noodle market in 2019 was estimated to be worth 17 billion

baht The baht (; , ; currency sign, sign: ฿; ISO 4217, code: THB) is the official currency of Thailand. It is divided into 100 ''satang'' (, ). Prior to decimalisation, the baht was divided into eight ''fueang'' (, ), each of eight ''at'' (, ). The ...

. The market leader is the MAMA () brand, produced by Thai President Foods. MAMA got its start in 1972 as a joint venture between Taiwan's President Enterprise and Thailand's Saha Pathanapibul PLC. The brand controls about half the Thai instant noodle market, and "Mama" has become a generic name for instant noodles in Thailand. Thai people consume an average of 45 packs of noodles per person per year, fourth in the world after Indonesia, Vietnam, and Malaysia. In second place is the Wai Wai brand from Thai Preserved Food Factory at 23–24 percent, followed by Ajinomoto's Yum Yum brand at 20–21 percent. Due to their ubiquity, instant noodles were chosen as a vehicle for dietary fortification by a joint effort of the Federation of Thai Industries, instant noodle producers, and the Ministry of Public Health about ten years ago. The vitamins and minerals added are iron, iodine, and vitamin A.

Ukraine

The first time instant noodles appeared in the Ukrainian market in the 1990s, and quickly became iconic food. The first Ukrainian brand of instant noodles was Mivina () created in 1995 by Technocom () - the company founded in 1993 by Vietnamese entrepreneur Phạm Nhật Vượng. The name of the brand comes from vietnamese "mì Việt Nam", which translates as "Vietnamese noodles". Due to popularity of the brand, the name "Mivina" became a household name for instant noodles among Ukrainian consumers. From the start, instant noodles was often eaten in raw as a snack in Ukraine. It was especially popular among schoolchildren. Knowing that, Mivina created the child-oriented sweet instant noodles with

cinnamon Cinnamon is a spice obtained from the inner bark of several tree species from the genus ''Cinnamomum''. Cinnamon is used mainly as an aromatic condiment and flavouring additive in a wide variety of cuisines, sweet and savoury dishes, biscuits, b ...

and

vanilla Vanilla is a spice derived from orchids of the genus ''Vanilla (genus), Vanilla'', primarily obtained from pods of the flat-leaved vanilla (''Vanilla planifolia, V. planifolia''). ''Vanilla'' is not Autogamy, autogamous, so pollination ...

flavour. Later it was replaced with orange,

pineapple The pineapple (''Ananas comosus'') is a Tropical vegetation, tropical plant with an edible fruit; it is the most economically significant plant in the family Bromeliaceae. The pineapple is indigenous to South America, where it has been culti ...

coconut The coconut tree (''Cocos nucifera'') is a member of the palm tree family (biology), family (Arecaceae) and the only living species of the genus ''Cocos''. The term "coconut" (or the archaic "cocoanut") can refer to the whole coconut palm, ...

banana A banana is an elongated, edible fruit – botanically a berry – produced by several kinds of large treelike herbaceous flowering plants in the genus '' Musa''. In some countries, cooking bananas are called plantains, distinguishing the ...

and

strawberry The garden strawberry (or simply strawberry; ''Fragaria × ananassa'') is a widely grown Hybrid (biology), hybrid plant cultivated worldwide for its fruit. The genus ''Fragaria'', the strawberries, is in the rose family, Rosaceae. The fruit ...

flavours. Despite its popularity, the sweet Mivina was discontinued, but was returned for short period in 2017 under the name Mivina Fruktel (), with banana and strawberry flavours only. Instant noodles are also often used as an ingredient in various recipes. In 2010, Technocom and Mivina was sold to

Nestlé Nestlé S.A. ( ) is a Swiss multinational food and drink processing conglomerate corporation headquartered in Vevey, Switzerland. It has been the largest publicly held food company in the world, measured by revenue and other metrics, since 20 ...

. The diversity of products decreased with time. In the late 2010s the brand became focused on more expensive products. Other brands available in Ukrainian market are Rollton and Big Bon produced by Mareven Food Europe LLC (), Golden Dragon, Tanuki (), Rooltick and Ukrainian Star () produced by LLC Kuhovar (). Most supermarket chains have their own instant noodles brands.

United Kingdom

A common form of instant noodles in Britain is Pot Noodle, a cup noodle launched by Golden Wonder in the 1977 and acquired by

in 1995. Packet noodles such as Batchelors' Super Noodles, which were originally made by Kellogg's, have been sold since 1979. Bigger supermarkets also sell foreign brands, such as Nissin, Koka noodles, and Shin Ramyun, which once could only be found in Asian groceries. Larger retail chains may offer their own brand in basic packaging and a variety of flavours, e.g.,

Asda Asda Stores Limited (), trading as Asda and often styled as ASDA, is a British supermarket and petrol station chain. Its headquarters is in Leeds, England. The company was incorporated as Associated Dairies and Farm Stores in 1949. It expanded ...

. Kabuto Noodles, launched in 2010, was the UK's first up-market instant noodle brand, followed by Itsu and Mr Lee's Noodles.

United States

In the United States, instant noodles were first made available by Nissin Foods in 1971. In 1972, the company introduced "Nissin

" in a foam food cup, which led to an upsurge in popularity. Soon after, many other competing companies were offering similar instant noodle products. Today in the U.S., instant noodles are commonly known as "ramen", after the Japanese dish on which they were originally based, and they come in a variety of flavors such as

beef Beef is the culinary name for meat from cattle (''Bos taurus''). Beef can be prepared in various ways; Cut of beef, cuts are often used for steak, which can be cooked to varying degrees of doneness, while trimmings are often Ground beef, grou ...

chicken The chicken (''Gallus gallus domesticus'') is a domesticated subspecies of the red junglefowl (''Gallus gallus''), originally native to Southeast Asia. It was first domesticated around 8,000 years ago and is now one of the most common and w ...

, and

shrimp A shrimp (: shrimp (American English, US) or shrimps (British English, UK)) is a crustacean with an elongated body and a primarily Aquatic locomotion, swimming mode of locomotion – typically Decapods belonging to the Caridea or Dendrobranchi ...

. Ramen has become synonymous in America for all instant noodle products. Some prominent brands are Top Ramen (originally Top Ramen's Oodles of Noodles), Maruchan, and Sapporo Ichiban. A wide range of popular brands imported from other countries are available at many Asian grocery stores and some supermarkets. Instant ramen noodles are popular among students and people of low income, due to their ease of preparation, versatility, and low cost. According to research by Michael Gibson-Light, a doctoral candidate at the University of Arizona School of Sociology, in the US prison system, by 2016 ramen packets had become a form of commodity currency, comprising a mainstay of the

informal economy An informal economy (informal sector or grey economy) is the part of any economy that is neither Taxation, taxed nor monitored by any form of government. Although the informal sector makes up a significant portion of the economies in developin ...

there and supplanting cigarettes.

Vietnam

Instant noodles are popular in Vietnam, where they are often eaten as a breakfast food. Per capita consumption in 2018 was 54 servings per year. Both wheat and

rice noodles Rice noodles are noodles made with rice flour and water as the principal ingredients. Sometimes ingredients such as tapioca or corn starch are added in order to improve the transparency or increase the gelatinous and chewy texture of the noodle ...

are common. Acecook Vietnam, Masan Food, and AsiaFoods are leading producers of instant noodles.

Gallery

File:Cup-Noodles-2.jpg, German Cup Nudeln (

), spicy flavor File:Indomie Mie Goreng Iga Penyet 1.JPG, Indomie Mi goreng served with fried egg and vegetables File:Super Noodles.jpg, Cooked Super Noodles File:Mr Lees noodles hong kong street beef.jpg, Mr Lee's Noodles Hong Kong Street Beef decanted into the bowl Image:Shin ramyun.jpg, Shin Ramyun is often eaten with

kimchi Kimchi (; ) is a traditional Korean side dish (''banchan'') consisting of salted and fermented vegetables, most often napa cabbage or Korean radish. A wide selection of seasonings are used, including '' gochugaru'' (Korean chili powder), ...

as a topping or on the side.

References

External links

* {{Instant foods Instant noodle brands Ramen