Knorr Taj Szamaj Slodko-kwasny

This a limited edition nood - the name appears to be something like "Taj schmaj" with the sub-title being "sweet and sour sauce". It's certainly very sweet. It's like a sweet thin tomato sauce. It's not objectionable, but it's a little one dimensional and way too sweet and boring.


Score: 4

A-One Instant Noodles Shrimp Flavor

Proper deep fried noodles - you get that wonderful savoury aroma as soon as the hot water touches them. Decent flavoured sauce as well. Not sure it's shrimp flavoured exactly, but it's enjoyable. It doesn't hit the heights, but does a good job. I liked this.


Score: 7

A-One

Knorr Nudle Doner Kebab

What a brilliant flavour idea for instant noodles - doner kebab! It's so filthy it works! It's the perfect noods flavouring!  These Poles know how to have a good time don't they? Strong beer and doner kebab flavoured noods. I wanna be a Pole when I grow up.


Interestingly British style - lots of floury paste. Perhaps this floury paste approach is more sort of European than just British. Perhaps Pot Noodle has influenced the rest of Europe. Be interesting to research into the history of instant noodles in Europe.

The flavouring in this is strong rather than anything else. There is no attempt at a providing a range of flavours that balance out, providing interest and stimulation, nor is there any attempt at making the flavour pleasant - this is just straight ahead filth, as appropriate for a doner kebab flavoured instant noodle. What more do you expect? What more do you want?

It's filthy, and I enjoyed it. Onion and Marmite is mostly what it tastes like. As a veggie I particularly like this, as the noods are veggie, so this is the closest I'm going to get to eating a doner kebab when I'm drunk on a Friday night.


Score: 7

Naked Noodle Singapore Curry

We had this alongside Mama Green Curry. The Mama noods blew these Naked noods clean out of the pot, but, to be fair, it was the Naked pot that I chose to finish because the Mama noods were just a tad too hot for my delicate mouth. Shame on me. (I don't like the noodles, but the juice is quite tasty, and I enjoyed slurping up what was left).


Date: Jan 2019   Score: 5

This is the last in the new Naked Noodle series from Symington. I liked this one. Rather floury in the style of good old Pot Noodle, with a chip shop type curry - slight warmth, but more about the curry flavour than the heat. It's not exotic, but the homely taste and familiarity is appealing. I am still not a fan of the stringy noodles, but this was quite edible and enjoyable. Though I wouldn't mind having another one, there are other noods out there that I prefer, so none of these Naked Noodles will find their way onto my shopping list.

Date: Dec 2015   Score: 6

Best curry flavour instant noodles

Symington's

Naked Noodle Japanese Teriyaki

Another in Symington's new Naked Noodle series. Made from proper egg noodles, though as they are air-dried rather than deep-fried, they taste a bit wooden and bland - though the noodles are here more for texture than taste, and for me I prefer my noodles a little bigger, and less string like.

Teriyaki is a Japanese sauce of soya and sugar. There's no meat in this, so safe for veggies. It's edible, but not that exciting. I don't like the noodle size of the Naked Noodle series, and despite the interesting packaging and concept, I find the flavours a little boring - mostly sugar, and with little range and contrast. This onme is like sweet soy sauce with rehydrated vegetables. Edible, but nit great.

Date: Dec 2015   Score: 3

***

Symington's

Knorr Nudle Amerikan Cziken

Green packet of Knorr noodles, possibly bought in local Polish shop. This is chicken flavoiured, and because the packet is in Polish with nio English text I can't tell if it's veggie, but it appears to be MSG. Lolts of MSG flavour and lots of salt. This is very strong flavoured, but it's not good strong, simply very, very salty with some MSG. Not nice.


Score: 1

Knorr Nudle Czar-dasz Gulasz (Limited Edition)

Typical packet nood, made in Europe by Unilver Poland. Can't remember where I bought that, but all the writing is in Polish, with no English translation at all. I think it's veggie, but I'll need to check. A very enjoyable nood. Good flavours - strong, but not overwhelming. A bit of warmth, but not too hot, Lots of paprika and some tomato with a savoury edge. I could do these again.

Score: 7

Nongshim Big Bowl Noodle Kimchi Flavour

112g in a very big Styrofoam bowl. Kimchi is the Korean national dish, of which they are very proud, and which has been given UNESCO Cultural Heritage status. It is a picked cabbage. In South Korea it is spiced with chilli, in North Korea it is not. This is a very tasty, if rather pique, dish. I like the noodles, and I love the flavour. Mildly sweet tomato with onion and other flavours. There's veggies in here, so a range of flavours and textures are offered. Damn fine. There's dried fish cake, other than that, it's veggie safe.

I enjoyed this. And it reminds me of just how good Asian noods actually are when compared to British floury nonsense.

Score: 8

Nongshim

Naked Noodle Cantonese Style Hoisin Duck

  

Another redesign of the packaging. These are now Cantonese "Style" (so I've adjusted the title of this post). The Egg Noodles has been moved to the bottom of the name. 

The noodles are rather thin and worm like for our taste - we'd prefer bigger, more satisfying noodles. The sauce is pleasant enough. OK. 

Date: Feb 2023   Score:   5 

Three years since I last had these, and the pack is the same but "Egg noodles" have been added to the title. I don't think there has been a change in recipe as they were egg noodles in 2015, but I certainly enjoyed these more than I did back then. I did cook them for longer - putting them into the microwave after I'd poured on the boiling water. The noodles themselves are small, and the advised amount of water to add makes this a little bit stodgy, but I found it comforting and pleasantly savoury. Still veggie. There's no duck in this.


Date: Jan 2019    Score: 5

Hoisin is a sweet sticky sauce. This doesn't taste sweet or sticky. It just tastes unpleasant. Not my thing at all. Veggie. The noodles are made with egg, but are so small you can't really taste them anyway. This is marketing over taste.


Date: Nov 2015   Score: 3

***

Symington's

Batchelors Super Noodles Limited Edition Proper Tasty Steak & Ale Pie Flavour

Soft, bland noodles. Nice idea, and the flavour is almost there. Comforting and easy to eat. Contains no steak and no ale. Flavoured with Marmite and onion. Veggie.

Crap.

Score: 3

Super Noodles are crap

MAMA Instant Noodles Moo Nam Tok Flavour

Moo Nam Tok is a Thai pork dish, it's name means pork waterfall. As with other Mama noods, the noodles themselves are fine, but the flavouring tends to be too thin and use too much chilli for my taste. I don't add the extra chilli, and it is still hot. It simply burns. The underlying flavour is soya and onion, so it's not that great anyway. The pork flavour is artificial, so it's veggie safe.

Score: 3

MAMA's best

Lidl Newgate / Vitasia Barbecue Beef Flavour (packet)

Cheap but not cheerful. There's a lot of chewy noodles, but not much flavouring. Could do better.


Date: November 2015  Score: 3

 As part of Lidl's rebranding these are now marketed as Newgate Instant Noodles. The ingredients are veggie - the flavouring comes from onion and yeast extract. It tastes of onion. Needs a little bit of extra seasoning. It's acceptable. Nothing to write home about, but edible enough. Doesn't say where they are made.

Date: May 2016   Score: 4

Beef flavoured

Naked Noodle Thai Tom Yum

The noodles are too small. The taste is OK, with some lime, but just a bit too much tomato,  and a little too much heat for my personal preference. They're OK, but not my thing really. Reminded me of some of the Polish noods - sweet, tomato flavour with thin noodles, and too much heat. Not enough depth and body, but edible.

Date: Nov 2015  Score: 5

***

Most yummy Tom Yum

Symington's

Mug Shot On The Go! Oh Soy Saucy Chow Mein Noodles The BIG One!

It's edible, but it does taste like rehydrated British soup. There's a fair amount of onion in this. If you like the taste of rehydrated onion and flour water, then this is fine. It's edible, and it's savoury, but it's not actually a delight.

Score: 3

***

Symington's

Best instant noodle chow mein

Mug Shot On The Go! Satisfying Cheese & Ham Pasta The BIG One!

Made in the UK. Uses pieces of reformed pig. Tastes horrid. Not an experience I would like to repeat.

Score: 1

Symington's

Naked Noodle Vietnamese Beef Pho Flavour

Veggie. Made in the UK. Bought from Tesco as part of a multi-deal for 90p - normally £1.19.  This is a savoury nood - mostly onion and soy sauce flavouyrs, but pleasant enough. A little warmth, but not too much. An enjoyable British nood - a little floury, yes, but that's OK. Sometimes I like a bit of floury. Think Pot Noodle, but slightly better.


Score: 7

***

Beef flavoured

Symington's

Mug Shot On The Go! Magnifique Bolognese Pasta The BIG One!

Normally £1.09 for 85g - bought in Tesco as a multi-buy for 90p. Veggie. A decent enoiugh but unremarkable herb and tomato sauce on pasta. You can eat this, and then forget it. Not one to stick in the mind. It's OK. That's it really. Job done.

Score: 4

Symington's

Mug Shot On The Go! Mighty Spicy Madras Noodles The BIG One!

Normally £1.09, but picked up in Tesco as part of a multi-buy deal for 90p. This is a Pot Noodle clone, and it works well on that level - sticky and floury paste, with a British curry flavour. Quite warm, made me sweat, but a good warmth - not like some of the biting Asian spicy foods which are little more than chilli. Sweet and largely tomato flavoured this is very edible, though eaten side by side with Symington's Naked Noodle Curry, I found the greater range of flavours of the Naked Noodle more appealing. But there is something very comforting and dirty about this . A very close Pot Noodle clone.

Score: 6

***

Best curry flavour instant noodles

Symington's

Naked Noodle Malaysian Laksa Curry

Normally £1.19, bought for 90p in Tesco as part of a multi-buy deal. Priced at around the same price as Pot Noodle, but aiming for a more upmarket audience, I bought this at the same time as the company's (Symington's) Mug Shot cup, which is priced slighter lower (£1.09) but available on the same multi-buy deal at 90p. This is a typical floury UK nood, but the packaging and the finished product look good, and the product is quite tasty and flavoursome with some subtle lenongrass flavours and a gentle spicy warmth. I have previously slammed the Naked Noodle brand, and the Naked Noodle Laska product in particular, so I wasn't expecting much of this, but I ended up liking it quite a lot. Eating it side by side with the Mug Shot Madras, the similarities are obvious, and I enjoyed both, but this Laska Curry is more to my liking.

Score: 7

***

Best curry flavour instant noodles

Symington's

Nissin Cup Noodles Crab Flavor

Another wonderful one from Nissin. So fresh and natural tasting, and full of yummy flavours and textures. I don't like this as much as the  chicken flavour, but it still knocks socks off just about everyone else. This really does taste like you'd get in a noodle shop. Awesome. No meat, but does have dried seafood.

Score: 8

Nifty Nissin noodles

Nissin Cup Noodles Chicken Flavor

Awesome. I am so happy with Nissin, they are my type of nood. Easy to make, all veggie, excellent value for money, and so delicious. I wonder how they can do it so well, and others fail so miserably. The noodles in this are sublime. Perfect texture, flavour and character. The flavouring is savoury, interesting, fresh and satisfying. The little bits of dried vegetables break down into soft delicious bites. And it's not spoiled by too much chemical flavouring, or heavy chilli spices to cover up the inadequacies of the product. These are great.


10/10

Nifty Nissin noodles

The best Chicken flavour noods

Lidl Vitasia Instant Noodles Authentic Oriental Noodles Chicken Flavour

18p for 108g from Lidl. Cheap, but not good value. You get a lot of noodles, but not much flavour. The powdered flavouring is tasteless - you have to add your own salt or garlic powder or whatever, so you might as well just buy some plain noodles and add your own flavouring.

It's veggie. Doesn't say where it is made.

Date:  Oct  2015   Score: 1

I like this sort of noodle. Soft and tasty. Made in China. Veggie. Seasoning is a bit weak, so extra seasoning is required - a bit of salt or garlic or soy sauce, whatever, just something to make to feel a bit pleasant than eating some wet string.

Date: July 2016  Score: 3


Other reviews
*Live a Lidl

***

The best Chicken flavour noods