For all of my college students, you know the ins and outs of eating on a budget. And, the budget may look like oatmeal, a week’s worth of chicken pot pie, and of course, instant ramen noodles. With how repetitive ramen noodles can get, I try to change up the brand I pick up from the grocery store for some variety.
With that being said, not all instant ramen brands are created equal. While most are affordable, some might not have the best flavoring packets, noodles, or broth. But I’ve done the hard work for you and have tried a lot of options to rank my favorite brands from best to worst. What makes perfect instant ramen, in my opinion, is the quality. This could range from the broth, which is the foundation of ramen, to any toppings that are included in its packaging. The broth of the ramen needs to have a strong flavor that brings the seasoning of the ramen together, and the toppings have to be spot on to fulfill the ramen experience. With that being said, here are the best instant ramen brands. And if you need to spice up your basic ramen, try these instant ramen hacks.
1. Samyang Buldak
The Samyang Buldak ramen brand has many flavors and varieties of its popular noodles. From the most-known spicy chicken flavor to my personal favorite, the carbonara flavor, these noodles never fail to warm my heart up and satisfy my appetite. I have also managed to kick things up a bit whenever I would want to add something more flavorful. Cheese, hard-boiled eggs, and beef are perfect upgrades to making the ramen more savory and delicious.
2. NongShim Shin Ramyun
The NongShim Shin Ramyun is another personal favorite of mine. The texture of the noodle is chewy and the flavor of the broth has a strong onion taste, although the spiciness of the ramen is not too overpowering and offers a wonderful flavor with the beefy broth. This ramen also comes with a vegetable pack, adding onto the savoriness and comforting vibe.
3. Neoguri
I vividly remember trying this kind of ramen for the first time during the 2020 pandemic. This ramen brand is best known for its spicy seafood flavor, which is the one that I tried four years ago. The richness of the broth coupled with the seafood aroma is enough to make this one of your top ramen choices. Not to mention, the fish flakes that come in the packaging add to the seafood inspiration of the ramen, making it twice as good.
4. Indomie Instant Stir Fry
When I tried Indomie for the first time, I honestly didn’t know what I was getting myself into. Since it was much different from other ramen I had, the texture of the ramen caught me off guard at first, as it is a fried-based noodle. However, the broth of the ramen was very inviting and warm with its spicy flavor, which increased my temptation to finish the whole bowl. As of now, I have a very neutral relationship with Indomie, so I may (or may not) try it again. If I do have the chance to get it again, I will definitely be getting the hot and spicy flavor.
5. Chapagetti
The Chapagetti ramen was all over the place for me. This ramen is the brand Nongshim’s take on Jajangmyeon, a popular Korean noodle dish topped with a thick black sauce called chunjang, diced pork, and vegetables. The thickness of the noodles was great, and the flavor reminded me a lot of French onion soup. However, I didn’t love the sliminess of the noodles, as it was off-putting.
6. Top Ramen
Surprisingly, I put this college food staple at number six for one reason: it’s pretty boring. With little varieties of flavors, it leaves little to the imagination and can get quite repetitive. Thankfully, there are ways to add extra ingredients and toppings to make it pop. Whether it’s cheese, soy sauce, or even peanut butter, it’ll make the ramen more enjoyable.
7. Maruchan
Very much similar to Top Ramen, this ramen brand doesn’t bring much to the table. I ate Maruchan noodles so much growing up that I can’t bear the thought of having to eat it again. The texture is pretty stale and the flavor lacks pizzazz.
8. Nissin Cup Noodles
Oh, Nissin, I hope to never try you again. When I had these for the first time, they were okay and I enjoyed the flavor of the ramen. As time went on, I started to hate the texture of the noodles as they felt slimy to me, and the smell always made me sick. Honestly, I would prefer Maruchan over Nissin, since both have similar flavors, but with different packaging.