Filipinos Try Korean Instant Ramen for the First Time

If you reside in Manila, then I’m sure you’ve seen quite a lot of Korean groceries around the metro. With the many Koreans coming to the Philippines for business, travel and to study the English language, Korean marts have blossomed throughout the years to cater to the needs of Korean people in the country.

Have you ever been to a Korean grocery before? Believe me, it’s a magical place! Especially the one we recently visited at Tuscany at McKinley Hill called ASSI Fresh Plaza that’s near a Korean School as well as the Korean Embassy in Manila. 

Most of us Pinoys may not be able to read Korean characters but believe me, if you come and check their items, you can get to discover a whole lot of yummy stuff like Korean candies, ice creams, rice cakes, high quality fresh meats, affordable dumplings you can cook at home and a wide array of super delicious instant Korean ramen a.k.a RAMYUN noodles.

 

If you love ramen, then it’s time for you to be introduced to Korean Ramyun! Here at Assi Fresh Plaza, they have a wide variety of instant Korean Ramyuns ranging from P33-P66 pesos only!!! Ang mura diba? 

 

That afternoon, I invited my friends who haven’t tried Korean Ramen noodles before for a taste test to find one they love the most!

 

So yeah,  because we could hardly read Korean characters, we asked for the owner’s help. We asked her to recommend more than 10 items ranging from sweet,  mild to super duper spicy for our panel of “judges” to try out and vote  for the BEST instant Korean Ramen suited for the Pinoy palate!

 

Meet the finalists! (Don’t worry, we can’t read them all too! hihihi)

 

 Meet our panel of judges who are gonna try Korean ramen for the first time…. Bernadette, Kevin, Kat and Patrick

 

To make it more “legit,” we also asked the help of these 2 Korean students we met at the store. They surely know their ramyuns well, and gave really good recommendations! Thanks guys!

 

After picking out our top 14, it was time to have them all prepared!

 

Preparation was really easy. Most of them just needed hot water, close the lid and wait, while for some, we had to drain the water afterwards … “instant pancit canton” style.

 

Good thing the owner of Assi Fresh Plaza was nice enough to give us a lot of hot water and helped us prepare the noodles to make sure they were prepared the Korean way.

 

Here are the 10 brands we tasted that day…..

1. Chapagetti Cup P44

The fusion of spaghetti and a Chinese black soybean paste called “Chajang”

It looked quite odd with its black color due to the black soybean sauce…

And by the time our judges had their first taste, they all agreed it was too bland and did not find it appealing at all. Perhaps because we Pinoys prefer our food to be really tasty.

 

2.  Shin Ramyun Cup P36

This perhaps is one of the most popular for I always see this in grocery stores. Many Koreans seem to like this a lot!

It was quite spicy so you have to brace yourself for it. After a couple of forkfuls, we got to appreciate it a lot!

 

3.  Mupama Tangmyun P54

According to the owner, this is a kind of high quality satisfying noodle soup. No need to add vegetables.

 

 

4. Jin Ramen Cup P33

Spicy beef noodle soup. Another popular brand…

 

 

5. Seafood Jjampong Cup P63

Another Korean favorite. If you love seafood and red peppers, then we recommend this! Includes dried shrimp, squid, mussels and crab meat! Really tasty!

Because of its rich tasty seafood flavor, we all  liked this a lot!

 

6. Yeul Ramen P41

Has beef, red peppers, mushrooms and  green peppers. It tasted quite typical.

 

7. Kimchi ramen P36

If you love kimchi and I’m sure you’ll like this!

 

8. Yukgaejang Cup P36

Yukgaejang is a spicy-hot Korean traditional beef stew made of beef brisket and various vegetables and seasonings. It’s said to be Korean’s first choice when it comes to soups.

 

9. Spicy Shrimp cup

Another best seller. A simple yet delicious snack full of flavors of real seafood!

 

10. Buldak Bokeum Myun P66

Last but certainly not the least is the Buldak Bokeum Myun. If I remember right, Buldak means “Fire Chicken” which became popular for its EXTREME SPICINESS…. #alamna

#alamna lols

 

I never thought this impromptu Korean Ramen taste test would turn out so be so interestingly fun! Just look at the faces of our judges….. despite having a really hard time since it was their 1st time, they pushed themselves to the limit just to help us out in choosing the tastiest Korean instant Ramen! They seriously did a great job!

 

And so after tasting over 10 kinds of ramen…

 

We all gathered our pens and papers to rate each cup….

 

Then we all found out that it was a tie between #10 (Buldak Bokeum Myun P66) and #5 (Seafood Jjampong Cup P63). 

 

But of course, there had to only be one victor, so we tasted them both once again and made a  final vote…

 

And finally, we all agreed that the winner was none other than….

The Buldak Bokeum Myun (P66)!!!

At first, you’ll get to taste its delicious flavorful noodles then after a few seconds comes a burst of extreme “hell-like” spiciness that is insanely addicting! We never thought we’d love it this much! Highly recommended for only P66!!!!

 

 

But wait, there’s more!

Love Cheese? Then you must try out this Cheese  Bokki (P50). We were a bit hesitant at first, but after adding a little more water to make it more saucy, we got hooked!! Another unique and high recommended ramen to try next time! 

To prepare, just add water, close the lid and wait til noodles are ready. Drain out the water, but make sure to leave some, so by the time you add the cheese powder, it’ll be more rich n’ saucy!  MMmmmmmmm

Another unique and highly recommended ramen to try next time! 

 

 

Which of the these would you likely try?

Do you know of any other recommended Korean Ramen brand?

We’d love to read your comments!

 

 

For more information about Assi Fresh Plaza and other establishments at Tuscany at McKinley Hill, call the Megaworld Lifestyle Malls Concierge at 709-9888, 709-0888 or 0917-8380111.

 

Filipinos Try Korean Instant Ramen For The First Time