One Culture Foods Taiwanese Beef Noodle and Japanese Spicy Ramen

During my last foray at Whole Paycheck (still calling it Whole Paycheck even though Amazon took it over and there's actually some pretty good deals every now and then but by and large the base prices are still $$$), I stumbled upon an intriguing display of instant noodles. But not like the instant noodles we normally see - these were "one culture" noodles of various Asian tastes. What??? How can you summarize diverse Asian cuisine as one culture??? That question, plus the "Taiwanese beef noodle" flavor was enough for me to take these home. Oh and that it was on sale cuz I ain't never paying full price for these. 

It turns out One Culture was started by a millennial Asian-American who probably had way more exposure to various Asian foods than I did growing up in the Midwest. One Culture refers not to monoethnicity but the unifying nature of food - no matter what your language or cultural differences are, food unites us all. Also, unlike your typical instant ramen bowls/cup noodles, these ramen bowls come with a "bone broth reduction," which isn't just a trendy nutritional thing but the literally the backbone of every good Asian noodle soup. Which is why such things as miso ginger broth just don't compare. I saw four flavors available and picked up the Taiwanese beef noodle and Japanese spicy ramen flavors (also available: Vietnamese pho and a vaguely titled Chinese noodle).

Like a typical instant noodle - it comes with noodles, seasoning, and a sauce packet. 

This company considers Taiwan to be part of China, a very contentious subject y'all. Beef noodle soup is pretty much Taiwan's national dish. My parents made this regularly at home as a comfort food, and we always ate it whenever we went to visit Taiwan. 

*To note: the directions are a bit different from typical instant ramens, which usually tell you to fill the cup with boiling water up to the line. One Culture wants you to heat the product in water in the microwave. Apparently a contentious subject if you're British. 

Lest you think this is a health food - one serving has half a day's worth of sodium! :O 

I have no idea what that blob is, but I'm assuming it's the concentrate that magically turns into bone broth reduction. 

1) Points off for type of noodle -  would have preferred a curly instant ramen noodle noodle, not the ubiquitous spaghetti found in every American kitchen.

2) The taste is certainly inspired by Taiwanese beef noodle soup - it's not "authentic" in its resemblance to the real thing. Make no mistake, this is still a cup noodle BUT the broth has the creaminess and savoriness indicative of the real thing. I don't really taste the cilantro, which might be good news if you don't like cilantro. There's also a taste of pickled mustard green (酸菜) often topped in such dishes. I like how the sour cuts through the richness of the broth; A did not. 

3) Like every cup noodle, the broth is much too salty to drink once you finish the noodles. 

Onto Japanese ramen! Not the first company to attempt to package it in a "ready in three min" paper cup. 

To be fair, the ingredients in these instant noodles are definitely better, relative to its supermarket counterpart. Great if you're a hungry student in need of simple calories. Just not particularly nutritious. 

Again, not sure what is in the sauce, but we'll assume it's the concentrate that morphs into magical bone broth. 

1) This definitely tastes closer to real ramen (albeit ramen from an average ramen shop, not one that has a line out the door) than the Trader Joe's version, which is interesting because this is also a chicken bone broth base instead of a classic pork one. Pork is obviously richer and tastier but not as healthy and not allowed in certain diets.  A liked this better than the Taiwanese beef noodle, mainly because this didn't have any sour notes at all. 

2) I like that the umami doesn't come from a generic umami seasoning but the careful blend and layering of different seasonings (soy sauce, garlic, onion, seaweed, chicken broth, orange peel, Japanese 7-spice togarashi, sesame, etc). Of course, the togarashi makes this a little spicy. 

Overall Thoughts: 

1) I am not a cup noodle connoisseur. I can't remember the last time I had instant noodles before this, but I must say that these cup noodles were much better than I expected. 

2) They are "authentic," in the sense that the flavor really does pay tribute to the original thing. It seems that the ingredients were treated with respect and not thrown together haphazardly to produce something vaguely "Asian-tasting." It's kind of like giving someone who has never ever had pizza before Dominos or Papa Johns. Yes, it's pizza but it's not the "real thing" if you're define "real thing" as an Italian or Italian-America pizzeria. But there's a difference between Dominos pizza being pizza vs. throwing some Ragu on an English muffin with a few shards of flavorless pre-shredded cheese and calling that pizza. 

3) If I were a college student stranded in my dorm room or if I lived in the Midwest somewhere with no satisfactory Asian restaurants in town, I'd eat them because they give a taste of the real thing.

4) The difference between this and other cup noodles is definitely the bone broth. Asians have been drinking bone broth in their soups for ages before it became trendy, packaged, and marketed as such. It just gives a depth and richness that you don't get from generic chicken stock in a carton. Of course, the broth is too salty to drink by itself, but bathing the noodles in the savory broth imparts flavor.

5) I got these on sale 2 for $5, but the retail price runs somewhere in the $3-4 for one serving.

6) Upgrading the spaghetti noodles to something better - thicker or curlier...just not spaghetti would definitely make it better.

TL;DR: One Culture Foods Taiwanese Beef Noodle and Japanese Spicy Ramen. Three minutes in away from close enough if you can't get the real thing. Double 7 out of 10s.