Asda Smart Price - Prawn Flavour Instant Noodles

It's not a very good sign when your instant noodle packaging is semi-transparent and you can see the flavor sachet through the outside wrapper. Nevertheless, I took my chances with this one. This is part of Asda's Smart Price range. Similar to Tesco Value or Sainsbury's Basics lines, the Asda Smart Price range is a low cost line of products. The packaging is restricted to one or two colors to reduce cost as much as possible.

These noodles were disappointingly limp and tasteless. The noodles themselves were quite gooey and starchy and didn't have the springiness illustrated on the packaging. There was barely any flavoring at all, especially not prawn flavoring. It tasted like a weak salt broth.


These noodles were terrible, but luckily my expectations were already very low. They didn't taste bad, but there was just no taste or texture to them. I will definitely not be getting these again.

Asda Smart Price - Prawn Flavour Instant Noodles - 0.5/10

Super Noodles - Mild Mexican Chili Flavour

One thing that I love about Super Noodles is that they sometimes have very festive packaging. This package makes you feel like you are in a Mexican cantina, enjoying an ice cold margarita and some delicious tacos al pastor. From a practical point of view, the brightly colored packaging grabs your eye in the supermarket aisle and makes you just a little bit more likely to try this flavor out.

Upon my first bite, I was expecting strong flavors of cumin, chili, onion, and garlic. While all of these flavors were indeed there, they were quite mild. Looking at the picture of the noodles, you can tell that the flavoring is not as strong as it could be. As usual, the Super Noodles themselves are quite high quality. They have just the right amount of inherent flavor and springy texture needed without being bland or soggy.

I thought that these noodles were pretty good, but I wished that they had kicked up the flavor a few notches. I guess I should have placed more emphasis on the word "Mild" on the package rather than focusing on the wildly festive sombrero. While I did enjoy these noodles, I probably won't be getting them again as there was nothing particularly great about them.

Super Noodles - Mild Mexican Chili Flavour - 5.0/10

Tiger Tiger Cup Noodles - Thai Spice Satay Style

There was no way I could resist this pack of noodles with its catchy slogan: "Unleash the Taste". Knowing that there was a fork inside, I could barely contain my excitement as I ripped open the box to discover...a cheap plastic cup inside. Why couldn't they just sell the cup like every other brand does? I guess they feel the need to add some additional useless packaging in order to stand out from the crowd.

I love a good satay, but these noodles didn't resemble satay in the slightest. The soup seemed to contain corn starch or some other thickening agent because it quickly became one gluey and starchy mess. The taste was quite bland and didn't have much good flavor at all.

It is very rare that I am tempted to throw away a partially eaten instant noodle, but in this case I was strongly tempted to do so. Nevertheless, I forged on for the sake of this review. There is nothing good to say about these noodles except that they have attractive packaging. I will definitely be avoiding anything of the Tiger Tiger brand in the future.

Tiger Tiger Cup Noodles - Thai Spice Satay Style - 0.0/10

Oh yeah, I almost forgot to mention this: the fork inside was pathetically small and completely unusable.

Super Noodles To Go - Grilled Steak Flavour

Batchelors have recently introduced the Super Noodles To Go line to compete with the Pot Noodle franchise in the cup noodles department. I usually try to avoid this type of instant noodle for a couple reasons. First, the noodles tend to be very inferior; I don't know why this has to be the case, but these cup noodles are always filled with puny tasteless noodles. The second reason I usually avoid these noodles is that they are a complete waste of packaging and usually include non-recyclable styrofoam. With that said, I couldn't pass up this cup of Grilled Steak Flavour, as this is a flavor that Super Noodles doesn't make in the brick form.

True to form, the noodles inside are the crappy thin strings that are found in cup noodles across the world. How hard would it be to put some decent noodles in there? I don't know why they don't just put their regular noodles in, since Super Noodles make some pretty good noodles in brick form. Perhaps they need the noodles to be thin so that they cook very easily, even when the water isn't quite boiling.

Block form Super Noodles aren't meant to be eaten with broth, but this cup of noodles was designed to include broth. I was pleasantly surprised that the broth was beefy and savory. The dried sweet peas and corn were a nice touch as well, although hardly surprising for this type of product. To be honest, this was one of the better cup style instant noodles that I've had. However, they just don't hold a candle to a good brick style instant noodle package.

Super Noodles To Go - Grilled Steak Flavour - 4.5/10

Tesco Instant Noodles - Chow Mein Flavour

Tesco's line of instant noodles are color coded so that you can grab the flavour you crave at a glance. The packaging is fairly plain but has the cute quirk that the second "o" in "Noodles" is shaped like a mouth slurping a noodle. It's small touches like this that sway my decision when I am picking out a pack of noodles.


Unlike most noodles reviewed on this site, the Tesco instant noodles are meant to be eaten dry. The typical method of cooking involves adding a relatively small amount of water (~300mL) to a saucepan and cooking the noodles until all the water is gone. I believe the dry noodle style reflects the British and Irish palate where noodle soups would be very rare at Chinese restaurants. It's a shame since noodle soups would be the perfect thing to warm up in the cold weather of the British Isles.


The Tesco instant noodles are undoubtedly high quality. They maintain their springiness yet are soft in the mouth. The chow mein flavouring and nicely subtle and contains hints of soy sauce, garlic, ginger, and onion. It is fairly unassuming but also unmistakably Asian in flavour. Overall, this is a pack of noodles that I am happy to slurp whenever I am looking for a basic pack of noodles that is not too flavourful.

Tesco Instant Noodles - Chow Mein Flavour - 7.0/10

Super Noodles - Southern Fried Chicken Flavour

This offering from Super Noodles is a new addition to the line, just like the Spag Bol flavour. This is shown by the "NEW on the range" slogan in the corner. I'm not really sure what Southern Fried Chicken is supposed to taste like, but it seems to fit in with the Southwestern theme also found in Buffalo Flavour Hunky Dorys.

The noodles in the various Super Noodles flavours are all identical. They tend to be a little slipperier and thinner than most Asian noodles, but they have a good inherent flavour.


Unlike the other Super Noodles that I've reviewed, this flavour actually has a pretty subtle taste. The flavour is a little bit spicy and there are pepper flakes, but it didn't immediately bring to mind Southern Fried Chicken. Then again, I'm not really sure what Southern Fried Chicken is supposed to taste like! The flavour is decent due to the naturally good tasting noodles, but I can't help but think that they could have added a more intense flavour here.

Super Noodles - Southern Fried Chicken Flavour - 6.5/10

Super Noodles - Spag Bol Flavour

This flavour of Super Noodles is a new addition to the line, evidenced by the "New in the family" label on the wrapper. The packaging of these noodles is especially festive, celebrating the culture and food of Italy. Spag Bol stands for Spaghetti Bolognese, which Americans usually crudely refer to as Spaghetti w/ Meat Sauce.

This time, the Top Tip had nothing to do with pitta breads. It was "Top with meatballs or sliced pepperoni". I suppose this makes a lot of sense since it is Spag Bol flavour! A little bit unfortunate, since I actually had pitas which I could have used. Although I'm not fully sold on the thought of putting instant noodles inside a pita.


I was impressed that upon adding the flavour sachet, the concoction actually smelled distinctly like Spag Bol. I accidentally drained a little bit too much water from the noodles, so they ended up being sticky and a little hard to mix. So make sure to leave some water in there!

The flavour of these noodles was quite good, although I must admit that they smelled a little more like Spag Bol than they tasted. Bonus points for crushed red pepper, onion flakes, and garlic flakes in the flavour packet. I think these are the first noodles I've ever had that had garlic flakes in them, and they were certainly a great addition.

Super Noodles Spag Bol Flavour - 7.5/10

Super Noodles - Mild Curry Flavour

More Super Noodles! I previously blogged about the Barbecue Beef Flavour, while this is the Mild Curry Flavour. The suggested cooking method is the same: cook the noodles in boiling water until soft, and then drain the water and add the flavor sachet.


This time, the mini-recipe on the flavor sachet was: "Smother hot pitta breads with spicy noodles and top with chicken and peppers". I'm not really sure what "spicy noodles" refers to, since these noodles are certainly not spicy. But it seems like the makers of Super Noodles have a strange obsession with "pitta breads". We'll see if the other Super Noodles Top Tips suggest using "pitta breads" as well.

When I put in the flavor sachet, I was a little shocked to see some neon yellow powder coming out. I guess it was a little surprising because the flavor packets in Asian ramen are almost always filled with brown, black, or dark red powder. But I suppose it makes sense, since this is curry flavor after all.


The flavor of the mild curry was surprisingly tangy and delicious. There were small flakes of scallions and red pepper that added no flavor but did contribute some color to the dish. Like the Barbecue Beef Flavour, these noodles are relatively basic, but the Mild Curry Flavour is very well designed and extremely flavorful and pleasant.

Super Noodles Mild Curry Flavour - 7.5/10

Super Noodles - Barbecue Beef Flavour

Super Noodles are available under the Batchelors brand name in the UK and McDonnells name in Ireland. As you can see from the packaging, my Super Noodles come from Ireland, brought to me by Rebecca. In general, flavors for processed foods in the UK and Ireland seem to be stronger and more adventurous. So, there are flavors of Super Noodles that you would never see in the US, such as Spaghetti Bolognese and Southern Fried Chicken.


This particular package of Super Noodles is Barbecue Beef flavor, which happens to be Rebecca's favorite. I was amused to note that there is a mini-recipe printed on the "flavor sachet". It's hard to read from this blurry picture, but the Top Tip is "Fill hot pitta (sic) breads with steaming noodles. Top with flaked tuna and mayo." I presume that there are a variety of Top Tips so that you get a new one with every Super Noodles that you eat. Clever idea!


I received enhanced cooking directions from Rebecca for these Super Noodles. Here are the directions:

1. Boil water on stove.
2. Cook noodles in boiling water until soft.
3. Drain almost all water but leave a little bit.
4. Mix in flavor sachet and stir well.
5. Enjoy!

As you can see, the noodles came out looking delicious! These noodles contain only a flavor packet, and no vegetable or oil packet. The flavor of these noodles is fairly strong and tastes like a mixture of beef, Worcestershire sauce, and barbecue sauce. I guess it lives up to its name! This is a rather basic ramen like Top Ramen, but definitely comes through with better execution.

Everything about Super Noodles exudes quality, from the shiny blue packaging to the neatly arranged flavor sachet within the package. While the noodles by themselves are somewhat plain, they would very competently complement additional vegetables and/or meats. The flavor is quite interesting, and not something that you would be able to find easily in other brands. If I could make a change to these, I would keep the flavor and add some dried vegetables to add some texture and variety.

Super Noodles Barbecue Beef Flavour - 7.0/10