Samyang Carbonara instant noodle review

 

Korean noodle products seem to be immensely popular in the UK at the moment. It doesn’t matter whether I am in the supermarket, or an ethnic grocery shop, or even a convenience story in the UK, I can always find either Shin or Samyang instant noodles. I was intrigued by a “Carbonara” noodle product, so I bought it for a taste test.

The product

Samyang are a South Korean noodle brand famous for their hot and spicy noodles. They were the first instant noodle manufacturer in South Korea, starting production in 1963. Samyang’s Buldak range are their famous hot noodle product, with the phrase buldak translating as “fire chicken”. The mascot on all the range is a cute cartoon chicken whose mouth is very clearly on fire. 

 

The Buldak range of noodles gained notoriety in 2024 when it was banned in Denmark for being too hot (the ban was later lifted, to the relief of Danish spiceaholics and chilli fans). Their 2x Spicy Buldak product looks like it is nothing less than incendiary: https://www.ramenregretrater.com/2017/02/08/samyang-2x-spicy-buldak-bokkeummyeon-2x-spicy-hot-chicken-flavour/. I don’t have the same heat tolerance as these brave people, so I have opted for something which I hope is milder.

There is another Samyang Buldak carbonara product on the market; their “Creamy Carbonara” noodle, which Alex at Gingey Bites has reviewed here: https://gingeybites.com/2025/08/buldak-cream-carbonara-instant-noodles.html

I found this product in the Korean supermarket in Kingston Upon Thames for £1.19, where I also bought some Ssamjang, Gochujang and Makgeolli. It was great to see the same brands I found in my trip to South Korea here, and if I had not been meeting with old friends for lunch, I might have taken the opportunity to stock up on Korean food products more substantially.

What’s Inside

The noodles are thick and flat, and look like a cross between noodles and pasta. I would say they were going for a tagliatelle vibe. They have even coloured them slightly yellow to get that pasta like appearance. The amount in the packet represents a very generous portion for one, but unlike some of the other Korean instant noodle products, not quite enough for two. 

 

There are two packets, a sachet of hot sauce, and a sachet of powder to make the cheese sauce. There is debate about whether the hot sauce is the same as the famous Samyang hot chicken noodles, and some say it is the same, while others say it packs less heat. Thanks to the noodle enthusiasts of Reddit, I was able to find a Scoville rating scale for the respective Samyang products. I cannot vouch for the accuracy, although I have no reason to doubt it. Here it is for your information, all feedback gratefully received: https://www.asianneeds.com/blogs/featured-blogs/buldak-ramen-spice-levels

Making up the noodles

I made this instant noodle product at home as the instructions call for the noodles to be cooked for 5 minutes. 

 

I read this to mean that just soaking in boiling water would not be enough and the actual application of heat was required. This job needed to be done on the hob. It seems this is not a convenience product for a quick storecupboard workplace lunch.

 

I have seen a BuzzFeed article where the writer added salt to the pasta water. But instant noodles are already high in salt, so much so I only have them as an occasional lunch. So I was not going to follow that approach. In the final analysis, the noodles and sauce did not need any salt. 

 

The instructions ask you to retain 8 tablespoons of the cooking water (120ml). I have read that some people choose to use only half of the sauce packet, but I decided that if I am trying this product out for review, it has to be made as the instructions intended – 120ml of cooking water with the full pack of sauce and the full pack of carbonara cheese powder. It mixes up quickly with a good stir with no lumps. 

 

What does it taste like

One of my Bluesky friends told me that these noodles were “really bloody horrible” which did fill me with a sense of dread. However, I would say they were edible, but definitely not a carbonara. The noodles might look like a noodle/pasta cross, but they have the flavour and texture of noodles. There is a pleasing garlicky flavour to the finished noodles. The little green flecks of herb are parsley, but the taste is not easily detectable. There is definitely chilli heat here, and it builds up as you keep eating. Thankfully this was a hot Korean instant noodle I could finish eating, unlike some of the others I have sampled. I have even seen noodle challenges advertised in South Korea for tourists – eat for free if you can manage to eat the full portion. 

The noodles were semi-firm after 5 minutes of cooking, and I would prefer them with a little more bite, which could be achieved through taking a minute off the cooking time. There’s a vague sense of cheese, but it feels more milky. The sauce seemed a touch too thin, and I wonder if adding only 80-100ml of the cooking water would give a thicker and creamier sauce.

If you want it cheesy, I’d suggest that you add a small grating of Parmesan to enhance the flavour and texture. If you want the unctuous mouthfeel of carbonara, you could add beaten egg, but with a much reduced amount of cooking water, at a guess only 30ml or a couple of tablespoons.

There are a great many YouTube videos of people pimping their instant noodles with a slice or two of American style processed cheese, and I imagine this would also work well. Personally, I would have these again as a working from home lunch, but I would add a little bit of cooked ham (I wouldn’t bother cooking up any pancetta or guanciale for this) and grated Parmesan.

My overall verdict is that these are pretty good, but not the creamy, cheesy experience I had been expecting. The added fuss of making it in a pan on the head is another convenience factor to consider.

I use Gingey Bites’ rating system for my noodles. For Alex’s scoring method and an index of all of her instant noodle reviews, please see: https://gingeybites.com/guide-to-instant-noodles

My ratings:

Texture 7/10

Flavour 7/10

Ease of making 7/10 (at home; would be inconvenient at work)

Would I buy them again: Maybe, but with some tweaks as set out above

It seems that even Sally Abé, author of A Woman’s Place is the Kitchen, and head of food for The Bull in Charlbury is partial to Samyang’s Carbonara noodles:

“There are nonnas turning in their grave at the utterance of it, but I love Buldak’s Samyang Spicy Ramen Carbonara (available at Sainsbury’s). Buldak are bit of a cult instant noodle brand which come in this cute packaging with love hearts on it – I think that’s what drew me in – and they are very spicy, with a cheese powder you sprinkle on at the end. They are gross, but in a good way, and as a post-shift snack they are perfect. After cooking rich restaurant food all night, I want to be hit with that massive chilli flavour, and they don’t need pimping; they’re primo-pimped.”

(Taken from: https://inews.co.uk/inews-lifestyle/supermarket-cheats-ready-meals-microwave-mash-3680325)

For my previous Instant noodle reviews please see:

Doll brand Hello Kitty Dim Sum Japanese prawn flavour instant noodle: https://snigskitchen.blogspot.com/2025/08/doll-hello-kitty-dim-sum-noodle-review.html

Itsu’s Chick N Ramen noodles:  https://snigskitchen.blogspot.com/2025/03/itsu-chick-n-ramen-instant-noodle-review.html

Nissin x Shoryu “Ramen Masters” Cup Noodle: https://snigskitchen.blogspot.com/2024/01/nissin-x-shoryu-ramen-masters-cup.html

Maruchan spicy chicken and prawn noodles: https://snigskitchen.blogspot.com/2024/05/maruchan-spicy-chicken-and-prawn.html

Nongshim brand’s “Chapagetti” noodles: https://snigskitchen.blogspot.com/2024/09/nongshim-chapagetti-noodle-review.html

This review represents the genuine opinions of Snigdha, who has received no incentive to write this review, and who purchased the product with her own money.

Doll Hello Kitty Dim Sum Noodle review

Doll Hello Kitty Dim Sum Japanese prawn flavour instant noodle review

 

I was immediately struck by the Kawaii pink cuteness of this dinky pot noodle product in the Vietnamese grocery shop Lai and Loi in Deptford High Street. I had never seen a Hello Kitty instant noodle product, and I had to have it!

Hello Kitty, or Kitty White, was created in 1974 by Japanese artist Yuko Shimizu (although Yuko Yamaguchi took over the Kitty designs in 1980). She is still Sanrio’s most popular character, half a century later. I was surprised to discover Kitty is meant to be British, and was named after Alice’s Kitty in the Alice In Wonderland books. But the distinctive cat with her big red bow was based on Yuko’s childhood pet, with Shimizu saying “when I was a child, I got a small white kitten from my father for a birthday present”. Kitty is such an icon she’s a UNICEF ambassador and was named UNICEF’s Special Friend of Children.

While I am not a Hello Kitty obsessive, I do have some Hello Kitty products bought on my travels to Japan. She might seem a little bit childish and girly, but there’s something about having grown up seeing her on so many products which means she’s special to me.

Doll is a Hong Kong based noodle brand, part of Winner Food Products Limited. They have been manufacturing instant noodles since 1969. The company also make frozen dim sum and other catering Chinese food products. Their first Doll bowl noodle was made in 1983 and they were bought up by the Nissin (Cup Noodle) company in 1989.

The product

Made by Doll brand, I bought a small cardboard cup/pot of noodles, which are around a half or a third of the size of a standard Cup Noodle. The dried weight was 37g. The packet describes the product as “dim sum noodle Japanese shrimp flavour”. There is so much cuteness to this pack, with drawings of Kitty along the side, with pink prawns and noodles. 

 

There are other flavours available in this range including a Tonkotsu flavour, Japanese Soy sauce flavour, and POMPOMPURIN Braised Beef Flavour.

This product is not suitable for vegetarians, vegans, or those following a halal or kosher diet; there are egg, fish extracts, prawn extracts, squid extract, and shrimp paste in the product.

What’s Inside

There is a small cake of wheat noodles in the bottom. The ingredients indicate the noodles have had some flavourings added such as soy, garlic, and other flavourings.

There are three little packets - soup base, dried veggies, and sauce.  

 

In the little dried vegetable packet there were tiny little Hello Kitty faces, as there are a number of Kitty Kamaboko. These are little pressed dried surimi fish cakes, made of pollock fish. The dried vegetables are carrot, green/spring onion and sweetcorn.  

The seasoning has prawn and fish extract and dried shrimp paste, plus onion powder, garlic powder and flavourings.

But the little surprise here is a Hello Kitty sticker, which now has pride of place on the cover of my diary!

 

What does it taste like

The noodles are quite narrow, which means you do need to stick to the 2 minute “cooking time”, and significantly exceeding this will result in soggy noodles (unless that’s your thing!). They had some bite after 2 minutes, but I felt they were a bit too soft for me. I like a bite to my ramen. 

 

The broth had some good umami flavours, but smelt “fishy”. The shrimp paste used in the seasoning made the soup taste a bit more Thai than Chinese dim sum or Japanese prawns.

This is pretty good instant noodle product, but seems that the Hello Kitty branding has resulted in a higher price point than the quality of the food warrants. I paid £1.75 from a small independent shop, I have seen £1.55 or £1.48 online. Doll brand’s pots of noodles sell for £1.99 for 100g+ packs, so my £1.75 for 37g is steep, taking into account the adorable Hello Kitty sticker thrown in.

I use Gingey Bites’ rating system for my noodles. For Alex’s scoring method and an index of all of her instant noodle reviews, please see: https://gingeybites.com/guide-to-instant-noodles

My ratings:

Texture 6/10

Flavour 7/10

Ease of making 10/10

Would I buy them again: No – but I would try other Doll brand noodle products

Silvana Franco shares 5 ideas to turn instant ramen into a simple midweek meal: https://archive.md/7dHbF

If you follow my instant noodle reviews, you will know I love to add ingredients and flavours to instant noodles. Here, at Kavey Eats blog (run by the brilliant food, travel and cooking enthusiast Kavita – AKA Kavey) is a new spin on modifying Korean instant noodles from Su Scott’s new cookbook Pocha: https://www.kaveyeats.com/tomato-kimchi-ramyun-instant-noodle

For my previous Instant noodle reviews please see:

You can read my review of Itsu’s Chick N Ramen noodles here:  https://snigskitchen.blogspot.com/2025/03/itsu-chick-n-ramen-instant-noodle-review.html

You can read my review of Nissin x Shoryu “Ramen Masters” Cup Noodle: https://snigskitchen.blogspot.com/2024/01/nissin-x-shoryu-ramen-masters-cup.html

You can read my review of Maruchan spicy chicken and prawn noodles here: https://snigskitchen.blogspot.com/2024/05/maruchan-spicy-chicken-and-prawn.html

You can read my review of Nongshim brand’s “Chapagetti” noodles here: https://snigskitchen.blogspot.com/2024/09/nongshim-chapagetti-noodle-review.html

This review represents the genuine opinions of Snigdha, who has received no incentive to write this review, and who purchased the product with her own money.

Itsu Chick N Ramen instant noodle review

Wandering around, idly gawping at the shelves of ingredients and food items at Longdan (the Vietnamese grocery shop in Lewisham which specialises in east Asian food products and plant based eating) is something I relish. On a recent visit, I spotted some instant cup/pot style noodles from Itsu. Itsu runs east Asian inspired take away/restaurant outlets in the UK, but have diversified into food products available in some supermarkets and speciality grocers. The packaging promised noodles in “hand crafted broth” which immediately grabbed my interest. I paid £1.95 for one pot of Itsu Chick N Ramen.

 

The product

Itsu have, according to their packaging, collaborated with a “highly respected food entrepreneur” from Japan named Yoshihiro, who has created the sesame miso broth paste in this pack. The broth paste is, they say, inspired by the ramen chefs of Tokyo. They have put Yoshihiro’s picture on the container, and he looks like a kindly uncle who is very particular about his noodle broth. Either that, or I’m a sucker for cutesy marketing. 

 

The “Chick-n” labelling on the packet is misleading, as these noodles, when made up are vegan and vegetarian. The packaging clearly states the product is suitable for vegans. I would suggest that since the main flavour here is miso, that the product should be renamed, the current name is just confusing! Unfortunately, this product, because there is a small amount of alcohol in the broth mix, is not Halal. 

 

What’s Inside

Once I popped off the lid, I found a sachet of sesame miso based broth paste. 

 

As a set out above, it does contain alcohol, making it unsuitable for those eating a Halal diet. There was insufficient information on the packet to determine if it is kosher. (Wine can be kosher if produced correctly, and unflavoured sake is capable of being kosher). The broth has miso paste, sesame paste, yeast extract, and a number of other flavourings and spices.

 

There was also a cake of rice noodles which were fairly narrow, but very thin, which lend themselves for quick cooking/reconstitution in the pot. These noodles, being made from rice flour, are suitable for those on a gluten free diet who normally miss out on noodle products. They are also very low in fat. Obviously, they contain carbohydrates, being made out of rice. But as I have said many times, I’ve never met a carbohydrate I didn’t like!

What does it taste like

I made the noodles according to the instructions and as a result they were soft, but not squidgy or too yielding. 

 

I enjoyed their texture, which is reminiscent of the Vietnamese rice noodles used for Pho. There’s a touch of chilli heat thanks to the dried red chilli and dried spring onion which come with the noodles. If you were to forget about these noodles when reconstituting and return much later, I think that they could become soggy rapidly because they are so thin. Put your timer on!

 

I should mention that these noodles are not ramen noodles, nor do they taste like ramen noodles. Again, the product name doesn’t truly reflect the nature of the product itself, but Itsu are popular enough that this is unlikely to matter. 

 

The broth, however, is the true highlight. It has richness, a touch of creaminess, umami savouriness, and feels much more luxurious than you’d expect from an instant noodle product. Is it “hand crafted” as claimed? I can’t say. But it is definitely flavourful and makes this product worth the price.

 

I modded my noods (as you do!) by adding toasted sesame seeds and chopped spring onions. The freshness of the spring onions added crunch and the green aromas and flavours I love from spring onions (a hero ingredient in east Asian food). Toasted sesame seeds can’t be eaten by everyone because of concerns about nut allergies, but I love their rich smell and nutty flavour. Because I made these noodles at home, I was able to toast the seeds immediately before eating, but if eating instant noodles at home, I would buy some pre-toasted sesame seeds from an Asian grocery shop.

I use Gingey Bites’ rating system for my noodles. For Alex’s scoring method and an index of all of her instant noodle reviews, please see: https://gingeybites.com/guide-to-instant-noodles

Texture 7/10

Flavour 8/10

Ease of making 10/10

Would I buy them again: Yes

For my previous Instant noodle reviews please see:

You can read my review of Nissin x Shoryu “Ramen Masters” Cup Noodle: https://snigskitchen.blogspot.com/2024/01/nissin-x-shoryu-ramen-masters-cup.html

You can read my review of Maruchan spicy chicken and prawn noodles here: https://snigskitchen.blogspot.com/2024/05/maruchan-spicy-chicken-and-prawn.html

You can read my review of Nongshim brand’s “Chapagetti” noodles here: https://snigskitchen.blogspot.com/2024/09/nongshim-chapagetti-noodle-review.html

If you follow my instant noodle reviews, you will know I love to add ingredients and flavours to instant noodles. Here, at Kavey Eats blog (run by the brilliant food, travel and cooking enthusiast Kavita – AKA Kavey) is a new spin on modifying Korean instant noodles from Su Scott’s new cookbook Pocha: https://www.kaveyeats.com/tomato-kimchi-ramyun-instant-noodle

This review represents the genuine opinions of Snigdha, who has received no incentive to write this review, and who purchased the product with her own money.