Samyang Tangle chunky tomato pasta instant noodle review

Samyang are a noodle brand most famous for their hot and spicy noodles. Therefore this western coded “Tangle” product is a departure for the first instant noodle manufacturer in South Korea. As will be clear from the rest of this review, if you are expecting a Buldak style instant noodle product, this will challenge your expectations. 

The product

Samyang have created a separate “Tangle” website, suggesting they want this product to be seen as distinct from their instant noodle products. They are trying to market this as a “wholesome pasta meal”. They are so keen for this product to be seen as pasta rather than noodles they are calling the pasta shape Tangluccine. Whether our Italian cousins will be impressed with this is hard to say. Some will be swearing at their screen as they read this.

Tangle has 5 flavours advertised on their website: bulgogi alfredo, garlic shrimp, mushroom cream, garlic oil, and basil tomato. The chunky tomato flavour and Kimchi rosé flavours are still available, but may be on the way out. All the Tangle products are Halal certified and all but the garlic shrimp variety are vegan. I found these in the east Asian grocery shop in Lewisham, but having searched online, there are packet and pot variants. As you can see, I found the packet variant and I have not yet seen the pot variant in the wild. 

 

The protein content is a selling point, with the packet information stating there are 15g protein per pack, and 6g fibre. This would fit with the current “proteinmaxxing” trend (though I confess I find the current fashion for everything to be “somethingmaxxing” is annoying). Their own website says: “Balanced nutrition for your busy day. Packed with protein to help you eat better without the hassle. This is nourishment that goes beyond the bowl.”

What’s Inside

The packet has four elements; the Tangluccine pasta, a pack of dried flakes (Step 1), sauce (Step 2), and powder (Step 3). The flake packet, impressively, is very generously packed with dried tomato pieces. It also has dried onion and garlic. The solid pasta cake is large, much like other Samyang products, perhaps too much for a light lunch, but good for a more substantial meal. 

 

Making up the noodles

The packet product, as opposed to the pot, has instructions which tell you to add Step 1 to the pasta, add 310ml boiling water, and cook for 4 minutes. Then the pasta should be taken off the heat and the sauce and powder are then mixed in before serving. If there is too much sauce or the pasta remains hard, the instruction say the product should be heated for a further minute. 

The pasta at the start of the cooking time

The pasta at the end of the cooking time

 

My measuring jug and measuring cup set are not precise enough for measuring out 310ml, so I went with 300 ml. Otherwise, I cooked this product on the hob to the required 4 minutes time, adding the other elements afterwards with the heat off. 

The cooked pasta with the sauce and powder added before mixing

 

What does it taste like

The finished pasta

The sauce really tastes of tomatoes! I was surprised at the tomato soup taste. There was a hint of basil and oregano. The soup is not spicy at all, unlike the other Samyang products. The dried tomato, onion, and garlic had rehydrated well. Freeze dried veggies which don’t reconstitute completely bring this kind of product down, so I was pleased to have avoided the sticking-in-the-teeth dried veg disappointment with Tangle.

The pasta does not quite taste like durum wheat dried pasta. That has to be said straight up. It does not taste like a typical wheat ramen noodle either. This is likely because of the chick pea flour added to boost the protein content.

If cooked for the recommended 4 minutes on the hob, the pasta comes out a bit softer than al dente. This is fine if you like your pasta soft. But I am a stickler for al dente pasta. This needed to be cooked on the hob to ensure the water didn’t cool down and that the dried tomato, onion and garlic reconstituted before serving up. I would not try to cook this in the microwave as it is highly likely to boil over and make a mess.

The 310ml water instruction seems wrong to me, this is too much. I measured out 300ml and the sauce was, for my taste, too soupy. The packet illustration shows a sauce which clings. Mine has collected at the bottom of the bowl like a scarlet tomato soup. The pack instructions suggest if there is too much water, to cook for a further minute, but this would have resulted in obviously overcooked pasta. Perhaps 3 minutes on the hob for the pasta with a final minute with the sauce is the answer?

The instructions for the pot version only requires 1 cup (7.6 oz) (240ml US cup or 250 ml UK cup) which would be a more appropriate amount. The pot version is microwaved for 5 minutes in a 1000watt model.

My ratings:

(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 6/10 (I dropped a mark because 4 mins cooking time is too much)

Flavour 7/10

Ease of making 6/10 (at home; would be inconvenient at work)

Would I buy them again: Maybe, but made with less water and a sprinkling of freshly grated parmesan.

For my previous Instant noodle reviews please see:

Samyang Carbonara instant noodle review: https://snigskitchen.blogspot.com/2025/11/samyang-carbonara-instant-noodle-review.html

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.