'Ramen
Noodle Soup' and 'Maruchan Instant Lunch' are staples of low cost and pretty
good eating. They also lend themselves to bulking up by adding other foods to
them such as rice, beans, freeze-dried veggies or a variety of can meats. The 'Ramen
Noodle Soup' is part of my long term storage. They are also good for camping,
back-packing, canoe trips or any activity that the weight of food is a concern.
Another
good use for these products would be when a disaster event strikes and your
unprepared neighbors come knocking on your door begging for some food they know
you have. Just hand then a couple packages of this soup.
What's the difference between
these two products?
All you
need is water and they both cook in three minutes.
Instant
Lunch net weight is 2.25oz, 64g and comes with its own serving cup.
Instant
Lunch contains vegetables; peas, corn and carrots.
Ramen
Noodle Soup net weight is 3.0oz, 85g is just packaged without a serving cup.
Ramen
Noodle Soup does not contain the same vegetables; peas, corn and
carrots.
Does one product have an advantage
over the other?
Yes, I
think so! The Ramon Noodle Soup has 3/4 ounce more noodles than the Instant
Lunch cup. 3/4 of an ounce may seem trivial but if that serving is all your
eating for that meal or day it will mean a lot.
How I use the Ramon Noodle Soup I
stock:
I don't
like doing dishes so that's one of the reasons why I purchased 16 ounce paper
cups plus they are safer to use than Styrofoam cups if microwaving and I
also use plastic spoons. Clean up is as quick as a toss in the garbage. Another
benefit is during an event aftermath when clean safe water may be in short
supply, doing dishes may not be possible.
I lay the
package on a counter top and use the side of my fist gently striking the
package to break up the noodles inside. The noodles now being smaller pieces
are easier to eat with a plastic spoon after cooking. Otherwise the noodles are endlessly long and
difficult to handle with a plastic spoon.
After
breaking up the noodles I put them and the flavor/spices into a 16 ounce paper
cup and add water 1/2 inch from the top. If cold water then microwave it
for 1:45 seconds or use hot water from a stove top or campfire. Then let the
hot water soak into the noodles for 3 minutes and eat!
Ramon
Noodle Soup label.
Instant
Lunch label.
16 ounce
paper cups I use.
Ingredients
into paper cup.
Water
added to ingredients.
Just out
of the microwave and ready to eat in three minutes. Stir well to mix all the
seasoning throughout the noodles. Enjoy!
Ramen noodles are good for a base. It is simple to add say sundried tomatoes or a can of pasta sauce etc.
ReplyDeleteEasier to boil a kettle and then leave in a pot for a minute or two to soften. You actually need not boil them outright. Just make sure it has a lid for a few minutes and it works.
The other ideas I like is dry beans. Add boiling water to the dry beans. Let sit for 2 hours. Then boil them for an hour.
My favorite cheap and simple food, by far, is Colcannon.
Boil some spuds to make a hearty mash. Add butter, salt, and a bit of cream. Add some chopped (sauteed a bit to soften but still crisp) cabbage. Mix all together. yum!
It somehow makes the potatoes more filling having the small amounts of cabbage in it.
Cabbage and spuds happen to also be the longer lasting storage items.
:)
Only thing I see is that in SHTF scenario or a katrina, where is the milk/cream for the spuds. Guess you are either going to need powedered milk or asceptic boxes of soy/almond milk.
Original flavor. IDK, Mike. Vanilla flavored spuds is not my thing.
Stay, yes you're correct, the soup is a great inexpensive base for dozens of dishes.
ReplyDeleteThanks for bringing Colcannon to my attention. Never heard of it before, guess I live under a rock. I love potatoes and cabbage but never thought to combine them. I will give it a try.
As for milk, powdered is really the better option. In the past I have stored canned "evaporated milk" but the powdered milk has a better shelf life when stored properly.
Vanilla flavor?
Mike - i have caught up on your last posts but haven't commented on them. thanks for the email checking up on me - i'm fine and healing up well. it's just been a crazy busy week here at the manor and getting everything ready for the benefit dance this past saturday which was a huge success!
ReplyDeletei like ramen noodles as a base for all kinds of different stuff. but stay at home gardener is right about the colcannon - it's deelish! i also put green onions in mine and sometimes parsley too. and if it was grid down/shtf, then yes, the powdered milk would store and last longer.
your friend,
kymber
Colcannon is an Irish dish.
ReplyDeleteWhen considering ramen as a food storage item, consider dehydrated vegetables as an additive. The flavoring packet is something I can't do, due to how chemical it is. Instead, I take a mix of dehydrated vegetables, grind them up and mix them up. You can use what you have or like, such as bell pepper, broccoli, cabbage, carrots, celery, green beans, onion, peas, garlic powder, dried cilantro, tomato powder, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, tumeric. There are other possibilities. If you experiment with what you like, consider making up serving size packets of your mix and storing in foil, craft size Ziploc bags, or keeping a larger container and using a certain amount for each serving.
Kymber, we are so glad you are mending well from your freak accident. I'm thinking of a perfect gift for you and Jam. More later.
ReplyDeleteI'm going to give the Colcannon a try soon as I like both ingredients.
Anon 12:42pm
ReplyDeleteYou are right. Some people do not like the spice packet because of the MSG so they leave it out and there are some dishes you make where you want just the noodles and not the flavor the spice packet would add.
Check the ramen package ingredients. ... they contain vegetable oil...palm cottonseed or canola. They'd be great for 2-5 years then likely go rancid because of the oil in them. I stock a case of ramen but I go thru it in about 3 months time. .. so rotate your ramen!
ReplyDeleteAnon 8:51pm,
ReplyDeleteI use all my stored foods regularly in everyday cooking including the Ramen. It is rare I have something go bad on me. Thanks for the tip.