Experience Japan's Ichiran with its Take-home Instant Noodles
My younger brother recently attended a school-related activity in Japan, and he was excited to share his Ichiran experience when he arrived. In fact, he got so excited that he even brought home a "souvenir" from the ramen restaurant -- Ichiran Instant Noodles!
Read: Ichiran (一è˜) - Japan's Top Must-Try Ramen
A love at first and second sips
During my trip in Japan a year ago, I also looked forward to taste Ichiran in its natural habitat, and I was completely blown away! I remember how balanced the taste was yet still contained a powerful savory taste that just relaxes the buds.
It wasn't my first time to try Ichiran, since I was able to do so when I was in Hong Kong. Back then, I was already in love, but I felt deeper in love when I had it in Japan.
Contents and price of the box
Anyway, I just got excited when a saw the box one peaceful morning. I inspected it immediately with a lot of enthusiasm. The contents are as follows: five (5) sets of noodles, soup and chili.
The label says that the box can serve 5, but with our experience, it can be stretched to 8. This depends on your appetite and the size of your bowls.
The instructions are pretty easy to follow (applicable on a per pack basis). First, you boil 450 ml of water then submerge the noodles. I can't read Japanese, but it says that if you want your noodles to be "hard", you boil it just for 2 minutes before proceeding to the next step.
Basically, you pour the soup sachet into the pot and stir. After which, you can already turn off the heat and transfer the contents into a bowl. Garnish, and voila -- your own Ichiran!
Unfortunately for us, we didn't have spring onions and egg at the time of cooking. We just had sukiyaki beef which we decided to include in our ramen.
The Verdict
It might not be as excellent as the one you order in the restaurant itself, but it's sufficient enough to make me remember the goodness of Ichiran ramen! The soup was almost as good and the noodles, when cooked right, will surely bring back the memories.
Hence, the next time you visit Japan, don't forget to grab a box of Ichiran's take-home noodles! Or if you have friend/s who will, be sure to mention this to them! Maybe they'll give you this as a pasalubong. Fingers crossed!
November 2019 Update: Ichiran Instant Noodles are now available in S&R at a price of P1,299. This is approximately P400 higher when you buy the noodles in Japan wherein the range is at P800-P900.
