The Ramen Rater's Top Ten Instant Noodles 2026 Edition

All right, hey, this is Hans, and it's time for the Robin Reader's Top 10 Instant Noodles of All Time, 2026 edition. So I've been doing this list for a long, long time, and one thing that I found is that the instant noodle industry just keeps innovating and coming out with things that tickle my taste buds and bring new varieties to this list. This year is no exception. These are my favorite varieties as of review number 5,505. Let's begin. In at number 10, from Japan, we've got Miojo Ippichan and their Night Shop Yakisoba. This is a tray of absolute lovin' from Japan. The noodle is just right. You've got the tamarind sharpness, a little saltiness, all those good notes. You've got cabbage as a garnish, and then you also have the mayo sachet, which if you're really adept and you can cut the corner nice and tiny, you can draw things on it. You can do all sorts of stuff with that. This is an absolute favorite of mine and has been for many a year. In at number 9, we've got Indomie with their Mi Goreng Mi Keratin Goreng Special. This one is a special curly noodle with chicken flavor, and it has ... I've had many, many Mi Goreng varieties from Indomie, but this one, the sweet chili sauce is a little bit different, a little tangier. The veg that comes in here is even better. I love this stuff. It used to exist in the United States, actually, and then they pulled it along with a lot of other varieties over the years. If you can make it to Indonesia or find a way to order it, I highly recommend this if you're an Indomie lover. In at number 8, we've got Mama with their Thai Connexed Tom Ka Noodle. This hails, of course, from Thailand. This one, the noodle's a little bit thicker than most of Mama's usual fare, and the broth has a coconut, lemongrass, and really interesting herbal notes to it. I absolutely love this one. This is one of those varieties that I just couldn't put down. Highly recommend finding it and giving it a try. In at number 7, we've got Nong Shim USA with their Budai Ramyun. This one brings me back. There used to be a variety on the top 10, and it was called K-Army Stew. Budai Ramyun, it's Budai Chikai. Budai Chikai is a combination of army rations and Korean, it's a fusion, Korean food and army rations, so things like Spam, Beanie Weenie, pork and beans, things like that. Things that will last for a long time. Sausage, salami, things like that. This one, the broth tastes exactly like K-Army Stew, I thought. I haven't seen a lot of people clamoring about it, but I think they will be, and I highly recommend this if you miss K-Army Stew. This is where it is at. In at number 6, we've got Mommy Chef with their Mi Goreng Nonya Laksa, and this is from Malaysia. This, wow, this is the first time I've found a dry version of Nonya Laksa, and they pull it off quite expertly. Good noodle, the flavor is through and through Nonya Laksa. If you're not familiar, it's kind of like a curry, you just need to try it. Malaysian curries are second to none, I swear to God. It's such good stuff. So yeah, give this one a try if you can find it. In at number 5, we've got Nissin Singapore in collaboration with Irvin's doing up their Salted Egg Flavor Noodle. Now, they've got a few varieties of this. There's this one, which is the original flavor. Then they've got a mala, and they've got a spicy. I can do without the Sichuan peppercorn, and I can do without just the regular heat. I think this one stands on its own so well. A slightly broad, flat noodle is married to an absolute inundation of salted egg flavor. And they even include this little egg crumble that you put on top at the end. Super, super good stuff. If you like salted egg, this is going to drive you nuts. It's a dry noodle, no broth. In at number 4, we've got Moon Moon Food with their Baby, Can You Love Black Truffle Oil Noodle. And this hails from Taiwan. This company reached out to me a while back, and they were like, you want to try our stuff? Sure. Wow, I'm glad I said yes, because this one has a black truffle oil flavor, which is very nice, a bit of sweetness. Noodle is really nice and chewy. It's really good. I even let my daughter try it, and I had maybe three or four packs left. She was all over it. She ate tons of it. So this is definitely worth trying. There are other varieties these guys make, especially their sesame paste variety. Highly worth trying. In at number 3, we've got Asha with their Spicy Dan Dan Noodle from Taiwan. This one's got a very particularly different noodle to it. Think of a regular noodle. It's flat and broad. Well, this one, instead of being flat and broad, it's like it's got a third fin on it. I don't know how else to describe it, but it does make a difference when it comes to the mouthfeel of the noodle. You've also got a spiciness. You've got a sesame paste thing going on. You've got a lot going on in this noodle, and it's definitely worth finding. You can find it in Taiwan. You can find it here in the United States, but just find it. It's good. In at number 2, we've got Ippudo with their Spicy Karaka Ramen, and this one, of course, hails from Japan. The noodle is thin, and the broth is thick. Let me just let you sit and think on that, because the broth has a nice oiliness. It's just delicious tonkatsu with a very respectable amount of spiciness to it. It's not like the main star of the show. It's the tonkatsu, and it's so good. Can't recommend this more. If you love tonkatsu like I do, you're going to love this stuff. And in at number 1 on the Ramen Raiders Top 10 Instant Noodles of All Time 2026 Edition. Yep, you guessed it. It's Prima Taste Singapore Whole Grain Laksa Ramen from Singapore. I've had this on my list for over a decade, and the reason being is that the noodle has a rustic artisan feel. It's thick. It's like... It's hawker style style... Style... It's hawker stall style noodle. That's hard to say fast, but they're thick noodles. And then you've got this broth, which is so luxuriant and thick. It's got galangal, all sorts of herbs. It's got shrimp paste. It's really serious business, folks. If you want to try like the most wonderful noodle, if you can't find the whole grain version, there's also the classic version, which is not whole grain. Also amazing. They've got plenty of other varieties that employ that noodle, which are just wonderful. They've got a curry. They've got black pepper crab. They've got chili crab. Lots of great stuff. I have been an absolute fan of this product since I first tried it, and I think you will be too. All right, well, that's it for the top 10 for this year. Thanks for watching. There's a couple more top 10s that'll be coming out soon, so I hope you look out for those. And if you'd like to send in some samples, especially if you're a company or just a reader who wants me to try something you think is great or not great or whichever, drop me a line. Go find me over at www.theramenreader.com. And yeah, and if you'd like to donate to The Ramen Raider, I'm always in need of equipment for doing what I do. Hit me up as well. All right, this has been Hans, The Ramen Raider, wishing you enjoyment of your noodles each and every year. Have a good one. Bye.