Because there’s nothing more refreshing in summer than seafood ice cream.

In the world of instant noodles, Nissin’s Cup Ramen brand often takes centre stage in Japan, pushing aside its competitors with irresistible flavours like pizza and Chicken Nugget French Fries, but there’s another brand that’s been stepping out from Cup Ramen’s shadow in recent years, with a tub of noodles that’s 1.5 times the size of others.

Called Super Cup 1.5 Bai (which translates to Super Cup 1.5 times), this brand of noodles comes from Japan’s instant noodle specialists at Acecook. And while they’ve dabbled in unusual flavours before, they’re looking to steal the limelight this summer with a brand new taste sensation that’s got everyone talking: vanilla-flavoured creamy seafood ramen.

Looking at the product itself, it’d be easy to mistake this for a tub of ramen-flavoured ice cream, but the image of the soft-serve on the packaging comes with a disclaimer next to it, which reads: “Does not contain vanilla ice cream“.

That’s not to say they’re not trying go evoke the sense of eating an ice cream with their product though, as that’s exactly the appeal of these new noodles, which are said to be a perfect balance between the rich, creamy prawn-and-scallop seafood broth and the sweet scent and flavour of vanilla.

Though the noodles need to be prepared the usual way, with the addition of boiling water, the inclusion of vanilla in its own separate powder packet allows the consumers to control the amount and timing for blending the flavour into their noodles. Adding it towards the end, after the noodles have cooled, will bring out the flavour of a creamy seafood ice cream.

According to the company, the new ramen was created to help celebrate a landmark anniversary for their Super Cup 1.5 Bai, which has been satisfying the appetites of Japanese noodle lovers for 30 years.

On sale from 30 July at stores around the country, the new vanilla flavoured creamy seafood ramen is set to retail for 210 yen (US$1.90) plus tax, which is just three yen less than a tub of Baby Star ramen ice cream.

Source, images: PR Times