Some assembly required.

It’s safe to say that Cup Noodle is the king of instant ramen. It’s not legally a generic trademark like escalator or trampoline, but in many parts of the world, the name Cup Noodle is synonymous with any dried noodles that require three minutes of soaking in hot water before eating.

Considering this, you’d think the makers of Cup Noodle at Nissin would be perfectly happy to rest on these laurels and watch the money roll in. However, they come up with such a rapid-fire and diverse range of flavors, variations, and off-the-wall concepts that it’s really hard to keep up with it all.

Around here, only our writer P.K. Sanjun has been able to catch every new version as it comes out and give it a try. For what it’s worth, his choice for best Cup Noodle of 2025 goes to 14-Spice Malatang, which came out last April.

Asking Nissin why they constantly push the envelope with these unique takes on instant ramen is probably a lot like asking someone why they climb a mountain. And speaking of mountains, Cup Noodle is poised to kick off 2026 with a Back Fat Tonkatsu Soy Sauce flavor inspired by Ramen Jiro, the chain famous for loading on huge piles of toppings.

Making a Jiro-style ramen with Cup Noodle’s own style of packaging and preparation is pretty challenging, so they require the consumer to help put it together. On the back of the cup is a recommendation to add a teaspoon of soy sauce, five shakes of salt-and-pepper mix, and a whole pack of bean sprouts for the full effect.

P.K. is always one for the full effect, so he followed the instructions to a T, first microwaving a pack of bean sprouts.

He then seasoned the sprouts with salt, pepper, and soy sauce.

Finally, he prepared the Cup Noodle in that way we all know and love.

Once the bean sprouts were added to the cup, his ramen was complete.

It certainly looked impressive and in line with Ramen Jiro creations. But eating it revealed how woefully short of Ramen Jiro it really came.

The fatal flaw was the cup. At Ramen Jiro, diners have the luxury of a wide bowl they can work around in and balance their portions better. With Cup Noodle, P.K. was stuck eating scoop after scoop of nothing but bottle-necked bean sprouts.

At least the beans were seasoned, but it wasn’t until halfway down this tower of ramen that he finally hit the noodles. The broth had a really punchy blend of pork and garlic, and it did manage to replicate the taste of a Ramen Jiro soup faithfully.

In the end, P.K. felt it would have been better to have added the bean sprouts bit by bit as he ate the regular Cup Noodle for more balance. It also probably would have been nice if everything were transferred to a bowl, but putting Cup Noodle in a bowl just feels wrong for some reason.

Even though Nissin might have missed the mark with this one, their misses still end up really tasty. It’s also inspiring to see them out there month after month trying to innovate and reach new heights with instant ramen, both figuratively and literally.

Photos ©SoraNews24
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