When you're a bootstrapping entrepreneur, like myself, one of the most common dirt cheap foods to eat is Top Ramen or Cup o' Noodles. The idea of 5 packs for $1 sounds really economical, no? Well indeed that is the case, however, I try to avoid those particular instant dishes mainly because it's more like sodium soup filled with MSG and all kinds of ingredients that sound more like a chemistry assignment. But admittedly, it's nice to have a bowl of ramen noodles in mere seconds, so at Whole Foods I saw these Annie Chun's Noodle Express bowls.
First off, the noodles when made according to the instructions do not look as close to pretty as the box, but that really isn't a shocker. However, the ingredients listed dehydrated bok choy but even with my Coke bottle glasses, I could not find them. Can you see any in the picture?
To cut down the sodium, I only used 3/4 of the seasoning packet which I didn't really need to because one serving of the Annie Chun's noodles has 470mg of sodium compared to one serving of Cup of Noodles which has about 1434mg of sodium. That's a salty hike folks.
I chose to cook my noodles stove top versus microwave because I'm trying to do less nuking of food. Not that I'm getting fanatical, but if I have the time, I just prefer pot cooked over microwave.
I noshed on my Spicy Szechuan noodles and they were alright. The dish wasn't extraordinary but it was much better quality than Top Ramen. On sale for $2.50, the Annie Chun's was still within a good price range, and I liked that there is no MSG, and no preservatives.
Later I dribbled some Sriracha Chili sauce and added some avocado slivers to jazz things up. Other flavors in the Noodle Express line include Teriyaki, Thai Curry, Thai Peanut, and Chinese Chow Mein.
Is it worth trying Annie Chun's Noodle Express? I'd say yes.
