Country of Origin: South Korea
As recommended by Master chef Lee of Chiness Cuisine!
Consumption
This broth is certainly striking to the eye, and does little to reassure you that the aftermath will be a pleasant one. However, after overcoming the apprehension, I was pleasantly surprised by the beefy broth, with undertones of squiddy goodness imparted by the freeze-dried squid (yes, freeze-dried squid is a staple in Chiness cuisine). The chilli oil in the broth imparts a smooth texture, but there is a danger of dropping some nice red oil on your shirt – wear a black shirt!. Personally not a massive fan, however seafood lovers will enjoy this moderately spicy dish.
Update: I’ve been losing sleep over this, so I really felt the need to update this post.
The truth is I really wanted to like this dish. I don’t know if it’s Chiness Chef Lee’s stern, yet kind face on the packet, or my own daddy issues that lurk beneath the dark waters of my psyche, but I really felt disappointed in myself for not enjoying this ramen. I feel like Chiness Chef Lee has put his name, his reputation to this ramen, and my ambivalence has let him down. I’m sorry, Chef Lee of Chiness Cuisine. I will do better, and my tastebuds are not worthy.
Heat Level
Taste Level
The Aftermath
Not much aftermath to speak of – loose consistency and low urgency, this would be a good one to have prior to commitments – just remember to brush the chompers so you don’t waft squid over everyone.
1 flame, need for extra wiping and a toilet clean needs to be taken into account.
Wasn’t too sure about this at first. It’s not bad but I had mixed feelings; the broth is a deep, alarming red (and the oil provided with the noodles only helped accentuate this frightening appearance). As I shoveled a few forkfuls into my mouth I got a very strong beef flavour (delicious!) and only a slight seafoody undertone. I actually didn’t mind this at all. Not my favourite ramen, but I would definitely eat it again. Broth wasn’t too hard to get down – definite heat and a tissue-worth of head sweat – but there was quite the lingering sting around the mouth.
Fortunately I had minimal regret; there was a bit of gas in the evening…no scratch that, multiple bouts of gas. If you can imagine a gale force wind blowing through a catflap you have an idea; however, this was the extent of it. Got a good nights sleep followed by a few more poots in the morning. No sting; aint no thing.
2 flamer; I would go 1 but you need to be aware of the extra passage of gas due to these babies.
Let me preface this by stating that I am not big on seafood flavoured things, this being seafood ramen week is my idea of perpetual hell. In saying that, I was somewhat surprised at the depths of this ramen, beefy and hearty with just a seafood hint on the palette. If we were rating this raman on looks alone, this would be the most alarming ramen I have come up against; if you are in the movie industry and need something to pass as assblood, Paldo has you covered on this one. Heat wise, I would say this was more mild than previous ramen with the broth providing just the right amount of discomfort to be notable.
The regret was manageable for me. Not to say there wasn’t any, at around 7pm it was like someone turned on the tap, much spray, much quantity but zero pain. The next morning/the morning I am writing this, it was the opposite, I was blocked up! nothing came out despite solid pushing.
I’m giving this a 5 for sheer spray and pray.
Overall Porcelain Punishment Level
