From a local product, instant noodle has presented all over the world, from a remote countryside to big cities. This forms a culture called instant noodle.
A popular dish
Currently, there are a vast number of “fast food”, but none of them can surpass instant noodles in term of convenience to become the most popular product.
Instant noodle is the food with the combination of cheap, fast, and nutritious features. Only with 2,000 VND, we can have a delicious bowl of noodles with such nutrients as wheat flour, protein, vegetable fat, etc. Some types of noodles also contain processed sachets of vegetables and meat, and seasoning sachets which are so attractive. Those who “love” instant noodles comment that instant noodles market has become more diverse and the products have been tastier and more nutritious.
Perhaps because of the advantages of “instant-to-eat” and long-time preservation, instant noodles have high sociality and considered as the reserved food of many countries with the “mission” of food relief. Instant noodles always present in areas with natural disasters such as earthquake, volcano, flood, and become the hunger-rescuing food for millions of people in Japan, South East Asia, Africa, Europe, and America.
However, do not think that this food is only for the poor because instant noodle has become the favorite food of everyone regardless of social status. It is interesting that somebody used to comment “Instant noodles blur the line between the rich and the poor.” They appear not only in simple meals but also banquets, from thatched house to modern skyscrapers. We can eat instant noodles quickly or slowly in our own discretions. For a quick meal, you just need to add boiled water to have a hot and tasty bowl of noodles. In addition, instant noodles can be cooked into “slow” dishes with different tastes such as stir-fried noodles with beef, seafood, or pork ribs, etc.
Instant noodle is not only merely a food but also play a special role to the society which is the very special feature of this product.
A multicultural product
Instant noodles have become a global industry and this product can easily adapt to the local culture. We all know that instant noodles originated from Japan with Japanese taste. However, when instant noodles “migrated” to other countries, they quickly transformed themselves to fit with the taste of each country. For example, Korean noodles always have ginseng or kimchi flavors, Japanese noodles have seaweed smell and seafood spices, Malaysian or Singaporean noodles have curry flavor, and Thai noodles are very spicy, etc. Chinese people even affirm that “Made in China” instant noodles represent each area of the country. You can understand the culinary culture of a specific area just by eating it’s instant noodle.
Vietnamese instant noodles seem to be more diverse by integrating the tastes of different countries to make an instant noodles market with numerous options from sour, spicy, kimchi, seafood, Korean, Thai flavors to the products for vegetarians. There is no country where the people love instant noodles like Vietnamese people do. Instant noodles appear in every Vietnamese family and considered as must-have items in business trips abroad. The list of sophisticated “slow” dishes made from instant noodles invented by many people also shows that instant noodles have involved deeply into Vietnamese people’s lives.
In order to affirm that instant noodle is a cultural icon of Japan, in 1999, Momofuku Ando – the inventor of instant noodle established an Instant Ramen Museum with the name taken after his name in Ikeda, Osaka, Japan (Momofuku Ando Instant Ramen Museum). In six years and a half, there were totally more than one million visitors to the museum and it has become the must-visit place for visitors to Osaka.
Weekly issue of Thanh Nien Newspaper
