Instant ramen noodles are one of the cheapest - and most delicious - shelf-stable foods you can find in the grocery store. There are also tons of options to choose from, from flavors to spice level and the ways in which they're prepared.
As someone who eats authentic ramen noodles at least once a week from my favorite spot in New York City, I decided to put a few different store-bought brands to the ultimate taste test. It's worth acknowledging that authentic ramen and instant "ramen" noodle soups are very different in how they're prepared and the ingredients used, despite the instant brands commonly being referred to as "ramen." While authentic ramen chefs will almost always use fresh ramen noodles and home-cooked ingredients, instant noodle soups use dried noodles and use flavor packets to create the soup.
The brands I tried included Nissin, Maruchan, and Tradition with flavors ranging from chicken to shrimp.
Almost every kind of instant ramen noodles I tried required only a microwave and water, but I was surprised that some were harder to make than others.
Here's how each of the five instant ramen brands ranked, from worst to best.