Food

Noodle #2: Lucky Me! Native Chicken Instant Mami!

| Khursten Santos

Yosh! See! I’m really doing my best to make this a weekly thing, okay! It’s just my Sundays have been really precious. I really should consider writing these things a little earlier. I’ve also been irritated by these dots on my laptop. I couldn’t take them out.

Noodle for this week: Lucky Me! Native Chicken Instant Mami!


When I was a kid and chickens were still bought in the markets rather than the supermarkets, my mother would occasionally get some native chickens for us to eat. I honestly don’t know what entails a native chicken. I think any chicken that’s home raised and free range counts as a native chicken. Either way, the only difference that native chicken has over regular supermarket chicken is a very deep chicken flavor without having to use those Knorr bouillons and the likes. It may take forever to cook but once it’s done broiling in the broth it has one of the freshest chicken flavors ever. Nowadays, it’s hard to get native chicken without having to think of bird flu and the likes. So one day at the supermarket, I thought of giving this Instant Mami a chance. Since then, I haven’t bought any other chicken instant mami.

Where to buy

It’s pretty much everywhere. I’ve seen it in all the groceries. It’s a Lucky Me! product after all. It costs around 5 pesos to 6 per pack. Maybe cheaper in Shoemart’s Hypermart since you buy it in those tipid 5pc. packages.

Preparation

I think you guys might see that I went the distance in this noodle and placed some corn. But you guys don’t have to do that. Cooking our local noodles should be easy that even if you tend to overboil the noodles to 4 minutes, it’s still got  a bite. Past five minutes might be stretching the noodle so follow the instructions and it shouldn’t be any problem at all.

This noodle came with one packet for the seasoning and yet I’m a little surprised that it has those nice chicken oily bubbles on top. Where that came from, I don’t know. It does taste awesome though.

Taste

Suffice to say that this was one noodle that didn’t disappoint. We’ve had our fair share of salty MSG-ridden noodles before, but for the Native Chicken Mami, it truly has the fresh flavors of a native chicken broth. It was clean, fresh, with the right amount of saltiness and that deep chicken flavor that warms the heart. The flavor is like a really good tinola on a really good day. And yet it ain’t exactly like tinola since it doesn’t have that ginger taste. It has that really good chicken taste.

I’m trying to describe how chicken tastes like but if everything is supposed to taste like chicken, then perhaps this one is closest to the real thing. At most, I can say it ain’t one of those salty type of chicken noodles. For me, it’s a very flavorful chicken noodle that really takes me back to my childhood and those days brewing free range chicken in the province. The broth is light and heart warming and perhaps like me, you’d be sighing with satisfaction after having finished a bowl.

It’s truly a chicken soup for the soul and I cannot count how many times this noodle has made me smile. Even when the noodles got soggy, since they have this really good taste of the broth, I won’t complain at all.

Noodle #1: Koka’s Laksa Noodle

| Khursten Santos

I… overslept last Sunday and today was… I got busy, I daresay. I apologize for the delay but don’t worry! Our first noodle is here!!

The featured noodle for week no. 1: Koka’s Laksa Singapura Flavor noodle.

As some of you may know, Laksa’s my favorite noodle ever. So there’s a reason why this is the first and why this one caught my attention. God. This noodle had me by the red globs of oil on its broth. But that’s just the start. There’s a reason why this is the first noodle I featured.

Where to get it
I’ve seen Koka packets like these in groceries such as Landmark, Shoemart and Rustans. They are sold around 34-38 pesos, depends on which grocery you go to.

Preparation
Preparing this noodle was easy. Instructions at the back were in clear English and granted that you have no problem reading English (or Malay) you should have no problem preparing this noodle. Sort of.

The noodle for Koka’s one of those noodles that get really soggy after the 3rd minute. I suggest you follow the instruction on the packet and leave it in the boiling water for 2 minutes. After that, turn off the stove and then add the soup packets.

There are two packets for this noodle. One has the seasoning and the chilli oil and the other is the coconut powder. Oh yes, this is one noodle that didn’t forget that all good laksa should come with the fresh flavor of coconut milk.

Taste
Once I added the seasoning and the coconut powder, I was immediately caught by the fragrant smell of curry and coconut. It really took me back to Singapore although once I bit some of the noodles, I had to remind myself that this ain’t the real thing and was just a good compensation for it. If you didn’t cook your noodles right, the noodles might be too soggy for you to enjoy the bite of noodle.

On the other hand, the broth is spectacular. I was too eager to have a taste of the broth that it was a test on my patience to try to cool the broth down with my breath. The laksa broth may not be as thick as those sold in stalls in Singapore but it has a nice refreshing zing to it. It might be due to the hints of lemongrass and kari leaves. The curry flavor was not too prominent on this one but the coconut flavor is and it’s quite amusing how it slightly thickened the broth. If you added too much water, it won’t taste as good.

The chilli only hits you when the broth has coursed through your throat and it has this leftover warmth enough to tickle you to a cough. With just the broth, it was almost as good as the real thing. Almost. When you realize that you don’t have the tofu or cockles or shrimp or fish cake or the slivers of chicken, it’s almost heartbreaking.

I must add though that while this had a good laksa broth, this ain’t the best yet and was just good enough to let the tongue remember what laksa even tastes like.

If you’ve got time to visit your grocery this week, it might be fun to try out this noodle. One thing I can say is that for it’s price, it’s a good cheap way to have a taste of laksa. If you add some fishballs and fried tofu in it, it’s almost like the real thing!

Taste Test: 52 Noodles at Punked Noodle

| Khursten Santos

Last year, I said to myself that as soon as the new year starts, I’ll start on something that would get me to write more often in my blog. In a way, it will encourage me to share a lot of things with you folks and it would make my cousins abroad really envious of the things I leisurely have here in Manila.

Kidding aside, I realized that for a site that declares its love for noodles… I rarely talked about noodles. I know. My bad. ^^;; But I am a noodle person and I love noodles and I though I should really do everything in my power to share this love with you folks.

Hence, the 52 noodles at Punked Noodle.

This is my valiant effort to share my weekly instant noodle or pasta experience with you people. Yes. You heard me. This year, I’m going instant. It’s easy on my wallet and well… don’t worry, since I only eat 52 noodles, I’ll try not to stack up on the MSG.

What makes this easy is rather than going to restaurants, I’m going to groceries and hunt 52 awesome noodles for to try. These noodles should be well within our reach and I will also consider the cost of getting them (unless if they were gifts to me. I can’t do much about that.) as well as their flavors. This is awesome for my highly impoverished wallet and also easy to fix when I’m much too lazy to really cook something up.

I hope this will also encourage you to try out the strange noodles that line up our groceries. If you have any suggestions for me (from the cheapest to at least the pricier brands) I’d be more than happy to try them. If you want to give me the gift of instant noodle, I’ll be happy to receive them as well! Just leave me an e-mail!

I’ve pretty much done my noodle tasting ahead so that I’m ready to post by Sunday. The first noodle is… close to one of my favorite noodles ever.

An Artist in Le Petit Artisan

| Khursten Santos

Nothing entices my nose more than the smell of something really fragrant. Usually I’m drawn by the scent of broths or grilled meat but this time I’m drawn by the warm scent of bread baking inside an oven. Usually I’d get these cravings when I pass by old pandesal shops in our area. Hence, I found it strange that I was drifting towards a little outside the row of restaurants in Greenbelt 5. The shop’s name was Le Petit Artisan, a humble yet proud name for some of the best French breads in Manila.

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Toshikoshi Soba and a still memorable new year

| Khursten Santos

This may be a month too late but it’s still a very fond memory to me. I started my new year the same time as the Japanese and this year, in the spirit of my love for noodles, I had my first Toshikoshi Soba. 年 越し蕎麦 (toshi koshi soba) may look just like your regular soba dish but it actually represents the ending of the year and the start of the new. Japanese would usually have a bowl of soba the minute midnight strikes. It’s similar to how Filipinos should have pancit. The toshikoshi soba’s a symbol of longevity that we may endure the coming year.

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Keeping warm with Tantanmen

| Khursten Santos

When it rains like this, I say, it’s about time I talk about noodles, again.

See, nothing else warms me up on a really cold and damp day other than a hot bowl of noodles. And it’s not just hot noodles. It’s got to be the soupy kind. The kind where the broth lines your throat with its yummy goodness and it’s got more than just its temperature to keep you warm. So it’s not just the heat we’re talking here. It’s also about the spiciness. And when spice is concerned, currently, I’m dreaming of nothing but Maruchan’s Tantanmen.

Served with a thick spicy pork broth, tantanmen is smothered in chili and sesame oil with some ground beef, maybe spring onions and egg on top. I’m honestly drooling by just narrating those ingredients down and I think my stomach is protesting on why I’m not eating this noodle dish right now ((Honestly, I’m just lazy)).

The flavor is close to curry because of the intense flavor and spiciness of the broth. But I know as much that it’s not exactly like curry because it doesn’t have curry in it. At most, the flavor of the pork broth melding with the beef, noodles, and spring onions is divine. There’s a balance in the heat and the spiciness and the noodles serves as a perfect medium to take in all those flavors in a bite or a slurp.

It’s perfect for this kind of weather. The kind of comfort food that warms your gut and even helps you break a sweat.

Tantanmen costs around Php260 in Maruchan ramen. And now that the weather seems to settle a little more, I think I’ll grab my keys and get myself another bowl of tantanmen. Maybe even add menma to my noodles. I’m sure that bowl will keep me warm for an entire night.

Restaurant Tip

Maruchan Dining
2282 Chino Roces, Makati City
Just across Makati Cinema Square and Little Tokyo.

Morning Taho

| Khursten Santos

I was a little more than amused today. Getting my body clock right on track (trust me, it hasn’t been easy lately) got me to hear that familiar call from my childhood.

“TAHOOOOOOOOOOOOOO~~~”

It’s been a while since I’ve heard this. And just like the time when I was a kid, I ran downstairs, grabbed a mug and asked the guy to fill up my mug with some nice warm taho. I must admit that I always find it mouthwatering and exciting to see the taho guy fill up the cup with taho to the cup’s rim, sprinkle some sago and douse the white globs with rich caramel sauce. The most fun part is asking for the dagdag for the sago and the caramel.

It’s been a while, but I say, having taho in the morning is awesome.