5 Best MAMA Noodles Flavors to Buy, According to Our Taste Test

Move over, other instant noodle brands, because MAMA noodles are here, and they’re bringing way more complex flavors than the instant ramen you were eating in your dorm room. We tasted nine MAMA noodles flavors in search of the best ones—and five MAMA Thai noodles flavors made the cut. 

While Japanese instant noodles have traditionally dominated both the worldwide noodle market and your college dorm room menu, Thai instant noodles have been steadily gaining popularity in the U.S. And currently dominating that market is Thai President Foods and their extremely popular MAMA instant noodles brand. There’s a wide range of MAMA noodles flavors, from traditional Japanese ramen staples like chicken, pork or beef, to more Thai-centric soups like the coconut-based Tom kha kai and the spicy/sour (and appropriately named) Tom yum. 

But with so many MAMA noodles to choose from, how can you possibly find the MAMA ramen noodles that will satisfy both your taste buds and your impatience? We sampled a bunch of these packets, judging them each on taste and texture, in order to find the best MAMA ramen noodles to buy. So, here are our picks for the best MAMA noodles you’ll find at your local stores (or on Amazon). 

(NOTE: When transcribing Thai dish names into English, there are many possible variations, which is why you can see the same dish labeled as “Tom Klang,” “Tom Klong,” or “Tom Khlong.”  So, to keep it simple, we just used whichever spelling the companies used on their labels.) 

Best Poultry Flavored

Based on a Chinese recipe for slow-roasted duck flavored with garlic, star anise and cinnamon, this MAMA instant noodles recipe delivers plenty of flavor while skipping the gaminess you might expect from a duck-flavored…well, anything. Think of it as your classic “chicken ramen flavor,” only packed with extra spice and umami goodness. The only downside is that I couldn’t eat it while watching DuckTales. It was just too awkward.

Credit: Merc / Amazon

Rating:

7/10

Sporks

Best Spicy

Though you might not be able to tell it from the name, this is MAMA’s version of Vietnamese Phở, featuring rice noodles and a clear broth with plenty of rich, savory taste. Warning: It’s also pretty spicy, even if you skip the optional spice packet. Which you shouldn’t, because this tasty MAMA instant noodles soup is worth some sweat.

Credit: Merc / Amazon

Rating:

7/10

Sporks

Best Tangy

If you’ve never tried it, tom yum is one of the most popular soups in Thai cuisine. It’s a hot and sour broth seasoned with lemongrass, galangal (a relative of ginger), and kaffir lime leaves. MAMA’s wheat noodle version gives you a great blast of tanginess from a blend of coconut, fish sauce, and tamarind. And while this MAMA Thai noodles flavor is a little more sour than hot, it’s still got plenty of spice.

Credit: Merc / Amazon

Rating:

7/10

Sporks

Best Garlicky

Unlike your typical wheat-based Japanese ramen, these MAMA ramen noodles are “glass noodles” made from potato starch and mung bean. But what it lacks in wheat, it makes up for in “tons of garlic,” with a heavy garlic taste that you’ll definitely smell before you dig in. But the added notes of spring onion and peppers also give it some heat, nicely rounding out the flavor so you’re not just eating a big bowl of wet garlic. Which is good, because I’m not doing that twice in one week.

Credit: Merc / Walmart

Rating:

8/10

Sporks

Best of the Best

If you’re wondering how different this MAMA tom yum flavor is from the earlier shrimp tom yum MAMA noodles, the answer is “not hugely,” as koong (also transcribed as goong) just means “shrimp.” The big difference is this version features glass noodles and way more spice, giving the hot and sour flavor a lot more kick, which really complements the shrimp flavor. In fact, this tom yum MAMA noodles is so tasty it’ll have you saying…Wait, what’s that word that means tasty? (It’s yum, everyone, yum!)

Credit: Merc / Amazon

Rating:

9/10

Sporks

Other MAMA noodles we tried: MAMA – Instant Pad Thai Noodles, MAMA – Oriental Style Instant Noodles (Artificial Chicken Flavor), MAMA – Oriental Style Instant Noodles (Artificial Pork Flavor), MAMA – Oriental Style Instant Rice Vermicelli Clear Soup

ncG1vNJzZmiroKS%2FrLHDZ5qopV%2BWv7W1wqWcaJqVqMFuucCmmGamn6SxrbHSZp2lmaakv7R7