Maruchan Yaki Soba !
First off, let me start by saying that Maruchan Yaki Soba is easily my favorite Japanese fast food. It’s my favorite for a number of reasons, but mostly because I can buy it at any Asian grocery store and because it reminds me fondly of the Japanese street festivals, where they sell Yaki Soba by the pounds.
Festival Style Yakisoba
The At-Home Process
Although the street festival version of Yaki Soba is much more authentic than the Maruchan version, the same concept remains - cook the Yaki Soba in a frying pan, add the seasoning pack, and then add some of your favorite ingredients. My personal favorite ingredients for Yaki Soba are chicken / bacon / tofu ( depending on my mood ), Taiwanese Cabbage, and tonkatsu sauce. Once I’m done cooking it, I usually top it with some pickled ginger strips, bonito flakes, seaweed and of course Kewpie Mayonnaise ( more to come on this in a later post, trust me it deserves its own post). Occasionally, I add a final spice with a squirt of the Vietnamese Sriracha hot sauce.
If my short and sweet description does not suffice for those of you who have not cooked Yaki Soba before, here is a more in-depth recipe on How To Cook Yaki Soba
The Variants
Keep in mind that you do not have to cook your Yaki Soba from scratch - it also comes convenient Yaki Soba bowls and instant noodle packages, so just pick your favorite method and ~Enjoy !
American-Made Instant Yakisoba Packs:
THE BEST ONE! Maruchan-Fresh Yaki Soba- the closest to a Japanese street vendor you'll get. These can be found in Asian grocery stores in the refrigerated section, or even in the frozen section..
Sapporo Ichiban Yakisoba - this is a classic. Been on grocery store shelves for more than 15 years, and it's the closest in flavor to real Yaki Soba.
Maruchan - Teriyaki Flavor Yakisoba - could have potential in taste
Maruchan - Yakisoba - Cheddar Cheese Flavor -this sounds gross!!! but if you try it, let me know how it goes...
I tried out the Yakisoba mac and cheese, the flavor is different from any I’ve tried before. It’s not bad over all with the cheese pack really tasting like…well…cheese. Plus it even thickens the water thats left in the bowl, actually I would suggest not removing any water from the bowl or you could end up with a cheese noodle brick! Over all it’s edible but I have to admit I was worried the first time I tried it.
The Yakisoba mac and cheese is absolutely horrible… The noodles don’t mix AT ALL with the cheese, concerning flavors… I almost through up halfway through it. I REALLY really tried. It was bad. I LOVE Yakisoba and I LOVE Mac and cheese… But they were sadly meant to be alone…