Instant Noodle in typical block form (dried)

Instant noodles
Are sold in a precooked and dried noodle block, with flavoring powder and/or
seasoning oil. The flavoring is usually in a separate packet, although in the case of cup
noodles the flavoring is often loose in the cup. Some instant noodle products are seal
packed; these can be reheated or eaten straight from the packet/container. Dried
noodle blocks are cooked or soaked in boiling water before eating.
The main ingredients used in dried noodles are usually wheat flour, palm oil,
and salt. Common ingredients in the flavoring powder are salt, monosodium glutamate,
seasoning, and sugar. The dried noodle block was originally created by flash frying
cooked noodles, and this is still the main method used in Asian countries, but air-dried
noodle blocks are favored in Western countries.
Instant noodles were invented by Momofuku Ando (born Go Pek-Hok) of Nissin
Foods in Japan.[1] They were launched in 1958 under the brand name Chikin Ramen.
In 1971, Nissin introduced Cup Noodles, the first cup noodle product. Instant noodles
are marketed worldwide under many brand names.
Ramen, a Japanese noodle soup, is sometimes used as a descriptor for instant
noodle flavors by some Japanese instant noodle manufacturers. It has become
synonymous in America for all instant noodle products.[2]
There are many local and imported brands of instant noodle in the
Philippines, which are locally known as "instant mami" (after a Philippine version of
chicken noodle soup). Brands available in the Philippines include Lucky Me,
Payless, Nissin, QuickChow, Maggi and Ho-Mi. They are sold in packets, sealed paper
cups, or sealed foam food containers. Instant noodles are popular as a quick snack or
for breakfast because of their fast preparation and affordability.
People in the Philippines sometimes add a fresh egg directly into the instant noodle
either in the pot or the bowl. Another popular variation is the instant pancit canton, stir-
fried noodle which is boiled and drained to which a flavoring powder, soy sauce, oil and
carrot and celery pieces are added. Popular variations include spicy, soy-sauce-
calamansi, and sweet-spicy.
 Lucky Me! Instant Pancit Canton Noodles (Sweet & Spicy) (
菲律賓麵 (甜辣味))
 Brand: Lucky Me!
 Size: 60g
 Shipping Weight: 0.099kg
 Cuisine: Filipino, Philipino
 Product of: Philippines

Description:Instant Pancit Canton Noodles - Sweet & Spicy Flavour

Cooking Directions:
Cook noodles in boiling water for 3 minutes. Mix special seasoning, soy sauce and oil on a
plate to form a paste. Drain noodles and place on the plate with the prepared sauce. Mix well.
Enjoy!

Allergy Advice: Contains Wheat Gluten, Soy.

May contain traces of crustaceans, egg, fish, milk, celery, sesame seeds and molluscs.

Store in a cool dry place. Once opened, consume immediately.

Ingredients:

Noodles (92%): Wheat Flour, Vegetable Oil (Palm Oil, Green Tea Extract), Salt, Acidity
Regulators (E500, E501), Stabiliser (E412), Emulsifier (E452).
Seasoning: Soy Sauce (Water, Soybean, Preservative (E202)), Coconut Oil, Cane Sugar,
Spices (Red Pepper, Garlic), Salt, Flavour Enhancers (E621, E631, E627), Flavour,
Dehydrated Vegetables (Red Pepper, Chive), Hydrolysed Soy Protein, Colour (E160c), Anti-
caking Agent (E551).

Health and safety concerns

Nutritional value
Instant noodles would need additional ingredients such as an egg or vegetables to add nutritional value.

Instant noodles are often criticized as unhealthy or junk food.[21] A single serving of instant noodles
is high in carbohydrates and fat, but low in protein, fiber, vitamins and minerals.[22][23][24]

Lead
Lead contamination in Nestlé's Maggi brand instant noodles made headlines in India, with some 7
times the allowed limit, with several Indian states banning the product as well as Nepal.[25] On June
5, 2015, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) banned all nine approved
variants of Maggi instant noodles from India, terming them "unsafe and hazardous" for human
consumption.[26]
Physical properties
Noodles from instant ramen noodle soup are continuous viscoelastic gluten matrix evenly mixed
with starch, which are wheat flour, water, kansui, and salt. After mixing, kneading, compounding,
and rolling, a continuous viscous noodle dough sheet is made and cut by roll slitters. The conveying
belt which transports noodle dough sheet moves slower than the rotation speed of blades on the
slitters; therefore, noodle dough sheet could be pressed multiple times up and down and produce
the unique wavy form of instant noodles. After slitting, noodle dough sheets undergo steaming and
frying, which triggers starch gelatinization to increase the water retention during cooking in boiling
water to shorten the cooking time of instant noodles.

Production
The main ingredients in instant noodles are flour, starch, water, salt and/or a salt substitute known
as kansui, a type of alkaline mineral water containing sodium carbonate and usually potassium
carbonate, as well as sometimes a small amount of phosphoric acid.
Specific types of noodle can be made from a mix of wheat flour and other flour such as buckwheat.
There are variations to the ingredients used depending on the country of origin in terms of the salt
content and the flour content.
Noodle production starts with dissolving the salt, starch, and flavoring in water to form a mixture
which is then added to the flour. The dough is then left for a period of time to mature, then for even
distribution of the ingredients and hydration of the particles in the dough, it is kneaded. After it is
kneaded, the dough gets made into two sheets compounded into one single noodle belt by being
put through two rotating rollers. This process is repeated to develop gluten more easily as the sheet
is folded and passed through the rollers several times. This will create the stringy and chewy texture
found in instant noodles. When the noodle belt is made to the desired thickness by adjusting the
gap in the rolls, it is then cut right away. Wavy noodles are made in a slow paced conveyor belt and
are hindered by metal weights when coming out of the slitter which gives the noodle its wavy
appearance. If the strands are to be molded into other shapes, liquid seasoning could be added as
well. Once the noodles are shaped, they are ready to be steamed for 1–5 minutes at 100 °C
(212 °F) to improve its texture by gelatinizing the starch of the noodles. When steaming, the
addition of water and heat breaks up the helix structure and crystalinity of amylose. Amylose begins
to diffuse out of the starch granule and forms a gel matrix around the granule.[17]
Next, noodles can be dried in one of two ways: by frying or by hot air drying. Fried instant noodles
are dried by oil frying for 1–2 minutes at a temperature of 140–160 °C (284–320 °F). The frying
process decreases the moisture content from 30–50% to 2–5%. Common oils used for frying in
North America consist of canola, cottonseed and palm oil mixtures, while only palm oil or palm olein
are used in Asia. Air-dried noodles are dried for 30–40 minutes in hot air at a temperature of 70–
90 °C (158–194 °F), resulting in a moisture content of 8–12%. During the drying process, the rapid
evaporation of water creates pores throughout the food matrix, which allows for short cooking times
in the finished product. In the case of fried noodles, the creation of pores is directly related to the
uptake of fat into the noodles.[18] More than 80% of instant noodles are fried as it gives more evenly
dried noodles than hot air drying which can cause an undesired texture in finished noodles, and
also taking longer time to cook. However, with fried noodles, the oil content is about 15–20% and
decreases the shelf life of the noodles due to oxidation whereas in hot air-dried noodles it has only
3% oil content maximum.[16]
Before packaging with seasoning, the noodles are cooled after drying, and their quality of moisture,
color, and shape are checked. Packaging of the noodles include films impermeable to air and
water. There are two forms of packaged instant noodles, one in a bag with the provided seasoning
in small sachets inside, or in a cup with seasoning on the top of the noodles. There are a variety of
flavors to the noodles depending on which ones are added to the seasoning. Such flavors include
beef, chicken, pork, shrimp, oriental, etc. In instant noodle cups, soy protein and dehydrated
vegetables and meats are often added for further flavor.
The shelf life of instant noodles ranges from 4–12 months, depending on environmental factors.
Their stability comes from the high sodium content with low moisture, and low water activity. Instant
noodles can be served after 1–2 minutes in boiled water or soaked in hot water for 3–4 minutes.[19]

Composition
There are three key ingredients in wheat based noodles: Wheat flour, water, and salt.[11] Other than
the three main ingredients, USDA regulations allow instant noodles to contain palm oil, seasoning,
sodium phosphates, potato starches, gums, and other ingredients.[12] Knowing the composition of
instant noodles is crucial to understanding the physical chemical properties of the product;
therefore, the function of each ingredient listed above is specified below.
Flour
Noodles can be made from different kinds of flours, such as wheat flour, rice flour, and buckwheat
flour, depending on the various types manufacturers want to make. For instant noodles, flours
which have 8.5-12.5% protein are optimal because noodles must be able to withstand the drying
process without breaking apart, which requires a higher amount of protein in flour, and during frying,
high protein content can help decrease the fat uptake.[11] Gluten, which is made up of glutenin and
gliadin, is the most important wheat protein that forms the continuous viscoelastic dough of noodles.
The development of gluten structures and the networking between gluten and starches during
kneading is very important to the elasticity and continuity of the dough.
Water
Water is the second most important raw material for making noodles after flour. The hydration of
dough determines the development of gluten structure, which affects the viscoelastic properties of
dough. The water absorption level for making noodles is about 30% - 38% of flour weight; if the
water absorption level is too high, hydration of flour can not be completed, and if the water
absorption level is too low, the dough will be too sticky to handle during processing.[11] For instant
noodles, dehydration is an important step after noodles are made because water can offer a
hospitable environment for microorganisms. Depending on dehydration methods, USDA has
regulation on moisture content of instant noodles: for instant noodles dehydrated by frying, moisture
content cannot exceed 8%, and for those dehydrated by methods other than frying, moisture
content cannot exceed 14.5%.[12]
Salt
Salt is added when making the flour dough to strengthen gluten structures and enhance the
sheeting properties of dough, and it can make the noodles softer and more elastic. Salt also offers
the basic salty flavor of noodles and can cover some of the off-flavor generated by flour and
processing. Another function of salt is to slow down the activities of enzymes, such as proteolytic
enzymes, which could interrupt the gluten structures, and microbial growth. Alkaline salt, such as
sodium and potassium carbonates, could be added to noodle dough to enhance the yellow color of
the product if needed because flavonoid pigments in flour turns yellow at alkaline pH levels, and the
increase of pH could also influence the behavior of gluten, which could make noodle dough even
tougher and less extensible (for some noodles, such as Japanese ramen, this is wanted). For
making fresh noodles, the amount of salt added is 1-3% of flour weight, but for instant noodles, due
to the longer shelf life, it requires higher salt content.[11] One pack of ramen contains well over half
the daily recommended amount of sodium.[13]
Kansui
Kansui, an alkaline solution consisting usually of a 9:1 ratio of sodium carbonate to potassium
carbonate, is added to the flour and water when making ramen to help develop several of its unique
characteristics.[14] The addition of kansui aids in the gluten development of the noodle as well as
promotion of gelatinization of starches, both of which contribute to the springiness and chewiness
characteristic of ramen.[15] Additionally, the addition of kansui enhances the yellow color of ramen
noodles by bringing about chromophoric shift of several compounds called flavonoids that are
native to wheat flour.[14]
Oil
Frying is a common dehydration process for producing instant noodles. Therefore, oil becomes an
important component of instant noodles. According to USDA regulation, oil-fried instant noodles
should not have fat content higher than 20% of total weight, which means theoretically, amount of
oil uptake during frying process could go even higher. Therefore, the high fat content of instant
noodles is always the reason why consumers who are pursuing healthy diets would not buy this
product. Palm oil is always chosen as the frying oil for instant noodles due to its heat stability and
low cost. However, overall, due to the high fat content and low moisture content, instant noodles are
highly susceptible to lipid oxidation, and relatively high amount of preservatives are added. Hence,
to avoid the generation of off flavors and health risking compounds, some instant noodles were
dehydrated by ways other than frying to reduce the fat content. According to USDA, un-fried instant
noodles should have fat content lower than 3%.[12]

Starches
Potato starches are commonly added in instant noodles to enhance gelling properties and water-
holding capacities of noodles. Gelling properties could enhance the elasticity and chewiness of
instant noodles, and water holding capacities could improve the smooth and shiny look of noodles
after cooking and shorten the cooking time.
Polyphosphates
Polyphosphate is used in instant noodles as additive to improve starch gelatinization during cooking
(rehydration) to allow more water retention in the noodles. Normally 0.1% of flour weight phosphate
compounds are added to water before mixing and making the dough.
Hydrocolloids
Hydrocolloids such as guar gum are widely used in instant noodles production to enhance water
binding capacity during rehydration and shorten the cooking time. Gums are dispersed in water
before mixing and making noodles dough.[16]

Advantages and Disadvantages of instant noodles

Advantages
-flavourful, filling, portable

-instant, takes at least 3 minutes

Disadvantages

-The average amount of sodium found in was 830 mg/cup noodle

-High-sodium foods can cause hypertension, heart disesases, stroke, kidney damage
and other health problems

-Some of the chemicals found in instant noodles cause cancer, ex. dioxin and
plasticisers.(As hot water is added harmful substances could seep into the soup.)

-The noodles itself and the flavouring soup base also contain high amounts of MSG

-instant noodles can produce oxidised fat and oil if not managed properly during the
manufacturing process.

-instant noodle is high in carbohydrates, sodium and other food additives, but low on
essential elements ex. fibre, vitamins and minerals