Have you ever drank the butter used on movie theater popcorn? I’m pretty sure I have now, ever since I tried HEYROO Cheese Flavor Ramen. And… carny cheese is back with a vengeance with this one. Significantly better than HEYROO’s Shin Buldalk Bibimmyeon, these noodles just ever so slightly nudge the bar upward for HEYROO and their other instant noodle products. I’m really hoping that I can find one of their products I like, but that might actually never happen. Cheese Flavor Ramen is just another artificial mess like most other cheese flavored cups of noodles. Companies just keep using that crummy nacho cheese that instantly makes you wish you were enjoying real nachos at an authentic Mexican restaurant. And… that’s exactly how I feel about these noodle. I wish I was eating something better…
Flavor:
Cheese Flavor Ramen is more buttery than it is cheesy. Of course, it tastes of carny cheese, but you probably already knew that. The flavor of the ramen noodles is also extremely pronounced in these noodles. Ultimately, the flavor tastes like sweetened, butter and carny cheese in ramen noodles. It’s not bad, but it’s not great either. It’s a bit too artificial tasting for my preferences.
There’s also nothing substantial to actually chew on other than the noodles. You won’t find many other ingredients in this ramen. I found a miniscule amount of green onion and red squares? I can’t even identify what these squares are, let alone taste anything. They are really, really tiny. If you want to fill yourself up, you’re going to have to drink the carny cheese soup like a milkshake.
Spiciness:
These noodles actually do have a light spiciness to them. It’s so gentle that it’s almost imperceptible. If I had to take a guess, the spice comes from either red chili peppers or green chili peppers, but most likely cheongyang gochu (Korean green chili pepper). The spiciness is present to enhance the flavor and give your mouth a tingle. It’s very, very mild.
Smell:
HEYROO’s Cheese Flavor Ramen smells mostly of synthetic carnival cheese and cheap ramen noodles. It’s a buttery aroma that is also slightly sweet smelling. None of the other ingredients can escape the odor vortex of the artificial nacho cheese. It ends up being very one note.
Noodles:
As much as I would like to see something different with the noodles, this ramen plays it safe and sticks with basic ramen noodles. They play well with the other generic flavors, so I guess it all kind of works as a total package.
Overall:
My problem with this ramen isn’t so much that it tastes like canned cheese. I think the even bigger problem is that there just isn’t anything in these noodles to actually eat other than the noodles themselves. I wish there was more variety within these noodles. Instead, HEYROO opted to make these instant noodles completely artificial tasting. Seriously, I really don’t think people actually like to eat this type of cheese. It’s more often eaten because the products and restaurants that serve this stuff are cheap. However, maybe I’m wrong? If you’re into cheese that isn’t cheese and buttered carbohydrates, give these a try. If you’re like me though and want something more substantial to put in your digestive system, then skip these noodles.
Would you even eat these artificial noodles if they were more expensive? Also, what products in your country use artificial cheese flavoring? Let me know in the comments!
If you’re interested in hearing more about instant ramen, check out my on-going series, Noodle Story: An Exploration of Korean Instant Noodles, here on Medium.
