Another new cup of instant jjajangmyeon on the block. YouUs Jjagyechi Instant Noodles hopes to combine the insanely delicious flavor of jjajangmyeon with egg and cheese. In theory, these flavors seem like they could unite to form a god-like tasting cup of ramen, but ultimately they fall short of their intended purpose. We’re looking at the Marvel’s Avengers scenario during Civil War here. Our flavor heroes are divided and thus significantly weaker and more easily defeated than they might have been if they stood united. Rather than being balanced, the chunjang flavor (jjajang sauce) calls all the shots, albeit with less influence than what is found within Chapagetti. YouUs Jjagyechi is still a unique cup of noodles that deserves your attention, but don’t expect to be blown away by its flavor combination.
Flavor:
The flavor of YouUs Jjagyechi Instant Noodles is fine… but I can’t stop thinking that I would have liked something more. These noodles give me that “Master of None” feeling. I mean they tried to add additional flavors in, but it still comes out a bit weak overall. It all feels a bit scattered…
In terms of flavors, the strongest flavor is, of course, the jjajang sauce (chunjang). There is a bit of egg and artificial cheese flavor as well, but it only reveals itself at the very end of a bite. It’s more an aftertaste than a flavor, which is a shame. Everything in the flavor points towards the same taste as Chapagetti, but dialed back quite a bit. The dried flakes of meat and vegetables are also in almost identical quantities. It might have been smarter for YouUs / GS25 to just focus on creating a great tasting instant jjajangmyeon than offering three average flavors that come together to make an overall average cup of instant noodles.
Spiciness:
Another non-spicy cup of ramen. Anyone can enjoy these noodles because there is absolutely no spiciness to them. I highly recommend most jjajangmyeon, including Jjagyechi for children. They usually love the sweet and savory flavor.
Smell:
I’m getting the aroma of artificial cheese and the sweetness of jjajangmyeon with just a bit of egg. There’s nothing else to really take note of within the odor. It’s exact what you think it would smell like given the flavor combinations.
Noodles:
These noodles are great. I prefer these noodles to some of the other offerings found in cups of instant jjajangmyeon. They are long and thin, which, in my opinion, enhanced the enjoyability of this cup of noodles. These noodles were definitely thinner than the ones found in Chapagetti. I thought it worked well in this flavor combination. The cook on the noodles was just okay. They ended up being a bit soft.
Overall:
YouUs Jjagyechi Instant Noodles are decent, not extraordinary, but just alright. The flavors seemed to work, but nothing came out more strongly than the jjajang flavor. It’s a very strong flavor that is difficult to balance. It might be a better strategy to just focus on improving on the jjajang flavor, because of its dominance.
It might be human error, but I found the flavors were spotty within the ramen. I thought I mixed everything extremely well, but some bites had an eggy flavor and others didn’t. My other bites had an intense cheese flavor and others were only jjajang. It was a bit all over the place. I think YouUs / GS25 should use at least one packet of liquid sauce to remedy this problem.
If you enjoy the taste of Chapagetti or other instant jjajangmyeon like myself, you’re guaranteed to find these noodles a tempting and delicious snack, especially if you’re in a hurry to get back to class or the office and only have time for a quick visit to a GS25 Convenience Store.
Are you guys interested in hearing more about other ramen or offerings from South Korean convenience stores? If you’re thinking of any foods or drinks in particular go ahead and drop it down 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.
Note: This article may contain affiliate links that support the author’s ramen purchases for these how-to guides and reviews.
