Instant Noodles

Hello there. I am a block of wavy, yummy Instant Noodles. Before I was in your kitchen pantry, I was just an idea in a very kind man's head. I was born in a country called Japan, not long after a big war had ended. It was a tough time, and many people were very hungry. To get a warm bowl of soup called ramen, they had to stand in long, long lines, even on cold days. My creator, a wonderful man named Momofuku Ando, saw this and felt sad for them. He thought, “There must be a way to make a delicious noodle meal that anyone can make quickly, right in their own home.” He wanted to make sure no one had to wait in line just to have a warm tummy.

Momofuku Ando worked hard to bring me to life. His workshop wasn't a big, fancy laboratory. It was a little shed in his backyard. His big goal was to make noodles that could become soft and tasty just by adding hot water. It sounds simple, but it was very tricky. He worked for one whole year, trying again and again. Sometimes I would get too mushy, and other times I was too hard to chew. But he never gave up. Then, one amazing day, on August 25th, 1958, he had a brilliant idea. He was inspired by watching his wife make a crispy food called tempura. He decided to fry the noodles very quickly in hot oil. It worked perfectly. This made me dry and porous, which means I had lots of tiny holes, ready to soak up hot water and become soft and slurp-able in minutes. That was the day I was officially born. He called me ‘Chikin Ramen,’ the world’s very first instant noodle.

After I was born, I became a big hit. People in Japan loved that they could have a warm, delicious meal so fast. I was easy to make, so busy families and students could enjoy me anytime. But my adventure was just beginning. In 1971, Momofuku Ando had another fantastic idea to make me even easier to enjoy. He created a special waterproof cup for me to live in. This meant you didn't even need a bowl. You could just add hot water to my cup, wait a few minutes, and eat me anywhere you wanted. I became ‘Cup Noodles’. From there, I traveled all over the world. I went to different countries, feeding hungry people everywhere. I even went to outer space with astronauts. I am so happy that I can still bring a warm, comforting feeling to anyone who needs a quick meal, all because one person had a dream to help others.