Samar instant noodles come in a variety of flavours and styles. They also often give you the option of chilli ramen to provide some spicy heat or a milder version should that be your preference. It is worth noting this before you take that culinary decision as, unlike some varieties of instant noodle, you only have an individual sachet as your sole soupy source so it’s worth pre-selecting your preferred level of heat in the broth.

Samar Beef

Ridiculously good value and with a huge 85g of noodles on offer you’d be right to be a bit suspicious. Matters are not helped when, upon opening, the soupbase sachet is printed in reverse. Most strange. However, the noodles are more than adequate, if a little uneven in places and there’s no complaints on the portion size either.

The only real problem is that the flavour of the beef, while perfectly serviceable, is all but lost amidst the noodles. Far better than could be expected, nothing to write home about but if you’re feeling cheapskate, or if you don’t have access to boiling water (this can cook at slightly lower temperatures at a push, handy for mountain climbers) then you could do a lot worse than this.

Samar Chilli Vegetable

Another in the line of single sachet ‘no frills’ snack noodles from those kind bods at Samar. Like most of the range you get the occasional unsatisfactory strand in the noodles themselves but the overall quality is more than adequate and they cook so simply a child could do it. (Word of warning: always supervise young children when boiling water to make noodles). As ever the deciding factor lies with the taste, and chilli vegetable does not disappoint, a tasty savoury stock with a clean aroma of celery which brings light to the dullest morning.

It’s not too heavy on the chilli so this is suitable for those of more delicate sensibilities. Nice, stable all rounder.

Samar Chicken

Samar’s budget range has a nice even spread of flavours for the casual consumer to enjoy – nothing generally out on a limb but yet still retaining its dignity. Chicken flavour would be too easy to ‘dumb down’ but here they have just gone for the solid basic, full-of-chicken flavour approach that fulfils all your basic needs. It is light and filled with the aroma of freshly steamed chicken and the noodles cook so easily you’ll forget you even poured the kettle! No risks, no fuss, the ideal starter noodle – buy a pack for a sceptical friend or someone not into spicy food, even they will thank you for it. Those with more specialist tastes look elsewhere.

One word of warning: the packet suggests that these noodles are suitable for vegetarians, now I don’t want to suggest there’s anything untoward going on here but if it is vegetarian it’s a really good imitation.

Samar Chilli Chicken

Plain but kaleidoscopic wrapping and the indication that this is ‘Delicious Chilli Chicken’ and the general ‘normalness’ of the whole packaging affair leads one to presume that this is an average product.

Indeed this is not the world’s greatest noodle but it’s cheap, tasty and there is a nice ginger kick that is unexpected but welcome. And it’s not just chicken flavour with some chilli added, this really is a separate flavour. Unfortunately the whole lacks the subtle depth of its heat-free chicken stablemate but don’t let that put you off a snack that is more than adequate if you’re feeling peckish.

Samar Curry

Your suspicions, if you are an observant and fanatical noodlenut, may be raised at the first glance of this packet. Many of the extensive Samar range of noodles have the word ‘delicious’ inserted before the flavour name as a means to convince you to make a purchase. This one, my friends, does not.

Initial aromas lead to a fifty-fifty bet on how the flavour will turn out. When it says ‘curry’ this is a Chinese curry – the fennel smell is overwhelming. The noodles cook very quickly but are a little uneven in texture. However, the real surprise here is that, for one little sachet the flavour is complex and really rather tasty. Full marks at the temptingly low price they are asking for this product, a perfect blend of flavour and noodles that will not disappoint or offend.

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