This Is How Instant Noodles Came About

Miljuschka Witzenhausen travelled to Japan for 24Kitchen and visited the Instant Noodle Museum. Because yes, those are Japanese too. So how did they actually come about?

It’s actually funny that instant noodles were invented in the country where everything revolves around fresh, fresher, freshest. How did that happen?

“After the Second World War, there was a lot of hunger in Japan. Master Momofuku – after whom David Chang named his restaurant chain – saw that people were standing in line for ramen for hours, but actually couldn’t afford it at all. He wanted to come up with something and got the idea of developing a meal that only required hot water to prepare. He started frying noodles; when you added water to them, they became soft again. He dried the broth into a powder and fried the vegetables too. Everything was put together in a cup, and that’s how Cup Noodle began.”

And then a museum was created…

“Yes, but I have to say that in Japan they have a museum for almost every dish. That’s simply how important food is here, haha!”

Do people in Japan eat instant noodles differently from the way we do here?

“They’re eaten in exactly the same way there, but there’s much more choice. From sauerkraut to super-chilli flavour; you name it, they have it.”

Miljuschka in Japan can be seen weekly on 24Kitchen from Monday 25 February at 10 p.m.

Photo: Miljuschka’s Instagram