Chinese Brands Are Reinventing the Instant Noodle Category

Chinese people really love having instant noodles, in fact Chinese people consume the most instant noodles out of any country in the world. There are 280M packs of instant noodles to be consumed every day in China, which is three times the scale of Indonesia, the second largest instant noodles consuming country in the world. While they were already quite popular, instant noodles became even more popular since the COVID19 lockdown when people had to cook at home all the time.

Though in English we call almost every kind of noodles packed in a plastic box instant noodles, there are actually many categories of instant noodle. For example, we have ramen, that’s more Japanese style. We have Korean noodles, we call it “泡面” (Pao Mian). And then there’s the stereotypical instant noodle most Western people think of called “方便面” (Fangbian Mian), that’s the noodles when boiled water is the only thing needed, and you just wait for 2-3 minutes. 

What’s incredible is that even though instant noodles are a mature, saturated market, in recent years we’ve seen many new brands popping up and bringing new innovations whether that is flavorings, cross collaborations, packaging, or preparation methods.

Let’s take a closer look at this popular food category: 

Fangbian Mian

These are the most common type of instant noodles that you might be most familiar with. 

Among all those instant noodles we discuss today, Fangbian Mian is the easiest one to cook and it is the simplest. But as the noodles are fried, it is not very healthy to eat on a regular basis. What’s more, they tend not to have much flavor or additional vegetables or meat. Traditionally people eat it when they need something fast, cheap, and convenient or are unable to cook other food, for example, boarding school students or people who are traveling.

Ramen

This kind of noodle originates from Japan and it is often served in a big bowl. Usually, sliced pork, nori, menma and scallions are the toppings.

In China, a Ramen brand called Ramen Talk (拉面说) is gaining most of the market share for instant ramen. In 2019, its annual turnover was about 250 million RMB and its goal is to achieve over 600 million RMB sales in 2020. Ramen Talk’s noodles are pricier than regular instant noodles and require consumers to boil the noodles, but they also use much higher quality ingredients and a wider variety of flavors.

Check out our YouTube video to have a “taste” of it and learn more about Ramen Talks brilliant marketing strategy!

Pao Mian

Korean noodles or Pao Mian are very popular in China as well. Couples often pick them up when out for a date, as this scene often shows up in Korean TV shows. Unlike instant noodles that are packed in a paper cup, Pao Mian comes with more ingredients, such as rice cake, seafood, eggs and cabbages. The noodles are also more chewy.

The popularity of Pao Mian comes from Korean dramas which many young Chinese people will watch. From those TV shows, we know that cool people are having this food, and it can be had on a date or when you just got back home from work and don’t want to order takeaway food nor cook yourself.

It is also popular because many KOLs show they store it at home, and foodie KOLs or mukbang KOLs feature it in their content. Some KOLs participate in the challenge of eating Xin Lamian (辛拉面), a Korean instant noodle brand that specializes in making extremely spicy yet tasty instant noodles. It is so spicy that KOLs often cry when having it. Another popular Pao Miao brand is a Korean brand called Huojimian (火鸡面) and this also makes many people cry when having it.

Zihaiguo

Crossing all these categories is innovative Chinese instant noodle brand Zihaiguo (自嗨锅). Somewhat similar to Ramen Talk in the sense that Zihaiguo contains better ingredients and more toppings that regular instant noodles, and it could fall in the Pao Mian category because it has a Koren Hot Pot flavor (among other flavors), but what really makes Zihaiguo stand out is its innovative packaging and cooking process.

If you thought instant noodles were convenient, then you must try Zihaiguo. While instant noodles still require boiling water, Zihaiguo comes with special packaging that heats the food up with only cold water!

Check out this video to see how Zihaiguo works and how it tastes.

Conclusion

The instant noodle industry is growing rapidly in China. Consumers desire the convenience that instant food brings yet they are paying more attention to their health, so options such as the standard Fangbian Mian are not as welcomed as before.

From flavors and ingredients, to packaging and marketing, as consumer’s tastes change, there are many ways that brands can continue to innovate in this mature product category.

Read more: 韩国泡面越来越火，为什么中国人偏爱它？