food

Cup Noodle maker Nissin asks Italians to rate its new pasta style cups

6 Comments
By KK Miller, RocketNews24

The land that invented instant noodles is never one to rest on its instant laurels. Noodle makers in Japan have been constantly coming up with new flavors and dishes to keep their customers happy, and the company that started it all, Nissin, is proud to unveil its newest instant noodle product: new Cup Noodle “Pasta Style.”

The folks at Nissin are so excited about their new product, they are giving it the ultimate taste test by taking it to Gragnano, Italy. With their pasta character Mr. Pasta Judge – a 46-year-old thick noodle – and their newest flavors of instant pasta, Vongole and Bolognese, they asked 157 Italians, “Would you call our Cup Noodle Pasta Style ‘pasta?’”

Cup Noodle is well-known for their instant noodle line of products and these new concoctions are their first attempts at Italian-inspired pasta creations. This time, they are using a different kind of noodle that becomes fat and round when you add hot water, and their first two flavors are derived from classic Italian dishes, Vongole, with the umami taste of clams and olive oil, and Bolognese, which has a tomato base and a rich flavor of herbs.

Can you really cook these two classic dishes in just three minutes with only hot water? All the people who were interviewed were good sports and were willing to try the random pasta in a cup handed to them by the strange mascot from Japan.

What matters to Nissin are the results, though. How did their new pasta style fare? Is it pasta? Or not pasta? The respondents were decidedly one-sided, with 86% of them saying that it… wasn’t pasta.

It wasn’t a complete shutout though, as 14% of people said they were OK with calling it pasta! Unfortunately, that didn’t line up with the internal numbers Nissin had projected as their PR Director said that there were a lot of people in the “pasta group” within the company. Even though they couldn’t get the positive result of “pasta” they were looking for, Nissin still believes that people in Japan will find it really delicious.

These new Cup Noodles will go on sale in Japan on Monday, so you can take the taste test yourself. Whether it’s “pasta” or not, their little marketing scheme really makes us want to try them and decide for ourselves.

Source: Cup Noodle Pasta Style

Read more stories from RocketNews24. -- Chow time, bachelors! Nissin now offering microwavable curry rice in a cup -- Craving ramen, but can’t find decent noodles? Transform your spaghetti with this pasta hack! -- Website lets you eat ramen with handsome actor – Great for fans, sort of awkward if you’re not

© Japan Today

©2024 GPlusMedia Inc.


6 Comments
Login to comment

The folks at Nissin are so excited about their new product and who wouldn't be?

Nissin should try ravioli. The sauces are academic. Also, tiny tortellini fits the Japanese DNA noodle-wise.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

I don't think the results are all that surprising. Does anyone consider Cup Noodles to be "true" ramen? Probably not. Still makes for a cheap and easy snack/meal though, so why not do the same thing for pasta. Sounds to me like this entire thing was just a PR stunt, which will most likely work out well for them in the long run.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

The style suffix has such a gourmet ring to it.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

So the people who know pasta overwhelmingly say it isn't and Nissin will still go ahead with it false marketing campaign. So why did they seek Italian opinion in the first place?

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Don't they already make pasta ones called "Spa!" or something in a yakisoba shaped low and wide container? Is that a different company?

I must say I quite like the Chili Tomato one. And the classic one too, come to think of it. For hiking, Cup Noodles are way better value and probably tastier that the ripoff dehydrated food you get at mountain shops. The lack of little packets of sauce and stuff also makes Cup Noodles much less hassle than other instant raamen.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

I tried the Bolonese today. It was pretty good for a cup noodle. Definitely not an authentic pasta, but tasty nonetheless. I will definitely eat it again.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Login to leave a comment

Facebook users

Use your Facebook account to login or register with JapanToday. By doing so, you will also receive an email inviting you to receive our news alerts.

Facebook Connect

Login with your JapanToday account

User registration

Articles, Offers & Useful Resources

A mix of what's trending on our other sites