Hoo Roo Rook is an onomatopeia for the sound you make slurping ramen

My in-laws sent me the latest instant ramen to hit L.A. It is called Hoo Roo Rook which is a new trend in instant ramens -the premium, health conscious, instant ramen. The noodle, unlike the original instant ramen, is not fried but rather just dried. It is a capellini grade noodle that unravels almost instantly in boiling water -always boil the noodles separately from the soup and rinse them in cold water to stop the cooking process. Unfortunately, thin noodles are hard to gauge and this noodle basically is ready to rinse very soon after unravelling, otherwise, you will go past al dente and enter over cooked territory.

The soup is also a new trend among instant Ramens -it is meant to be less salty and more subtle. I think it is also meant to help out with older Koreans who don’t want to wake up with acid reflux from the chili pepper red soups found in more popular instant ramen brands. It’s okay, but really kind of boring. It specifically says no MSG, but you can’t escape the umami 5th taste in the fish stock that is hinted in the soup -it is balanced and subtle, but again -you won’t be seeking this out to cure a hangover.

You have to remember to make the soup a little more concentrated if you are separating the soup from the noodle during production because the noodles add water to the mix, diluting the soup, and cooling it as well.

The noodles were overdone in this first batch, but if pulled out withing a few moments after unraveling, they would be in fact perfectly al dente and give wonderful chewy mouth feel. The noodles are of highest quality, and that is what I think the point of this ramen is about. That and the fact that the soup won’t give you acid reflux.

Impression: Instant ramen for old people and those with digestive problems. Also, good for feeding toddlers and children.