How can I make my own Super Noodles/instant noodle seasoning?

Question

I like BBQ Beef Super Noodles, but they don't taste the same as they used to. The flavour sachet is not as strong as it used to be (maybe they use more filler nowadays).

I can buy plain egg noodles, but how can I make the seasoning?

The ingredients are listed as:

Noodles (Water, Wheat Flour, Palm Oil, Antioxidants (Butylated Hydroxyanisole, Citric Acid, Propyl Gallate)), Sugar, Acidity Regulator (Sodium Diacetate), Salt, Skimmed Milk Powder, Flavour Enhancers (Monosodium Glutamate, Disodium 5’-ribonucleotides), Yeast Extract, Sour Cream Powder (Milk), Onion Powder, Garlic Powder, Tomato Powder, Citric Acid, Tartaric Acid, Flavouring, Colour (Paprika Extract), Spices, Anti-caking Agents (Silicon Dioxide, Tricalcium Phosphate), Rapeseed Oil, Celery, Wheat Flour.

I suspect I won't be needing any of those chemicals!

Answer 1

Find a good Asian food market. They should sell small jars, tins, or liquid in sachets of soup flavours.

I find the jars most convenient. About a teaspoon per serving is plenty, store in the fridge after opening.

Some of the liquid in sachets can be the most authentic for the Asian style, but for just a beefy broth, one of the jars will do fine.

If you like a more tomato flavour, buy bulk cans of tomato paste, freeze in ice cube trays, then bag in zip style freezer bags. One or two cubes per serving works fine, and they just melt into the hot noodle soup base.

Use low salt noodles, as most of the soup flavours are very salty for preservation reasons.

Here are some examples I use. Click on pictures for full size view.

Answer 2

To make the seasoning, you'll need to experiment. You'll need at least some of those chemicals, but you can probably find them with friendlier, less chemically-sounding, names.

Looking at the ingredients list, I'd guess that the key ingredients in that list, flavour-wise, are probably Monosodium Glutamate, Yeast Extract, Onion Powder, Garlic Powder, Tomato Powder. Those are all easy enough to source. A decent supermarket will likely have several of them, and the rest are easy to find on the internet. Tomato powder might be the trickiest, although I expect you could simply take some sun-dried tomatoes and blitz them in a grinder.

The key to most of the 'beefy' flavours I've come across in products like this seems to be in the glutamates - those are the things that give that rich umami-flavour to things. MSG is commonly used commercially, but you also find them in other common foodstuffs - yeast extract, parmesan, anchovies, fish sauce, soy sauce to name but a few.

I'd start with some Marmite/Vegemite, a mix of the three vegetable powders and a sprinkling of MSG if you have some, fish/soy sauce if not. Play with the proportions until you find something you like the taste of. You'll need salt too, but you may well already have enough from the other ingredients. You'll wind up with a paste rather than a powder, but you can use that to season the noodles just as easily.

Bovril might be a good addition for a meaty flavour too.

Answer 3

Go to the S&M store. (That is a Philippine package you show, and S&M stores are nationwide.) They have a good selection of BBQ dry mix packs (and instant soup packs) near the spices.

Start with the base from the packet. Add extra to it: hot pepper, garlic, etc. Store small jars with lids (like baby food jars). you now have your own flavor to use. For example, I might use about 3/4 red Korean soup base, 1/4 BBQ seasoning, dried crushed hot peppers, and some extra spices to taste.

Answer 4

I'd recommend looking up spices used to make barbecue sauces such as smoked paprika, onion and garlic powder, tomato powder, cumin etc.