Here’s Where Your Ramen Noodles Actually Come From
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There’s nothing like slurping up fresh ramen noodles from a piping hot bowl of rich, indulgent tonkotsu broth on a cold winter day. It’s easy to get swept away in the moment when you’re chowing down, but did you ever wonder where your noodles actually come from? It’s wishful thinking to believe there’s always a chef handmaking your noodles in the kitchen. Chances are if you’re a ramen fiend eating at restaurants in major cities across the U.S., especially in New York and LA, then your noodles came from Sun Noodle.
Founded in 1981, Sun Noodle is a Hawaii-based company built up by Hidehito Uki. Uki was working in a noodle factory in Japan until his father’s business in Hawaii failed and an abandoned noodle machine was up for grabs. With the equipment part down, Uki tried to figure out how to tackle a noodle-saturated market in Hawaii. He needed a foolproof way to stand out from all of the instant ramen places on the island. Sun Noodle’s final product had a firm texture (as a result of the alkalinity), which was the secret to fresh ramen. Uki eventually grew his client base with the fundamental beliefs that a ramen supplier should tailor noodles to match the “heart and soul” of each unique soup in accompanies. The theory that each type of soup base needed a particular kind of noodle for a harmonious result, separated Sun Noodle from the rest.
It’s safe to say that the ramen boom in America has a lot to do with Sun Noodle. Over the past 30-plus years, the Hawaii-based company has grown exponentially and has established three factories (Hawaii, New Jersey and California) where they produce around 90,000 or more servings of ramen each day. Prominent ramen chefs, from David Chang to Ivan Orkin, look to Sun Noodle as the obvious reliable source. In addition to Orkin and Chang’s restaurants, the majority of New York Times reviewed ramen destinations in New York City use these noodles in their kitchens. There’s a good chance if you’re not making noodles in-house, you’re using Sun Noodle. The creative test kitchen and tasting room in Manhattan, Ramen Lab, where ramen chefs from all over the U.S. and Japan come to showcase their skills, exclusively uses Sun Noodle.
The Sun Noodle factories make over 100 varieties including everything from DIY ramen kits to yakisoba, Okinawan soba, udon, Hawaiian saimin and dumpling wrappers. Here’s how they’re made. They now distribute across North America, South America and Europe and specifically tailor their fresh noodles to each ramen shop. The kits especially make it easy for you to make your own ramen at home and let you experiment with different texture and broth pairings.
Want to know what dedication to your craft looks like? Sun Noodle uses eight types of flour and is continuously adjusting the pH levels of the water so the texture comes out perfect every time. To ensure everything runs smoothly, real people oversee the noodle machines to make sure everything is cut to just the right size. There’s a reason everyone looks to Sun Noodle as the gold standard — you can’t be passion.
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