I like cheap maruchan too but I add an egg, a handful of frozen veggies and a dolop of sichuan chili crisp. It's not many parents' idea of healthy but it hits the spot.

You could throw in extra vegetables, chicken, tofu, etc., to get two servings with a little dilution of the sodium.

Anonymous wrote:She can add the spice herself - it doesn't need to come contained in there.

I find Dr McDougalls to be among the healthier ones. I aim for lower sodium because otherwise I get a headache.

Those are absolutely terrible.

I eat the Annie Chun bowls. The Korean one has some heat, but I always add crushed red pepper.

Snapdragon brand is great. They sell the miso ramen flavor at Costco but we like particularly like the tonkotsu flavor. You can buy those on Amazon. They also have pho and curry laksa that you can use as a base for adding your own meats, herbs, tofu etc.

I agree I wouldn't worry so much about MSG but also it seems very possible to just buy some chili oil and let her spice it herself.

Anonymous wrote:momofuku raman packs are available at grocery stores and have a pretty short ingredient list

I was going to suggest Momofuku. I have them almost daily for lunch. They sell them online and some flavors are in stores like Target and Whole Foods. Be careful with the spice levels though. The spicy ones are really spicy!!

https://shop.momofuku.com/

momofuku raman packs are available at grocery stores and have a pretty short ingredient list

MSG isn't actually that bad for you. You may have fallen prey to the old racist marketing campaign.

https://rightasrain.uwmedicine.org/body/food/msg-isnt-unhealth

Shin Ramen is pretty good. Can be found at Costco. You should just go to an Asian supermarket and buy spices to make it really spicy for her. Or you can buy dry noodles (like this: https://a.co/d/68m4NoH), add sesame oil and Asian spices yourself. Sample spice products:
huy Fong chili garlic sauce (sold at Target and elsewhere)
Lao Gan Ma Spicy Chili Crisp Sauce 24.69oz/700g, pack of 1 (see Amazon).


Will be healthier in the long run to make the noodles. Add some MSG yourself if you’d like to control the amounts.

Maybe buy a brand that works for you, and have her add something like sriracha to it before eating?

At 12 she's old enough to research this herself and find what she likes AND fits your criteria.

She can add the spice herself - it doesn't need to come contained in there.

I find Dr McDougalls to be among the healthier ones. I aim for lower sodium because otherwise I get a headache.

She can make something easily from scratch. DS, 11, loves this. He and DH often make it for dinner with chicken (I have zero spice tolerance!)
https://eatwithclarity.com/spicy-ramen-noodles/

DD age 12 LOVES the cheapest most heavily MSG-laced bad for you instant noodles there is. I mean the worst it is for you, the yummier it is, the more she loves it of course! I have no problem with her eating this pretty often. However, she would eat this every single day if I left her. Maybe even twice a day LOL

I need to figure out something else to give her and she does also love ramen/pho too. She typically has instant noodle bowls as a snack (it would not be enough food for lunch) afterschool but I just feel like it's too much and now I need to find something else for her to gorge on since she's hungry.

Are there any brands that are not exactly as terrible for you as the ones that are obviously bad for you? I'm looking at Safeway/Giant/etc. Whole Foods/Traders kinds don't work. Some of the prob is she likes it VERY spicy and it's hard to find anything but bland for healthy stuff, even finding spicy isn't possible. And I get that it's yummy because of the MSG but I'm just curious if any specific brands that may be just a bit less on the MSG and more on the actual hot spicy red flakes in their seasoning packets??

Ugh, I don't know how she even stays alive and is so outrageously healthy and fit, when all she eats is fried and processed foods, hah!