Is Nongshim Gourmet Noodle Soup ultra-processed?

Noodles Sold in the United States

Pack of Nongshim Gourmet Noodle Soup

Yes, it's ultra-processed

  1. 1 Unprocessed
  2. 2 Kitchen staple
  3. 3 Processed
  4. 4 Ultra-processed

Signs of ultra-processing in its ingredients:

  • 56 ingredients
  • 8 additives
  • Nutri-Score E

Less processed noodles

Less processed isn't automatically healthier, so compare the labels for what matters to you, such as sugar or salt.

Ingredients

Ultra-processing Processing signs are highlighted

Enriched wheat flour (wheat flour, niacin, reduced iron, thiamine mononitrate, riboflavin, folic acid), palm oil, potato starch (processing marker), modified potato starch (ultra-processing marker), salt (processing marker), contains less than 2% of each of the following (beef extract), beef fat, beef stock, black pepper, caramel, corn syrup (ultra-processing marker), dehydrated flakes (green onion, bok choy, mushroom, carrot, red chili pepper), dextrose (ultra-processing marker), disodium guanylate (ultra-processing marker), disodium inosinate (ultra-processing marker), disodium succinate, garlic, ginger, green onion, gum arabic (ultra-processing marker), hydrolyzed corn protein, hydrolyzed soy protein, maltodextrin (ultra-processing marker), modified corn starch (ultra-processing marker), modified tapioca starch (ultra-processing marker), mushroom, natural flavors (ultra-processing marker), onion, paprika (color), potassium carbonate, radish, red chili pepper, riboflavin (color (ultra-processing marker)), rice, sodium carbonate, sodium phosphates, soybeans, sugar (processing marker), tocopherols (antioxidant), yeast extract, yellow corn flour

Additives: E363 Succinic acid , E414 Acacia gum , E500 Sodium carbonates , E500i Sodium carbonate , E501 Potassium carbonates , E501i Potassium carbonate , E627 Disodium guanylate , E631 Disodium inosinate

As written on the pack

Enriched wheat flour (wheat flour, niacin, reduced iron, thiamine mononitrate, riboflavin, folic acid), palm oil, potato starch, modified potato starch, salt, contains less than 2% of each of the following: beef extract*, beef fat*, beef stock*, black pepper*, caramel*, corn syrup*, dehydrated flakes (green onion, bok choy, mushroom, carrot, red chili pepper), dextrose, disodium guanylate, disodium inosinate, disodium succinate, garlic*, ginger*, green onion*, gum arabic, hydrolyzed corn protein, hydrolyzed soy protein, maltodextrin, modified corn starch, modified tapioca starch, mushroom*, natural flavors, onion*, paprika (color), potassium carbonate, radish*, red chili pepper*, riboflavin (color), rice*, sodium carbonate, sodium phosphates, soybeans*, sugar, tocopherols (antioxidant), yeast extract, yellow corn flour.

What makes it ultra-processed

Cosmetic additives

Added to change how the food looks, feels or tastes, not to keep it safe. A hallmark of ultra-processed food.

  • E414 Acacia gum Gum arabic (acacia gum) is the hardened sap of acacia trees, used to stabilise flavour emulsions in soft drinks and to coat sweets.
  • E627 Disodium guanylate Disodium guanylate is a flavour enhancer usually used together with MSG.
  • E631 Disodium inosinate Disodium inosinate is a flavour enhancer usually used together with MSG.
  • Colour Colours are added to restore colour lost in processing or to make a product look more appealing.
  • Flavouring Flavourings are concentrated aroma preparations that add or intensify a taste.
  • Modified starch Modified starch is starch altered physically, with enzymes or chemically, so that it thickens, gels or survives freezing and heating better than ordinary starch.

Substances rarely used in home kitchens

Refined or extracted in factories, such as syrups made from starch or isolated proteins. The other hallmark of ultra-processed food.

  • Dextrose Dextrose is pure glucose crystallised from starch-derived syrup.
  • Glucose Glucose, usually listed as glucose syrup, is cheap, keeps products moist and stops sugar from crystallising.
  • Maltodextrin Maltodextrin is a white powder made by partly breaking down starch.
4 ingredients that would only make it processed

Kitchen staples like sugar, salt and oil. On their own they make a food processed, not ultra-processed.

  • Meals Products in the category "Meals" are at least group 3.
  • Salt Salt, added for taste and preservation.
  • Starch Starch extracted from cereals or potatoes, used to thicken.
  • Sugar Sugar refined from sugar cane or beet.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 416 noodles

From least to most processed, this one ranks 355th. 73% of the noodles here are ultra-processed.

Ranked by NOVA group, then by the number of ultra-processing signs, additives and ingredients. Our ordering, not part of NOVA.

All 416 noodles, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 0031146039081, last edited 9 August 2026), available under the Open Database License. If something is wrong or the recipe has changed, you can correct it there.
  • Photo: Open Food Facts contributors, CC BY-SA 3.0.
  • The NOVA group is an automated estimate from crowdsourced data: a missing or mistyped ingredient can change it.
  • NOVA measures processing, not nutrition. For nutrition, Open Food Facts gives this product a Nutri-Score of E (from A, best, to E).
  • General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.