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Is Samyang Artificial Spicy Chicken Flavor Stir-Fried Ramen ultra-processed?

4.93 oz Instant noodle soups Sold in Canada, Morocco and Vietnam

Pack of Samyang Artificial Spicy Chicken Flavor Stir-Fried Ramen

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:

  • 45 ingredients
  • 9 additives

Less processed instant noodle soups

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

Wheat Flour, Food Starch-Modified, Palm Oil, Salt, Glycerin, Soybean Oil, Guar Gum, Water, Potassium Carbonate, Riboflavin (Color), Artificial Chicken Flavor Powder (Dextrin, Yeast Extract, Artificial Chicken Seasoning, Artificial Flavor, Salt, Soy Protein Isolate, Wheat Starch, Wheat Gluten), Sugar, Maltodextrin, Mozzarella Cheese (Whey, Dextrin, Enzymes, Annatto (Color)), Yeast Extract, Skim Milk Powder, Milk, Chili Pepper, Monosodium Glutamate, Onion, Garlic, Chili Pepper Seed Oil, Paprika Oleoresin (Color), Butter, Mixed Cheese (Water, Cheddar Cheese, Gouda Cheese, Camembert Cheese), Parsley

Additives: E101 Riboflavin , E101i Riboflavin , E1400 Dextrin , E160c Paprika extract , E412 Guar gum , E422 Glycerol , E501 Potassium carbonates , E501i Potassium carbonate , E621 Monosodium glutamate

As written on the pack

Wheat Flour, Food Starch-Modified, Palm Oil, Salt, Glycerin, Soybean Oil, Guar Gum, Water, Potassium Carbonate, Riboflavin (Color), Artificial Chicken Flavor Powder (Dextrin, Yeast Extract, Artificial Chicken Seasoning, Artificial Flavor, Salt, Soy Protein Isolate, Wheat Starch, Wheat Gluten), Sugar, Maltodextrin, Mozzarella Cheese (Whey, Dextrin, Enzymes, Annatto Extract [Color]), Yeast Extract, Skim Milk Powder, Milk, Chili Pepper Powder, Monosodium Glutamate, Onion, Garlic, Chili Pepper Seed Oil, Paprika Oleoresin (Color), Butter, Mixed Cheese Powder (Water, Cheddar Cheese, Gouda Cheese, Camembert Cheese), Parsley. Contains: Wheat, Soy, Milk.

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.

  • E101 Riboflavin Colours are substances which add or restore colour in a food, and include natural constituents of foods and natural sources which are normally not consumed as foods as such and not normally used as characteristic ingredients of food.
  • E1400 Dextrin Dextrin is starch partly broken down by heat or acid, used as a thickener, binder and coating.
  • E160c Paprika extract Paprika extract is a red-orange colour extracted from paprika peppers.
  • E412 Guar gum Guar gum is a thickener ground from the seeds of the guar plant.
  • E422 Glycerol Glycerol is a sweet-tasting liquid used to keep products moist and soft.
  • E621 Monosodium glutamate Monosodium glutamate (MSG) is the sodium salt of glutamic acid, made by fermentation and used to strengthen savoury taste.
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  • 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.

  • Gluten Wheat gluten, sold as "vital wheat gluten", is the protein washed out of wheat flour.
  • Maltodextrin Maltodextrin is a white powder made by partly breaking down starch.
  • Whey Whey is the liquid left over from cheese making, usually dried into a powder and used as a cheap source of milk solids, protein and lactose.
8 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.
  • Butter Butter, the fat churned from cream.
  • 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.
  • Vegetable oil Vegetable oils are pressed or extracted from seeds, nuts and fruits.
  • Cheese Cheese is milk preserved with salt, cultures and rennet.
  • Milk powder Milk powder is milk with the water evaporated off: a preserved form of a whole food rather than an industrial extract.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 37 instant noodle soups

From least to most processed, this one ranks 34th. 95% of the instant noodle soups 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 37 instant noodle soups, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 8801073114814, last edited 24 September 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.
  • General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.