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Buldak Ramen

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Buldak Ramen
Alternative namesHot Chicken Flavor Noodles
Buldak-bokkeum-myeon
TypeNoodle
Place of originSouth Korea
Created bySamyang Food
Main ingredientsDried or precooked noodle, seasoning

Buldak Ramen[1] (Korean: 불닭볶음면, romanized: buldak-bokkeum-myeon, lit. 'fire chicken stir-fried noodles') is a South Korean brand of instant noodle, produced by Samyang Foods since April 2012.[2]

The ramen is not only popular in Korea but also worldwide and is Samyang's best-selling product, with 4 billion cumulative sales by August 2022.[3] It is considered one of the spiciest instant noodles available in the Korean market, with the original packet having 4,404 Scoville units.

History

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Buldak Hot Chicken Flavor Ramen was first launched in April 2012.[2] It was inspired by a spicy chicken stir-fry dish that Kim Jung-soo, a member of Samyang Foods' sales department, observed while eating lunch at a restaurant in 2010. Kim recalled that the dish had the customers "sweating and fanning their tongues, assailed by both pleasure and pain". When Samyang's food scientists created prototypes for the ramen, she repeatedly told them to make it spicier.[4]

The popularity of the noodles worldwide surged when The Fire Noodle Challenge went viral on YouTube. The challenge was first started by the YouTube Channel "Korean Englishman" in 2014, in which Josh Carrott, the main host of the channel, challenged his friends in the UK to see who could finish the noodles the fastest without drinking any water or beverage to cool the heat down.[5] The popularity of the video led to other YouTubers all around the world to do the same challenge and therefore cause a surge in the noodle's popularity.[6]

Some flavours of noodles were recalled in Denmark in 2024, with the Danish Veterinary and Food Administration stating that a single packet's capsaicin levels are so high that consumers risked "acute poisoning".[7] Later, Denmark authorities reviewed the recall against Samyang Buldak 2x Spicy Hot Chicken and Samyang Buldak Hot Chicken Stew, but maintained the prohibition on Buldak 3x Spicy Hot Chicken.[8]

Foreign imitation products

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With its rising popularity and recognition internationally, Chinese and Japanese food companies have begun to roll out products that mimic Buldak ramen to capitalize on this trend.[9]

In 2021, Samyang, in cooperation with the Korea Food Industry Association (KFIA), filed an intellectual property lawsuit against Chinese companies that produce and distribute its imitated products. Later, in March 2023, a Chinese court admitted that Chinese companies had infringed on intellectual property rights by imitating trademarks and designs in a lawsuit filed by four Korean companies, including Samyang, and ordered them to pay reparations.[9]

In April 2023, Nissin Foods, a Japanese food company, sparked controversy in South Korea by launching a Korean-style stir-fried instant ramen with spicy sauce that mimics a packaging design similar to Samyang's Carbonara Buldak ramen. Afterwards, Samyang reviewed a legal case against Nissin, but decided to give up because the chances of winning the case were slim due to the different product names, and decided to focus more on the brand marketing of its products in the future.[10][11]

Description

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An opened, uncooked packet of Buldak Carbonara Ramen

Buldak ramen is considered one of the spiciest brands of instant noodles available in the Korean market, with the original packet having 4,404 Scoville units.[12] It is a type of 'stir-fried' dry noodle: after boiling, the noodles are drained, and mixed with a spicy sauce and a topping. The product became famous due to the Fire Noodle Challenge, a viral social media challenge where people film themselves eating the sauce pack or bowl of noodles.[13][14]

Hot Chicken Flavor Ramen is Samyang Foods' best-selling product.[15] 4 billion cumulative sales were reached in August 2022,[3] and the brand attained monthly sales of 6 to 7 billion won the following year (5.1 to 5.9 million United States dollars).[16] From the second half of 2016, as exports of this product increased, they became the company's best-seller. In 2017, the Buldak range accounted for more than 85% of Samyang Food's total exports and 55% of total sales. In 2016, when Buldak-bokkeummyeon began to be sold in earnest, Samyang Foods' sales grew 23.5% to 359.3 billion won, followed by a double-digit growth rate in 2017 with a sales of 450 billion won (estimated value).[17] For this reason, Samyang Foods received the '100 Million Dollar Export Tower' at the "54th Trade Day 2017" event.[18]

The mascot of the Hot Chicken Flavor Ramen series is a chicken named "Hochi" (호치).[19]

Types

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Since the release of the original in 2012 and subsequent success, Samyang has released varieties that differ in spice and often flavour from the original to keep up with demand.[20]

English name Korean name Revised Romanization Weight
(g) 		Calories
(kcal) 		SHU Shelf life
(months) 		Launch Date Note
Hot Chicken Flavor Ramen 불닭볶음면 Buldak-bokkeum-myeon 140 530 4,404 6 April, 2012 [21]
Hot Chicken Flavor Ramen 2x Spicy 핵불닭볶음면 Haek-buldak-bokkeum-myeon 140 545 8,808 6 January, 2016 [22]
Hot Chicken Flavor Ramen Cheese 치즈 불닭볶음면 Chijeu-buldak-bokkeum-myeon 140 550 2,323 6 March, 2016 [23]
Hot Chicken Flavor Ramen Ice 쿨 불닭볶음면 Kul-buldak-bokkeum-myeon 135 600 4,404 6 August, 2016 [24]
Hot Chicken Flavor Ramen Stew 불닭볶음탕면 Buldak-bokkeum-tang-myeon 145 540 4,705 6 August, 2016 [25]
Hot Chicken Flavor Ramen Curry 커리 불닭볶음면 Keori-buldak-bokkeum-myeon 140 555 3,810 6 December, 2016 [26]
Hot Chicken Flavor Ramen Mala 마라 불닭볶음면 Mara-buldak-bokkeum-myeon 135 520 2,700 6 October, 2017 [27]
Hot Chicken Flavor Ramen Carbonara 까르보 불닭볶음면 Kkareubo-buldak-bokkeum-myeon 130 550 2,600 6 December, 2017 [28]
Hot Chicken Flavor Ramen Jjajang 짜장 불닭볶음면 Jjajang-buldak-bokkeum-myeon 140 560 1,920 6 March, 2018 [29]
Hot Chicken Flavor Ramen Mini Mini 핵불닭볶음면 Mini-haek-buldak-bokkeum-myeon 93 353 12,000 4 December, 2018 [30]
Hot Chicken Flavor Ramen Yakisoba 야키소바 불닭볶음면 Yakisoba-buldak-bokkeum-myeon 125 520 6 July, 2023 [31]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Buldak Ramen". Samyang. Archived from the original on 2024-06-15. Retrieved 2024-06-13.
  2. ^ a b Ha, Soo-jung (August 2, 2022). "Samyang Foods' Hot Chicken Flavor Ramen sales surpass 4 bn". The Korea Economic Daily. Archived from the original on 2024-06-13. Retrieved 2024-06-13.
  3. ^ a b Moon-hee, Choi (2022-08-02). "Samyang's Hot Chicken Ramen Reaches 4 Billion Cumulative Sales". BusinessKorea. Archived from the original on 2024-06-13. Retrieved 2024-06-13.
  4. ^ Kim, Max (2024-03-05). "How some very spicy noodles saved the company that pioneered Korean ramen". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 2024-06-13. Retrieved 2024-06-13.
  5. ^ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: 런던의 불닭볶음면 도전!! // FIRE NOODLE CHALLENGE!!. YouTube.
  6. ^ Lee, Hakyung Kate (5 December 2018). "Foodies across the globe are taking part in the 'fire noodle challenge'". ABC News. Archived from the original on 7 February 2021. Retrieved 25 May 2021.
  7. ^ Mao, Frances. "Samyang: Denmark recalls Korean ramen for being too spicy". BBC. Archived from the original on 2024-06-12. Retrieved 2024-06-12.
  8. ^ Hyo-jin, Lee (July 10, 2024). "Korea's Buldak spicy noodles return to shelves as Denmark reverses recall". The Korea Times. Archived from the original on July 20, 2024. Retrieved July 28, 2024.
  9. ^ a b Lee Kyung-min (6 June 2023). "Korean food's global popularity leads to copycat products in China, Japan". The Korea Times. Archived from the original on 3 November 2024. Retrieved 3 November 2024.
  10. ^ Lee Jae-lim (12 April 2023). "Consumers make comparisons between Nissin Foods noodles, Samyang ramen". Korea JoongAng Daily. Archived from the original on 3 November 2024. Retrieved 3 November 2024.
  11. ^ Kim Min-seo (30 May 2023). "Imitation controversy followed after a Japanese ramen company launches their new product". The Korea Herald. Archived from the original on 3 November 2024. Retrieved 3 November 2024.
  12. ^ "Super Spicy Korean Noodles (Buldak Bokkeum)". 26 November 2014. Archived from the original on 5 February 2023. Retrieved 13 July 2016.
  13. ^ Annie Jeong (14 March 2016). "Can These BuzzFeed Employees Handle The Fire Noodle Challenge?". Buzzfeed. Archived from the original on 6 April 2017. Retrieved 5 April 2017.
  14. ^ Ysa Singson (6 August 2016). "What Is The 'Fire Noodle Challenge?'". Cosmopolitan Philippines. Archived from the original on 6 April 2017. Retrieved 5 April 2017.
  15. ^ Da-sol, Kim (2019-07-01). "Samyang's bestselling spicy chicken ramen sales top W1tr". The Korea Herald. Archived from the original on 2024-08-31. Retrieved 2024-06-13.
  16. ^ Shin, Jeana (16 January 2015). "Samgyang Food's "Fire Noodles" Become Popular Overseas". Business Korea. Archived from the original on 2015-03-16. Retrieved 2015-09-22.
  17. ^ Yu, ji seung. "[기업분석] 삼양식품, 불닭볶음면 수출로 고성장…해외서 뛴다" MTN, Retrieved 2 February 2018. Archived 2020-09-19 at the Wayback Machine
  18. ^ Yoon, HeeHoon. "'불닭볶음면' 히트친 삼양식품 '1억불 수출의 탑' 수상" ChosunBiz, Retrieved 5 December 2017.
  19. ^ "Hochi and Friends". Samyang. Archived from the original on 2021-04-19. Retrieved 2017-11-05.
  20. ^ "Foodies across the globe are taking part in the 'fire noodle challenge'". ABC News. Archived from the original on 2021-02-07. Retrieved 2022-03-11.
  21. ^ "Hot Chicken Flavor Ramen". Samyang. Archived from the original on 2019-12-30. Retrieved 2017-11-05.
  22. ^ "Extreme Hot Chicken Flavor Ramen". Samyang. Archived from the original on 2019-12-30. Retrieved 2017-11-05.
  23. ^ "Hot Chicken Flavor Ramen Cheese". Samyang. Archived from the original on 2019-12-30. Retrieved 2017-11-05.
  24. ^ "Hot Chicken Flavor Ramen Ice". Samyang. Retrieved 2017-11-05.
  25. ^ "Hot Chicken Flavor Ramen Stew type". Samyang. Archived from the original on 2019-12-30. Retrieved 2017-11-05.
  26. ^ "Hot Chicken Flavor Ramen Curry". Samyang. Archived from the original on 2019-12-30. Retrieved 2017-11-05.
  27. ^ "마라불닭볶음면" [Hot Chicken Flavor Ramen Mala]. Samyang (in Korean). Archived from the original on 2018-01-21. Retrieved 2017-11-05.
  28. ^ "제품 전체보기 | 브랜드 | 삼양식품". www.samyangfoods.com (in Korean). Archived from the original on 2018-03-23. Retrieved 2018-03-24.
  29. ^ "제품 전체보기 | 브랜드 | 삼양식품". www.samyangfoods.com (in Korean). Archived from the original on 2018-03-24. Retrieved 2018-03-24.
  30. ^ "#3047: Samyang Foods 10,000 SHU Hek Buldak Bokkeummyun (Nuclear Fire Noodle/2x) – South Korea". The Ramen Rater. 21 December 2018. Archived from the original on 2019-07-09. Retrieved 2019-07-09.
  31. ^ "제품 전체보기 | 브랜드 | 삼양식품". www.samyangfoods.com (in Korean). Archived from the original on 2024-08-29. Retrieved 2024-06-03.
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