Nissin Cup Noodle Big Mystery Meat Festival

Have you ever heard of “mystery meat” in Nissin Cup Noodles?

The reason why the meat cube in the signature instant ramen of Nissin is called mystery meat is that the company hadn’t announced the detailed ingredients until 2017.

So since the original flavor of the Cup Noodle series was introduced into the market in 1971, the identity of the meat cube had been a mystery for 46 years.

But Nissin unveiled what it was in 2017. According to the official announcement, it is a freeze-dried food consisting of minced pork and vegetables.

Nissin Cup Noodle Big Nazo Niku Matsuri

Since 2016, Nissin has offered this Cup Noodle Big “Nazo Niku Matsuri (謎肉祭: Mystery Meat Festival)” once a year for a limited time only.

This year, the product was released on September 16, and I bought one for this blog article the other day.

Mystery Meat Cubes

In the cup, a lot of mystery meat cubes are scattered on the dried noodle block.

I checked how many meat cubes were contained in the cup. As you can see in the photo, there were about 40 pieces of mystery meat in the container.

Once these freeze-dried meat cubes are rehydrated, they get a distinctive tender texture and add umami to the soup.

Cooking

The cooking of this ramen is the same as other regular Cup Noodles; First, pour boiling water until it reaches the line indicated inside the cup.

Then, close the lid and let the noodles steep for 3 minutes. 

3 minutes later, remove the lid, and you can enjoy the festival food.

Taste 

As for the taste, the broth has a pepper soy sauce flavor and is a little spicy. But the base is the same as that of Nissin Cup Noodle Soy Sauce.

The noodles are soft, of usual Cup Noodles quality, while the mystery meat cubes are tender with juicy umami, making the eater very satisfied.

Nutrition Facts

According to the nutrition facts label, the Nissin Cup Noodle Big Nazo Niku Matsuri instant ramen has 499 kcal and contains 6.6 grams of salt equivalents (Noodles and Toppings: 3.2 g, Broth: 3.4 g).

Ingredients 

Lastly, here is the ingredient list for your reference.