It’s not often that you can eat a dish created by some of the country’s best chefs for only $5. But that’s exactly what you’ll get on 6 May at .
founder Morgan McGlone, ’s Victor Liong and ’s Steven Clark will spruce up instant noodle cups with local South Australian ingredients like enoki mushrooms, pipis and oxtail.
It’s the second time is organising an event as part of the food festival. Last year, it launched , where you could order anything from to .
For The Noodle Cup, the uni recruited chef , who currently cooks at Sydney's and has done several collaborations with , a South Korean instant noodle brand. McGlone then got his friend on board.
“I think it will be fun. As chefs, we tend to be attracted to the bigger tasting events and working in super nice kitchens, but once in a while, it’s nice to have a bit of a change,” says Liong. “We want to show that cup noodles can be made even more delicious and nutritious with toppings. And that it requires little effort and cost.”
Alongside local chef Steven Clark, they’ll transform Shin Ramen with South Australian ingredients.
Instant noodles offer a convenient platform for adding lots of flavour. Source: Junda Khoo
“You don’t have a lot of room for creation because the ramen does most of the work, but it’s all about what you add to it,” says McGlone. “We’re not trying to compete with real ramen people who do an eight-hour pork stock. We want to have a fun day and show that, with a bit of preparation, you can make these ramen super tasty.”
The noodles
McGlone will be doing dry noodles with crispy fishcakes, fried Spam, spinach, kimchi and spring onion oil, as well as a vegetarian noodle soup with mushrooms, tofu, shiso powder and a soft-boiled egg.
Liong is following a Sichuan theme with , and a hot and sour soup complete with enoki mushrooms and pickled black fungi.
Clark is making three noodle soups. The first is a spicy satay chicken noodle soup with crispy garlic, gai lan and green onion oil; the second is an oxtail broth with soy egg and fermented chilli; and the third is a soup with pipis, prawns and black vinegar chilli oil.
We want to show that cup noodles can be made even more delicious and nutritious with toppings. And that it requires little effort and cost.
The chefs say there might be small changes to the menu, depending on what’s in season that week.
Clark, who champions South Australian produce at the National Wine Centre, says he is especially excited to be cooking with and , as well as , and .
You can do much more with instant noodles than just add the flavour packets. Source: Diem Tran
How chefs eat instant noodles at home
When I asked the three chefs if they enjoy eating instant noodles at home, they responded with a resounding ‘yes!’
“There’s nothing better than rocking up a bit drunk after work at one in the morning, there’s no food around and you go for these noodles,” says Liong, who likes to add and . “When you’re tipsy and tired, you want big flavours.”
Clark likes to add a bit of tom yum paste and an egg to his noodles.
McGlone admits that he doesn’t go for instant noodles as often as he used to, but when he does, he makes it count. “In my fridge, I always have nice kimchi, tofu, eggs and green onions, and Korean fishcakes in the freezer," he says. "I also like it with lots of extra garlic, and a drizzle of toasted Korean sesame oil to balance the spiciness.”
event is on 6 May at The Cloisters at The University of Adelaide. A cup of noodles is $5.
Looking for other affordable Tasting Australia events? There are free cooking demonstrations at the and , as well as a like and . The festival is being held in Adelaide from 29 April to 8 May 2022. You can .
