Korea's spiciest soup ramen? Teumsae Ramyun tops a new capsaicin test

Think your ramen is spicy? South Korea's consumer watchdog just put 12 popular hot ramens through the lab, and one soup-style pack came out on top for heat.

What did the test find? 🌶️

The Korea Consumer Agency, the country's state consumer protection body, announced the results on 10 November. It tested seven soup ramens and five stir-fried ones, checking nutrition, safety and more.

Among the soup types, Teumsae Ramyun Ppalgyetteok had the most capsaicinoids, the compounds that make food hot: 650 mg per kilogram.

The agency then mapped all 12 products onto Korea's industrial standard for fried-noodle spiciness. They landed between level 2 (moderately spicy) and level 4 (very spicy). Four hit level 4: Teumsae Ramyun Ppalgyetteok, Shin Ramyun The Red, Samyang Ramyun Spicy and Buldak Bokkeummyeon, the famous fire noodles.

What about the salt?

This is where it gets less fun. One pack of soup ramen contains 1,611 to 2,080 mg of sodium. Stir-fried types have 1,009 to 1,349 mg.

The daily reference value is 2,000 mg. So soup ramen covers 81 to 104% of it, and stir-fried ramen 50 to 67%.

Shin Ramyun The Red had the most sodium. If you drink all the broth, you take in 2,080 mg, or 104% of your daily limit.

The good news: every product met the standards for heavy metals, harmful substances and microbes.

And the price?

Soup ramen costs 684 to 1,300 won per pack. Samyang Ramyun Spicy is the cheapest at 684 won, while Teumsae Ramyun Ppalgyetteok is the priciest at 1,300 won. So the hottest soup ramen is also the most expensive.

Stir-fried ramen runs from 995 to 1,420 won. Shin Ramyun Bokkeummyeon is the bargain at 995 won, and Chamkkae Ramyun Bokkeummyeon, the sesame-flavoured one, is the most expensive at 1,420 won.

If you want less salt, skipping some of the broth is the simple fix.