It's a question nearly as old as ramen. Or, at least, the mass-produced, artificially-flavored ramen we're used to seeing today. Chicken or Beef? Bovine or Fowl? It may not be so simple to crown a victor.

You see, "better" implies an objective value, while most (if not all) of flavor judging is based on opinion, therefore the answer would differ for everyone. So how could we conclusively call one flavor "better" than the other? Well, I had a case of each to experiment with, so I took some notes, and after the highly scientific process of guessing, I had a few competencies for our flavors to be tested upon:

1. Which holds up better if left to cool too long?
2. Which sells more units worldwide?
3. Which flavoring is healthier?
4. Which is more soluble?

So I set up experiments in my kitchen. For starters, I tested the solubility of the powdered mixes. I took two water bottles of equal volume and emptied a packet of beef into one and chicken into the other. I capped them and shook them an equal amount of time, then set them on the counter to settle, noting that at first glance the beef powder seemed to have mixed better: it's color was more consistent in the liquid, and there were fewer visible sedimentary specks. I left them for two hours, to concentrate on my other experiment. I boiled the noodles of both packages together, and then added the flavor separately in the bowl. Like the previous experiment, I let them sit and moved on.

Then for some research, I looked at the nutritional info for both packets. One serving of the Beef flavor weighed in at 190 calories, 70 of which come from fat, 4g saturated fat, 780mg sodium, and 1g sugar. The Chicken came to the same in all areas except one: 820mg sodium. While you may think that's no big deal, realize that sodium, the essential mineral of salt, contributes to more than 250,000 heart attacks each year in the US, and almost 70% of the population is eating two to three times the healthy limit every day, and even the lower amount in Beef is half your daily value by itself. So our first confirmed check mark is in the Beef column, being better for you with slightly less sodium.

I couldn't find the sales figures for the two flavors, so I polled the employees at two local supermarkets to find that, at least in my town, Chicken outsells Beef by nearly double. So as far as I can conclude on that one, Chicken has tied it up with Beef. Well, for the sake of this it is, but I think as

• 1
• 2
• next page >>

---

Add your voice

Know something about What is a better ramen flavor, chicken or beef??
We want to hear your view. Write now!