I learnt quite a bit a bit in university and having African twists to noodles was one.
There is no limit to how you can cook your noodles, and that includes the different ways you can African twist it. I learnt quite a bit a bit in university and having African twists to noodles was one. I know there are a lot of traditional ingredients out there, but this one is truly special.
Group Message:
It is assumed that the average human hates receiving WhatsApp broadcast messages, except those who send them, of course. I received one of those annoying messages in a group chat recently and it detailed the right and wrong way of cooking noodles. I’m not crazy about the thing, but I had to pay attention, especially since I was plotting the most awesome ways to give my next pot of noodles the exotic African twist.
The message pointed out three points noodle lovers had to be wary of:
- The seasoning powder that comes with noodles contains MSG which becomes toxic when cooked.
- Instant noodles are coated with wax, which the body is unable to excrete until four or five days have passed.
The writer of the message started by saying the regular way of making noodles (which is what is found on packs of noodles) is wrong. Apparently, the water used to boil instant noodles should be discarded and replaced, with the seasoning added after the noodles have cooked and been taken off the heat.
Now, I’m embarrassed to say this, but I started making noodles as suggested by the message after I saw it thinking I was somehow doing myself a favour. Then, I decided to do a bit of research. So, it turns out the message is one of the many internet hoaxes and it had actually been circulating since 2007. That was a decade ago!
I found that all the claims made in the post about the toxicity of MSG and noodles being coated with wax were the stuff of internet folklore. This page has the message and explains why its claims are false.
The matter about the wax:
Research has actually been conducted in the past to determine the wax content of noodles and it was found that neither the product itself nor the ingredients list contained wax. Due to the way instant noodles are produced, there is no need to add wax in the first place. And even if noodles did contain some amount of wax, it would not take the body four to five days to expel it from the system.
Lesson to learn:
Do not. I repeat, do not believe ANYTHING you read in a WhatsApp message. Anyone can type anything and start circulating to the world.
How do Koreans cook instant noodles?
In the group chat where I saw the message, there was a light-hearted discussion regarding the noodles matter and one person said he had seen Koreans make their noodles the same way suggested in the message. Then someone else said the Japanese made their noodles like that too. I don’t believe this person had any ‘real’ reason to believe this, but let’s include the statement in our hypotheses.
Again, I turned to Google and searched for how both the Koreans and the Japanese make their noodles. Guess what I found:
They make it the same as Nigerians do; all sorts of ways.
I looked through a few recipes and instant noodles were prepared in a variety of ways, but I didn't find a single one where the water used to cook the noodles was discarded. I even saw a recipe where the chef broke raw egg into the noodles like some Nigerians do. I used to find that nauseating by the way.
Chances are the guy that thought Koreans discard the water used to cook noodles may have seen ONE Korean cook his or her noodles like that. These things are a matter of preference really. It’s like people who prefer to parboil spaghetti versus those who think it’s unnecessary to do so.
African Twist:
There is no limit to how you can cook your noodles, and that includes the different ways you can add an African twist it. I learnt quite a bit in university and African noodles was one. I know there are a lot of traditional ingredients out there, but this one is truly special.
Do you like riddles?
It is yummy when its fresh.
Its flavour is fantastic when it’s dry.
It’s even better when its ground.
What is it?
It’s crayfish!
That’s right. Add a teaspoon or two of ground crayfish to your pot of noodles and bam!
Magic.
That is my African Twist.
Written by Korede Azeez.
Korede (Korayday) Azeez is a cyborg wannabe who hosts the Yoruba Igbo Muslimah podcast, loves fantasy and sci-fi, and dumps weird stories on korayday.wordpress.com. Her hobby is talking to herself.