The Most Popular Ready-To-Eat Meal Goes To...

As your guide to all things edible in the capital, the Beijinger prides itself on featuring cuisines from around the country and around the globe. Yet, there is one specific area we have barely got our hands around, though it frequently appears on the table of the city's working class. Yes, we're talking about ready-to-eat meals, the savior of those who are too busy to cook, too broke to dine out, or just simply too lazy to be bothered. These affordable, simple-to-make foods have filled the bellies of countless hungry city dwellers and late-night snackers.

With the evolution of technology and our insatiable craving for novel flavors, ready-to-eat meals have changed drastically over the years, from the humble instant noodle and ham sausage that were popular on the slow-speed trains of the 80s and 90s to the self-heating hot pot that allows you to enjoy a nice spicy pot without suffering the awkwardness of eating it alone in public. Even things like meal replacement powder now seem to be able to brush off the long-held “unhealthy’ stigma that has long tainted the name of ready-to-eat meals. 

To have a better understanding of these most familiar strangers in our life, Net Ease compiled research on them and published the result on their Netease Data account (WeChat ID: datablog163). Here, we've translated and analyzed them so that you can peek into this undiscovered region in the Chinese F&B industry, and hopefully find something worth a try along the way.

Whether it's noodles, ramen, rice, dumplings, or porridge, it is easy to see that starch is highly regarded in the minds of Chinese folks. Add a kick from chilies and a couple of spices and plain flour or rice can be endowed with any personality it pleases, meanwhile representing the culture behind them.

Among all of the ready-made meals, the mighty 螺蛳粉 luósī fěn snail noodle has been crowned king among Chinese netizens. Just like stinky tofu, this noodle is known for its unique, pungent smell that can scare off many curious tasters before spoon reaches mouth. If you dare to give it a try, make sure you have good ventilation in your kitchen otherwise your neighbor may think you are heating turds or cooking corpses, both of which are actual stories shared by netizens who attempted to craft this meal.

Even if you ate a bowl of noodles every week for a year, it wouldn't be enough to cover all the major flavors you can find in China. Even for the spicier ones, their fragrance and texture are still quite different from each other. For example, the most talked-about noodle from Chengdu is 甜水面 tián shuǐmiàn sweet water noodles, which are known for their thick, chewy texture and sweet soy sauce flavor with a relatively mild heat compared to other dishes in the Szechuan Province, while the spicy and sour rice noodle from the neighboring province, Chongqing, will sweep your palate with its domineering taste. For people who can’t bear the heat, sweet molten lava buns and savory noodles tossed with scallion oil from Guangzhou and Shanghai respectively will provide a less sweaty experience.

Fads among ready-to-eat food come and go as quickly as internet celebrities on Tiktok, each new wave more eye-catching and mouth-watering than the last. But instant noodles and ham sausages, two timeless classics, still take the top two spots of best selling ready-to-eat food among Meituan users decades after they were invented. We don’t know who came up with the idea to throw the ham sausage into instant noodle soup, but it sure has elevated this humble dish and become a most affordable yet simple joy in life.

Like with many things, there is a generational divide among netizens. If an individual prefers Laba porridge more than any other kind of instant noodle, it is probably safe to say they have a more mature palate. On the other hand, it could simply be down to the fact that their stomachs can’t handle too much spiciness anymore.

Not all companies are equipped with a cafeteria and not all cafeterias will be open late into the night. For hardworking salarymen and salary women, only ready-to-eat meals can save them from starving. Thus, the office is the most common location to consume these quick eats.

Meanwhile, as the temperature continues to drop outside, people need more courage to venture out for a meal. That's why ordering some ready-to-eat food and enjoying it by the heater while streaming your favorite show is a decadent guilty pleasure for people who don’t wanna leave their room.

Despite the popularity ready-to-eat food has gained in China, it is still not the healthiest choice. If you do have to eat it from time to time, try adding some fresh ingredients and go easy on the sauce. Better yet it may be wise to set a New Year's resolution to learn to cook in 2021.

Rather cook for yourself? Try This Stick-to-Your-Ribs Red-Cooked Pork Belly Recipe Fit for Winter Days

Images: 网易数读, the Beijiner, NetEase