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Lyrics & Translation

[English]

According to the World Instant Noodles

Association, Vietnam topped the global

ranking for instant noodle consumption

in 2024. The instant noodles trivia

report reveals some fascinating insight

about this popular comfort food. In

2024, Vietnam ranked first with an

average of 81 servings eaten per person

per year. In other words, Vietnamese eat

one serving of instant noodles every

four days. In second place is South

Korea with approximately 79 servings

eaten per person per year. Thailand is

in third place with approximately 58

servings per person per year. And in

2024,

123.1 billion servings of instant

noodles were eaten around the world.

Assuming it takes 3 minutes to prepare

each serving, then a total time spent on

preparing noodles last year was

approximately 700,000 years.

Yes. And as someone who enjoys instant

noodles myself, I find this number quite

relatable. And our reporter Kangming,

also a noodle enthusiast, spoke with a

professor to learn more about the

cultural aspect of this everyday

favorite. Let's take a look.

>> Thank you, Professor Alisa Freriedman

for joining our program.

>> Thank you for having me. It's an honor

to be here.

>> Vietnam is among the largest consumers

of instant noodles. So, uh, what does

that tell about the maybe the culture or

the history of of this kind of food in

Vietnam or in other countries as well?

>> Instant noodles, the packs of noodles,

um, to the best of my knowledge began

with a man named Ando in Japan in the

early 1960s. One day he saw his wife

frying tempura, Japanese fried food, and

he thought, "Oh, that's amazing. You

could quick fry and then dehydrate

noodles. But the silly Americans took

the block of noodles and crumbled it up,

put it in a cup and poured water over

it. He thought, "hm, that's

interesting." And he and his team worked

to engineer noodles that you could eat

out of a cup. When I'm in Vietnam, I

love to go to supermarkets and

convenience stores and just look at the

food products. And I was amazed by how

many instant noodles there are in

Vietnam. We have far fewer instant

noodles. I think in the United States,

but uh shelves and shelves of instant

noodles here.

>> What do you think make instant noodle or

cup noodles so symbolic in many Asian

countries?

>> I think when people see cup noodles,

they often think of student days. Like

the days when you're a student being

very busy studying for tests perhaps or

busy with life and you don't you're not

a good cook, you buy noodles.

Noodles flavors have changed too over

the years. The I think the very first

flavors that were marketed in Vietnam

maybe were seafood. The noodles in a cup

from Japan, the first flavors were

seafood and tomyang. In America, for

example, we have shrimp or chicken or

beef, some things that are very American

historically. So, I think they're

iconic. You think of you, think of

travel, think of on the- go.

>> I've heard that recently you had um

maybe a discussion or an exchange with

people in Vietnam about um instant

noodles or cup noodles. Could you share

a little bit about that? We talked about

how instant noodles came to be, for

example, starting as an expensive

product but getting cheaper thanks to

manufacturing techniques. But we also

talked about some practical issues. For

example, about how instant noodles

perhaps might be changing for

sustainability. Um, our discussion was

very lively and it led to some

cross-cultural comparisons across Asia

about different cultures of eating

noodles.

>> And that has been a very eyeopening

conversation with you, Professor Alisa

Freriedman, about a quick meal that we

take for granted maybe.

>> Thank you for joining us.

>> Thank you very much. Now I'm hungry.

>> Just from looking at it makes me hungry

already. And although instant noodles

are tasty and culturally iconic, we

might want to eat them in moderation.

Add veggies or protein, use less

seasoning, and enjoy them as an

occasional treat are also what Professor

Alisa Freriedman suggested.

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
noodles /ˈnuːdəlz/ A2	noun - thin strips of pasta or dough
instant /ˈɪnstənt/ B1	adjective - happening immediately noun - a very short time
Vietnam /viˈɛtnɑːm/ A2	noun - a country in Southeast Asia
consumption /kənˈsʌmpʃən/ B2	noun - the act of using or eating something
servings /ˈsɜːrvɪŋz/ B1	noun - a portion of food for one person
ranked /ræŋkt/ B1	verb - to place in a position in a list
eaten /ˈiːtən/ A1	verb - past participle of eat, to consume food
prepare /prɪˈpɛər/ A2	verb - to make ready for use or eating
enjoys /ɪnˈdʒɔɪz/ A2	verb - to take pleasure in
culture /ˈkʌltʃər/ B1	noun - the customs and beliefs of a society
history /ˈhɪstəri/ A2	noun - the study of past events
food /fuːd/ A1	noun - substances eaten for nourishment
frying /ˈfraɪɪŋ/ B1	verb - cooking in hot oil
dehydrate /diːˈhaɪdreɪt/ C1	verb - to remove water from something
engineer /ˌɛndʒɪˈnɪər/ B2	verb - to design or plan something skillfully
supermarkets /ˈsuːpərmɑːrkɪts/ B1	noun - large stores selling food and household goods
symbolic /sɪmˈbɒlɪk/ C1	adjective - representing something else
student /ˈstuːdnt/ A1	noun - a person who is learning at school or university
flavors /ˈfleɪvərz/ B1	noun - distinct tastes of food
iconic /aɪˈkɒnɪk/ C1	adjective - widely recognized and admired

Key Grammar Structures

• According to the World Instant Noodles Association, Vietnam topped the global ranking for instant noodle consumption in 2024.

  ➔ Simple Past

  ➔ "topped" is the simple past form showing a completed action in the past.

• In 2024, Vietnam ranked first with an average of 81 servings eaten per person per year.

  ➔ Simple Past (passive construction with past participle)

  ➔ "ranked" is a simple past verb, and "eaten" is a past participle used adjectivally.

• In other words, Vietnamese eat one serving of instant noodles every four days.

  ➔ Simple Present (habitual action)

  ➔ "eat" is in the simple present to describe a regular, repeated activity.

• Assuming it takes 3 minutes to prepare each serving, then a total time spent on preparing noodles last year was approximately 700,000 years.

  ➔ Conditional clause with present simple (real condition)

  ➔ "Assuming" introduces a condition; "takes" is present simple because the condition is considered factual.

• Thank you, Professor Alisa Freriedman, for joining our program.

  ➔ Gerund after preposition (purpose)

  ➔ "for" + "joining" uses the gerund to express the reason for thanking.

• What does that tell about the maybe the culture or the history of this kind of food in Vietnam or in other countries as well?

  ➔ Subject‑auxiliary inversion in a wh‑question

  ➔ "does" precedes the subject "that" to form a question.

• I think when people see cup noodles, they often think of student days.

  ➔ Zero conditional (habitual present)

  ➔ "when" + present simple "see" and "think" describe a regular situation.

• Add veggies or protein, use less seasoning, and enjoy them as an occasional treat.

  ➔ Imperative mood (multiple commands)

  ➔ "Add", "use" and "enjoy" are base‑form verbs used to give instructions.

• We might want to eat them in moderation.

  ➔ Modal verb + base verb (suggestion)

  ➔ "might" expresses possibility, and "want to eat" uses the base verb after the modal.