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October 7

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Our article suggests that wavy noodles are always instant, but why is this, if that is the case? (Bearing in mind WP:NOTSOURCE.) Surely air-dried, egg, and other non-instant noodles could be made into wavy noodles, too? SerialNumber54129 19:23, 7 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

To disprove the claim, all it takes in one example of wavy noodles that are not instant noodles. That is easy. Yoshio Murata invented a machine to improve the method of creating wavy noodles in 1953. Momofuku Ando invented instant noodles in 1958. It is impossible for all of the wavy noodles from 1953 to be instant if instant noodles were not invented yet. So, this comes down to a semantic argument. What exactly does "wavy noodles" mean and what exactly does "instant noodles" mean? If by wavy noodle you are referring to any noodle with waves in it, such as wavy lasagna pasta sheets, you have a clear example of a noodle that is wavy and not instant. If by instant noodle you are referring to any noodle that is dried and later cooked in boiling water, you are limiting the selection of non-instant to noodles to only fresh non-dried noodles. I have assumed that by wavy noodle, you are reffering to packed ramen noodles, which are wavy so you can pack more into a bag without them breaking as easy and by instant you are again referring to ramen noodles that soften quickly when in boiling water. Even that is a dubious claim in my opinion. I boil ramen for two minutes. I boil angel hair pasta for four minutes. The two minute difference isn't really much to say one is instant and the other is not. 68.187.174.155 (talk) 19:39, 7 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]
It's only Americans that call pasta, noodles, yet what you have with your bolognese is different to what you have with lo or chow mein. The mystery thickens. (Due to added corn starch?!) SerialNumber54129 19:56, 7 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Here is an article about MRI imaging that states, "Loud noises are produced while obtaining images". This is not meant to imply that all loud noises are produced by MRI imaging. Likewise, "Wavy noodles are made in a slow-paced conveyor belt" in a passage about making instant noodles does not imply that all wavy noodles are the result of the instant noodle-making process.  --Lambiam 21:13, 7 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]
What article are you talking about? ←Baseball Bugs What's up, Doc? carrots22:22, 7 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]
[Deleted text from banned user]  Card Zero  (talk) 14:34, 8 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]
per WP:SHOWN, if replies have been made, "they should be struck instead of removed, along with a short explanation following the stricken text or at the bottom of the thread. SerialNumber54129 17:51, 8 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]
On the other hand, WP:RPA. Perhaps I should have used (Personal attack removed).  Card Zero  (talk) 19:30, 8 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Yeah, Baseball bugs me too  :)
Thanks Lambiam I could really do some noodles right now. You know of a brand that is both wavy and not instant? ...Notwithstanding WP:PROMO of course! :) SerialNumber54129 12:38, 8 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]
You probably prefer Soccer to Baseball. ←Baseball Bugs What's up, Doc? carrots17:32, 8 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]
You have to define what you mean by instant. Fresh ramen that has never been dried can't be wavy because the noodles are soft and don't hold a shape. When you dry the noodles, they take on a shape, which may be wavy or curvy or spiral or whatever. Once you dry it, you have to put it in boiling water to soften it again. Dry noodles are commonly called instant noodles, but it is possible that you are claiming a subcategory of dried noodles are instant and the rest of the dried noodles are not instant. 12.116.29.106 (talk) 15:43, 8 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]
To me, the distinction between instant noodles and regular dried noodles/pasta is pretty clear. You add boiling water to instant noodles usually in a disposable foam bowl, and there is no further cooking. You wait three minutes and the meal is done and you can eat it from the container you bought it in, and the water you added creates the sauce. It's a single serving product. With regular dried noodles or pasta, you bring water to a boil in a pot, and then add the noodles/pasta to the pot, and then actively simmer. The thinner the product, the quicker it cooks. Angel hair takes three to four minutes. Egg noodles take five to eight minutes. Penne takes 10 to 13 minutes. Then, you need to drain and add sauce. You can make enough for multiple people. Cullen328 (talk) 21:47, 8 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Not always in a disposable foam bowl. Sometimes you have to supply your own bowl. HiLo48 (talk) 03:12, 13 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]
That is why I said "usually". Cullen328 (talk) 07:35, 15 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]
The cooking time for dry pasta is longer than for fresh pasta (pasta fresca) because it includes time needed to soak the dry pasta. Soaking takes less time for thin dry pasta, which is α main reason the cooking time is less. You can in fact reduce the cooking time for dry pasta by minutes by soaking it in cold water until it is pliable likes before it was dried (but not longer or it will be mushy). Like fresh pasta, pre-soaked dry pasta still needs to be cooked at a temperature high enough to denature the proteins. Instant pasta is pre-cooked and only needs to be soaked and made hot.  --Lambiam 06:26, 9 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]
I like that distinction for this conversation. Instant noodles are pre-cooked. If they are not pre-cooked, they are not instant. So, the question is: Are there noodles that are dried and wavy, but not pre-cooked? As stated in the original answer: There must be because the wavy machine was invented before the pre-cooking machine. 68.187.174.155 (talk) 14:27, 9 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Where did the OP define what article he's talking about? ←Baseball Bugs What's up, Doc? carrots00:36, 10 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]
In the question, he linked to instant noodles which includes, "... the characteristic wavy form also differentiates instant noodles from other common noodles, such as udon or flat noodles." It is possible read that to imply that wavy=instant. 68.187.174.155 (talk) 11:58, 10 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]