BODY: Summer in Japan means one thing for the noodle aisle: cold ramen season is here. On June 1, 2026, Nissin Foods is releasing Raoh Hiyashi Raamen Kaidashi Shio (2-pack), a new entry in its premium Raoh bagged noodle series — and this time, the soup is meant to be mixed with cold water straight from the tap.
The flavor headliner is hotate (scallop) dashi sourced from Hokkaido, blended into a clear shio (salt) base. Scallop dashi is a relatively unusual choice for instant ramen, which typically leans on pork, chicken, or katsuo-bushi. The shellfish umami is supposed to give the broth a clean, briny depth that holds up even when chilled — a tricky balancing act, since cold dulls flavor perception and most hot-ramen broths taste flat once cooled.
GIGAZINE received an advance sample from Nissin and ran it through their kitchen. The preparation skips the usual boiling step for the soup: noodles are cooked and rinsed cold, then the powdered soup base is dissolved directly in cold water and poured over. The whole process takes only marginally longer than making a glass of iced tea.
The 2-pack format slots into the same shelf space as Nissin's other premium Raoh bagged products, which are positioned a step above the company's cheaper Chikin Ramen and Demae Iccho lines. Expect supermarket pricing in the ¥350–¥450 range per pack.
The insider take
Cold ramen (hiyashi chūka and its cousins) is a fixture of Japanese summer convenience-store and supermarket aisles from late May through August, but instant versions have historically been mediocre — the broth science is just harder when you can't rely on heat to carry aromatics. Nissin pushing a scallop-dashi cold shio under the Raoh banner signals they think the category is finally ready for a premium play. If it lands, expect every major noodle maker to follow with their own cold-soup SKUs by next summer; if it flops, it joins the long graveyard of clever-but-niche Japanese convenience foods.
Originally reported by GIGAZINE (Japanese).