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How ramen made the cultural leap from China to Japan is up for debate. Ramen came to Japan anywhere between the 17th and 20th centuries. Early theories about the history of ramen claim a scholar named Shu Shunsui brought the recipe with him when he escaped Manchu rule in China and served as an advisor to feudal lord Tokugawa Mitsukuni. There’s just one problem with this theory, however. Though we can probably assume he did, there is no historical mention of Shunsui actually cooking ramen for Mitsukuni.

A more plausible theory places ramen in Japan around 1910, at a restaurant called Rai-Rai Ken in Tokyo. Rai-Rai Ken Chinese immigrants popularized what was then known as “shina soba” (shina - China and soba - a Japanese noodle dish) Like other blue-collar favorites, shina soba caught on with workers because it was cheap, fast, and filling.

Instant ramen was introduced in Japan in 1958 by inventor Momofuku Ando. He developed a process for flash frying noodles, which gave them a longer shelf life, even exceeding that of frozen noodles. These instant noodles, branded as Chikin Ramen, became ready to eat in just two minutes by adding boiling water. Due to its price and novelty, Chikin Ramen was initially considered a luxury item, as Japanese grocery stores typically sold fresh noodles for one-sixth their price.