The quest for healthier instant noodles
The tyranny of 30 & the window of tolerance (Issue #334)
Last week, wrote in Rooted about the quest for healthier instant noodles. The pantry staple, pioneered by Japanese-Taiwanese inventor Momofuku Ando in the 1950s, is a beloved touchstone for home cooks in Asia, and across the globe. Recently, cooks and companies alike have attempted to curb the nutritional downsides of instant noodles. K-pop idols have recommended a double boil that removes some salt and oil; companies have popped up selling protein ramen, “all natural” ramen, and cheffy air-dried noodles, with varying levels of success. (Norah recommends rice-based instant noodles for their nutritional benefits.)
This got me thinking about the ways in which snack companies have recently tried to cash in on consumers’ desires for higher-nutrition, lower-processed foods of late. Recent studies have increased consumers’ fears of ultra-processed foods, a category that includes everything from ramen to Doritos to Weetabix. Combined with our current obsession with all things protein, this has left us with high-protein ramen, Khloé Kardashian’s dubious protein popcorn, and a whole lot of anxiety at the grocery store.
As Norah writes, the nutritional labels on instant ramen and many other foods lack specificity, though it seems possible that soon, the U.S. will follow a handful of other countries by adding warning labels to ultra-processed foods. In this country, ultra-processed foods are heavily relied on in food deserts, where fresh food is less available; getting people to eat healthier foods is a complex combination of cost and access, not merely labeling, as food historian Juneisy Hawkins has written: “Access to fresh food matters, economic status matters, issues in the supply chain matter, systemic problems in the food system matter.”
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🔪 Also today
- America’s is obsessed “30 under 30 lists,” but the focus on 30 as an arbitrary dividing line comes at the cost of devaluing the accomplishments of people later in life; a lot of life’s most important skills — patience, perspective, discernment — can only come with more time and experience. ()
- There’s a tension at the core of AI coding tools: LLMs tend to provide lengthy, complex solutions to user prompts, which also happen to cost more to generate and then iterate on. ()
- Manipulative insincerity — saying “yes” or “good job” just to keep things status quo — can be toxic at work, but it’s also starting to show up in the way LLMs respond to inputs from users. Spotting false praise early is key in either scenario; genuine praise tends to be specific and timely rather than vague, and behavior-oriented rather than personal. ()
🏃♀️ Your daily dose of practical wisdom on pacing yourself
If you’re trying to do something hard or new, you need to know your own “window of tolerance” — a metaphorical opening that expands or shrinks based on how much you can tolerate at any given time. When you’re rested, the window might be wide, but shrinks when you’re under stress; knowing it well means knowing when to push yourself.
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