Besides the taste and health aspects, another reason Taiwanese sun-dried noodles have become so trendy is social media.
It is not uncommon for people to take pictures of their noodles - along with unique toppings and garnishes - and share them on Instagram.
Just type in the hashtag #kikinoodles and you get 1,700 posts featuring KiKi noodles topped with everything from luncheon meat and prawns to fatty pork belly and sous vide egg.
Celebrity endorsements help too.
KiKi is endorsed by Taiwanese actress Shu Qi, while Mom's Dry Noodle is promoted by pop star A-lin in Taiwan. As for Jinbo Selection's Soul Spicy Noodles, the recipe was developed by Malaysian Mandopop singer Gary Chaw's Taiwanese influencer wife, Wu Sou-ling.
Noodle fan Annabel Lim, 30, loves eating Taiwanese sun-dried instant noodles because they "do not taste that instant".
The marketing manager has tried all the flavours of KiKi noodles available here and is willing to try other brands too.
"These types of noodles don't have that plastic texture and taste that I get with other instant noodles. They taste like real noodles from a noodle store.
"Some people eat fast food, but these noodles are my go-to supper after a long day at work."
Her only complaint is that they do not come cheap. A bag of five KiKi noodle packs costs $13.70, while the other brands average $11 for a bag of five packs.
She says: "They're yummy, but I cannot have them every day. That would be too expensive."
Oodles of goodness?
MOM'S DRY NOODLE
$10.90 for four packs
The Spicy And Sour flavour comes with three sauce packets: chilli oil, soya sauce and black vinegar. I put in about four-fifths of each packet and the mix worked out well. The noodles were savoury and tart, with a hint of sweetness.
JINBO SELECTION
$15.90 for four packs
The Soul Spicy Noodles come with instructions on how to choose the level of spiciness - put in one-third of the chilli paste for mild, half for medium and the entire packet for very spicy.
For me, the medium spicy level had kick and was good enough - anything more and the heat overwhelms the entire bowl.
KIKI
$13.70 for five packs
Fans of mee kia, or thin egg noodles, would enjoy KiKi's offerings because its noodles are similar.
The aged vinegar hot noodles flavour is as advertised - there is a strong, tangy punch and the heat kicks in fast. Prepare a bowl of soup or glass of water to help douse the fire.
A-SHA
$10.90 for five packs
This is touted as the first brand in Taiwan to introduce "healthier" dried instant noodles. The noodles are springier than most of the other brands sampled.
The A-Sha Mandarin Noodles Original flavour, however, should be eaten soon after cooking. I left a bowl out for five minutes after mixing in the sauce and the noodles clumped together into a ball.
LITTLE COUPLES' Q NOODLES
$10.90 for four packs
The instructions on the back of the bean paste noodle flavour packet say you should cook the noodles for four to five minutes, but it should be closer to seven.
When I cooked them for four minutes, the noodles were still hard, but at seven, they were perfect and had bounce.
The bean paste flavour was too heavy for my colleague, but for me, it was tasty and the sauce coated every strand of the noodles nicely.