Notes about Dry Ramen / Tsukemen / Mazesoba
Mazesoba is mostly about toppings and has little broth, while tsukemen serves noodles and broth separately. In tsukemen, you dip the noodles in the broth as you eat, but in mazesoba, there’s little to no broth, and you mix the various toppings directly with the noodles.
WHAT WE ATE
- Aburi Chicken Mazesoba, 45/100 (23 Mar 2025, Funan)
- Chicken Minced Meat Mazesoba, 45/100 (23 Mar 2025, Funan)
Hototogisu is a well-known Japanese ramen brand with multiple outlets across Singapore, each specializing in different types of ramen and noodle dishes. Rather than offering a single standardized menu, Hototogisu takes a unique approach by tailoring each outlet’s offerings to focus on a specific ramen style.
For example, Konjiki Hototogisu, one of its most famous branches, specializes in clam-based ramen, blending seafood umami with rich tonkotsu for a distinctive flavor. Meanwhile, Maze Soba Hototogisu at Funan Mall focuses on mazesoba, a dry-style ramen where thick noodles are tossed with toppings and sauces instead of being served in broth. Other outlets under the Hototogisu brand may highlight different broth styles or variations, ensuring a diverse ramen experience across their locations.
Aburi Chicken Maze Soba: 45/100
Noodle: 20/35
The noodles are thick, rounded, and springy, as expected from mazesoba-style noodles. They have a firm, chewy texture with a strong bite. However, the flavor is marred by an overpowering alkaline taste that remains noticeable even after being coated with sauce and egg. Instead of blending into the dish, the alkaline flavor dominates, making each bite feel unbalanced.
Sauce and Soup: 10/35
There are three sauce options:
- Black – Shoyu
- Original – Negi Oil
- Red – Spicy (available in three spice levels)
For this bowl, I opted for the original Negi sauce. Unfortunately, the sauce is so light that it’s hard to tell if anything was added at all. There’s a faint eggy note from the mixed-in onsen egg, followed by a mild savory-sweetness, but the flavors fall flat quickly. The strong alkaline taste of the noodles only amplifies the lack of depth, making the entire dish feel incomplete—like something is missing.
The side soup provided is forgettable. It’s extremely plain, with only faint hints of negi, resembling a mildly salty wonton soup but without the wontons.
Meat: 10/20
This dish is essentially a slightly upgraded version of the cheaper minced chicken mazesoba, with the addition of aburi chicken cubes. There are about 5-6 cubes of marinated chicken, which have a pleasantly rich savory-sweet flavor. However, the texture is on the firm side, bordering on dry, and it lacks any noticeable “aburi” smokiness.
The minced chicken, on the other hand, is much better. It has a well-balanced salty marinade with a subtle sweet aftertaste. The flavor is reminiscent of Chinese dumplings, and its tender texture allows it to absorb the sauce well—making it the better protein in this dish.
Topping: 5/10
The toppings are fairly standard:
- Strands of dried seaweed that add a touch of umami.
- Diced negi that provides a bit of sharpness, though it could be more pronounced.
- Onsen egg which lets you coat the noodles with a lip-smacking layer of umami from the egg.
Overall, this mazesoba falls short due to its underwhelming sauce, overpowering alkaline noodles, and lack of standout elements. The minced chicken is the only highlight, but it’s not enough to save the dish. A stronger sauce and better noodle pairing would have made a significant difference.
Chicken Minced Meat Maze Soba: 45/100
Noodle: 20/35
The same noodles are used here—thick, rounded, and springy, with a firm, chewy texture. However, the strong alkaline taste remains a major drawback. Even when coated with sauce and egg, it lingers noticeably, disrupting the balance of flavors rather than blending in.
Sauce and Soup: 10/35
There are three sauce options:
- Black – Shoyu
- Original – Negi Oil
- Red – Spicy (three spice levels)
For this bowl, I opted for the original Negi sauce again, and just like in the Aburi Chicken version, it was so light that it was hard to tell if anything was added at all. There’s a faint eggy note from the mixed-in onsen egg and a mild savory-sweetness, but the flavors fall flat quickly. The strong alkaline taste of the noodles only amplifies the lack of depth, making the dish feel incomplete.
The side soup provided is the same—plain and unremarkable, with only faint hints of negi, resembling a mildly salty wonton soup but without the wontons.
Meat: 10/20
This dish is essentially the same as the Aburi Chicken version but without the chicken cubes. The minced chicken is the better protein here, with a well-balanced salty marinade and a subtle sweet aftertaste. It has a familiar savory taste reminiscent of Chinese dumplings and is tender enough to soak up the sauce well. However, without the added texture of aburi chicken, the dish feels even more one-dimensional.
Topping: 5/10
The same toppings can be found in this version:
- Strands of dried seaweed that add some umami.
- Diced negi that provides a bit of sharpness, though it could be more pronounced.
- Onsen egg, which coats the noodles with a smooth layer of umami but isn’t enough to lift the dish.
With the same core issues as the Aburi Chicken Maze Soba—an underwhelming sauce and overpowering alkaline noodles—this version struggles to stand out. The minced chicken is flavorful, but without a richer sauce to tie everything together, the dish ultimately feels flat.
DISCLAIMER
One man’s meat is another man’s poison.
Find out more about our palettes and how we evaluate our ramen here. 😉
