They have made a big hit with instant soups but Ramen noodles are not just for soup. You can recognize Ramen noodles easily because they are very curly, long noodles that are dried into a rectangular brick. These noodles boil for 3 minutes and then are ready to serve. They are excellent in soup but can also be added to a wok with sauce, chopped vegetables and meat to make any variety of stir fry dishes. The most distinctive Asian noodles are cellophane noodles also referred to as bean threads.
Cellophane noodles are very thin, string-like noodles that become almost transparent when cooked.
For this reason they are also known as glass noodles or vermicelli noodles. Cellophane noodles are usually stir fried with other ingredients because they do not have much flavor. They are great for picking up the taste of other ingredients and their unique slippery texture adds an exotic element to any Asian dish. This type of noodle also needs to be soaked for about 20 minutes before cooking. You can tell the noodles are done when they become completely clear.