Westbridge Foods-owned ready-meal brand Kitchen Joy has unveiled a range of frozen noodle dishes.
Available in Tesco from 7 September, Noodle Shop draws inspiration from popular noodle dishes found across East and Southeast Asia and can be microwaved from frozen in just eight minutes.
It comprises Crispy Chilli Oil Biang Biang Noodles, Khao Soi Chicken Noodles, Garlic & Soy Prawn Wonton Noodles and Chicken Pho Noodles (rsp: £3.75/310-350g).
Crispy Chilli Oil Biang Biang noodles features “wide-cut” Biang Biang belt noodles with tender aubergine and bok choi, while Khao Soi Chicken Noodles combines noodles, chicken and vegetables in a “rich, coconut curry sauce”.
Chicken Pho pairs rice noodles, chicken and vegetables with a “fragrant broth infused with warming spices”.
Rounding out the range, Prawn Wonton Garlic & Soy Noodles features prawn wontons, vegetables and noodles in a “savoury garlic and soy sauce”.
The products were the first branded frozen noodle ready meals on the market, and Chicken Pho was the first chilled or frozen pho ready meal, Kitchen Joy claimed.
They were designed to tap growing interest in noodle-style dishes on social media, it added, pointing to a 2,250% uplift in searches for ‘belt-noodles’ online in the last 12 months [Google Trends UK data].
“The frozen category has evolved significantly in recent years and shoppers are increasingly looking for products that combine convenience with genuinely exciting food experiences,” said Christa Bloom-Burrows, product & marketing director at Westbridge Foods. “Noodle Shop is our most ambitious innovation to date. We’ve taken inspiration from some of the world’s most loved noodle dishes and developed products that deliver that flavour from frozen.”
“We’re especially excited to introduce products such as Chicken Pho and Biang Biang Belt Noodles, which push the boundaries of what shoppers typically expect to find in frozen. As a brand, we’re committed to challenging category norms and helping bring new consumers into the frozen aisle.”
To support the new launch, Kitchen Joy will roll out a “brand activation programme” throughout September and October, designed to drive awareness, trial and category engagement.
The expansion comes less than two years after Kitchen Joy debuted with a range of frozen ready-meals packaged in Asian takeaway-style cube containers.
Kitchen Joy’s Chicken Panang Curry with Jasmine Rice won gold at The Grocer’s New Product & Packaging Awards last year, with judges praising the ‘heat and eat’ packaging and “authentic feel”.
The Cube range, stocked in Tesco, Morrisons, Iceland and Ocado, has recently landed new listings in Sainsbury’s and One Stop.
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