Momofuku Goods
Momofuku Goods
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Momofuku Goods -
How David Chang is building the Momofuku Empire
You probably know culinary legend David Chang for elevating New York ramen or for his cooking competitions on Netflix and Hulu.
How about his podcast, chili crunch oil, or guest appearance on the Hot Ones YouTube channel? If all the above are familiar, you’re a true Day One fan.
For those who only heard bits of the story, take a moment to learn about Chang’s delicious Momofuku empire.
Momofuku Goods
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Momofuku Goods -
Momofuku
David Chang had a few detours before landing on a culinary career. His formal education began with a religion degree and an English teacher position in Japan, but he wasn’t happy. He attended New York’s French Culinary Institute against his father’s discouragement, as a former restaurant worker.
Momofuku Noodle Bar
After his formal culinary training, Chang worked in the now-closed Jean-Georges Vongerichten's Mercer Kitchen. Here, Chang felt fulfillment and joy that wasn’t always there in his previous work. But, something was missing. He had the vision for a restaurant with high-quality meals and affordable prices. Thanks to a loan from his dad, Momofuku Noodle Bar opened its doors in 2004.
The first location was in New York’s East Village and has expanded to Columbus Circle and Las Vegas. Momofuku Noodle Bar specializes in barley noodles drenched in savory broth, hand rolls, buns, and crunchy sides like spicy cucumber salad.
The Momofuku restaurant empire
From there, Chang’s gastronomical creations spread to other states, countries, and concepts. For 15 years, he offered a fine dining experience with Momofuku Ko, which shut its doors this October and earned two Michelin stars.
At the height of his expansion, Chang had eateries in Sydney, Toronto, Washington D.C., Los Angeles, and several in Las Vegas and New York. Because of what Chang referred to in a Bon Appetit interview as a “Much different [culinary world] than it was 20 years ago,” all the international and a handful of the US locations have closed shop.
You can still experience his game-changing noodles at the New York or Las Vegas locations or try the elevated Southern California cuisine at Majordomo. It doesn’t matter which coast you are digging into the pork belly buns, because the Momofuku taste and special sauce will follow your cravings.
Changing the game
It’s safe to say ambitions are high over at Momofuku and they reach far beyond the four walls of a restaurant. Alongside dining, Chang’s Majordomo Media produces feel-good food series like Hulu’s mystery cooking competition Secret Chef and Freeform’s upcoming Crissy & Dave Dine Out where Chang and celebrity Crissy Tiegen share a meal with celebs and spill the tea. His company has also released Ugly Delicious on Netflix and the David Chang Show podcast.
Even with several brick-and-mortar closures, Chang found success in 2020 with the release of his Momofuku Goods direct-to-consumer pantry line. These products were made with over a decade of experimentation and perfection. You can choose from chili crunch oils, flavored noodle packets, chocolate, seasoned salts, and Asian cooking liquids like tamari. Inedible gear includes a wooden spoon, tote, kitchen towels, and chopsticks.
Chang had another reason to celebrate this year when Siddhi Capital led funding of $17.5 million for Momofuku Goods. With the investment, the food company plans on growing its reach and introducing new products.
Momofuku Goods
The pantry items let you bring a bit of Momofuku home and replicate some of Chang’s flavors. These aren’t foods he put his name on without much thought; the products are meant to hold up to Chang’s restaurant standards.
Noodles
Since Momofuku Noodle Bar was Chang’s first culinary child, it only makes sense to sell them with the brand. There are currently five noodle flavors: soy and scallion, sweet & spicy, tingly chili, spicy soy, and spicy chili. Clearly, Chang isn’t afraid of a little (or a lot) of heat.
Each package has five servings of three-ingredient noodles (wheat, salt, water) that are air-dried and have less fat and more protein than standard ramen. Let’s normalize eating instant noodles 3x a week.
Try the spicy chili for a double dose of kick. The sauce blends oils, spices, veggies, and chilis and wraps it in an eggplant-colored wrapper. If you have a love-hate relationship with spice that leans more on the hate side, try the soy and scallion noodles. They may lack heat but have a punch of flavor with soy sauce, soybean oil, and scallion sauce. Serve with bok choy and a poached egg for Chang-approved ramen.
Chili Crunch
The product that started it all. Momofuku’s iconic Chili Crunch will become your partner in crime for everything. Drizzle it on your noodles, pasta, eggs, burgers, rice dishes, tacos, fries, and ice cream. Yeah, don’t knock it till you try it.
The original’s made from Mexican chilis, grapeseed oil, spices, shallots, and seaweed. Chang loves presenting options so it comes in black truffle, extra hot, and hot honey varieties. The extra hot kicks up the heat with habaneros and practically comes with a warning label. If you don’t want to lose the feeling in your tongue after a meal, hot honey has you covered. It’s a beautiful marriage of sweetness with a touch of heat, much milder and more likely to get you reinvited to dinner parties.
Where to buy it
Ralphs, Target, Whole Foods, and Los Angeles specialty grocery stores carry Momofuku goods. No worries if you’d rather get it delivered. Use the online store locator to find the nearest shop or order online and look out for bundle discounts and free shipping.
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