Though a Taiwan origin Ando moved to Japan after World War II. At the age of 22 he established his own clothing company which produced socks however at the age of 38 he was bankrupt and even was convicted of tax evasion and served two years in jail. Later he started his own salt company- Nissin. Post World War II Ando saw that Japan was suffering from a shortage of food and people were forced to eat bread made of wheat flour. It was then that Ando decided to manufacture noodles by himself as the Ministry’s response was that noodle manufacturing company cannot supply the entire Japan population with noodles. Ando realized that hunger was the most urgent issue faced by people of Japan, he felt a deep desire to help the people of his country.It was not an easy task for Ando and ultimately with many permutations and combinations in 1957 finally he came up with the instant noodles which was his first step to tackle and control the world hunger. Ando discovered that flash frying the Ramen noodle in oil would create minute holes in the noodles which aids in fast cooking of the noodles as soon as it comes in contact with hot water. Hence, Ando invented the instant noodles “Chicken Ramen” which was the first ever made instant noodle and also it was time saving as well as an answer to meet the needs of a large population. Momofuku Ando said: “It took 48 years of my life for me to come up with the idea of instant noodles. Each and every event in the past is connected to the present by invisible threads.” Ando also believed :“People can only be content when there is enough food. Also Peace will come to the world when all its people have enough to eat.” In the year 1971 Ando introduced the Cup Noodles which meant a single container would not only serve as packaging but also as a cooking vessel and serving dish. These two inventions, “Chicken Ramen” and “Cup Noodles” by Momofuku Ando revolutionized culinary culture on a global scale. Ando did not stop at this, his success never stopped him and he always strived to improve the instant noodles until he invented “Space Ram” which could be used by the people in space crafts, Ando believed :“People have to eat no matter where they go, even outer space.” His age was around 94 when he brought up Space Ram. Momofuku Ando actually transformed Japanese cuisine with his instant noodle. His perseverance, determination and a constant desire to reach out to a larger population so that people have enough something to eat is really astounding. Ando died at the age of 96. However, Google paid a homage to this great person by creating his doodle to mark his 105th birthday. Well Momofuku Ando famous quote was “Mankind is noodlekind” seems so true in today’s world.
