Happy Birthday, Momofuku Ando! In celebration of the man who brought the world instant noodles, here are eight things you might not know about him and his invention.

He was originally from Taiwan

Ando was born Go Pek-Hok in 1910 to a wealthy family. He started his own textiles company in Taipei at the tender age of 22, and a year later, in 1933, traveled to Osaka, Japan. There he established another clothing company while studying economics at Ritsumeikan University (overachiever, much?).

He has a lucky first name

"Momofuku" is the Japanese reading of his given name, Pek-Hok (百福), which translates as "100 blessings." (The first character for David Chang's Momofuku, 桃福, sounds the same but means "peach.") As for Ando, that was his wife's surname, which he took on perhaps to fit in more with Japanese society.

His life wasn't all blessings

Despite his name, Ando ran into some misfortune during his professional life. In 1948 he spent two years in jail for tax evasion (although in his biography he claims he provided scholarships for students, considered a form of tax evasion at the time). He was forced into bankruptcy, losing his company, but soon established what would become Nissin Foods.

A food shortage inspired his idea for preserved noodles

After World War II, Japan faced widespread hunger. The Ministry of Health tried to convince people to eat Western-style bread made from wheat flour, but Ando thought noodles would be more familiar and set about creating one with a long shelf life. However, that was easier said than done as he went through months of trial and error.

His wife helped him figure out the key to preserving noodles

It was while watching his wife Masako cook tempura that inspiration finally hit: flash-frying the noodles would remove the moisture, just the way the tempura method did with shrimp and vegetables. These preserved noodles would eventually become Chikin Ramen, Nissin's first instant noodle flavor.

An American grocery buyer helped spark the idea for Cup Noodles

Legend says that it was on a trip to the U.S. that Ando got the idea for his biggest invention. He was meeting with an American grocery buyer when he wanted to demonstrate his noodles. But no bowl or chopsticks were available so the buyer grabbed a Styrofoam coffee cup, broke the noodles in half, poured hot water over them, and ate them with a fork. The rest is Cup Noodles history.

Ando was 61 when he invented Cup Noodles

And he was 48 when he invented Chikin Ramen, which goes to show it's never too late for greatness!

A J-drama was developed based on the lives of the Andos

Called Manpuku, the Japanese limited series first aired from October 2018 until March 2019. Now it's available for streaming on Apple TV. 

Have a hankering for instant ramen now? Check out everything noodles on our website.