Why Are Instant Noodles Always Curly?

There has probably been at least one package of instant noodles in nearly every American kitchen. It may be sitting at the back of a cabinet, hidden behind a box of cereal and a few cans of soup. It may become dinner for a college student running out of money, a worker arriving home after a late shift, or someone standing in front of the refrigerator at midnight after opening it three times and still finding nothing worth eating. Instant noodles do not require much. A little hot water. A pot or a cup. A few minutes of waiting. But because they are so familiar, we rarely stop to ask some obvious questions. Why are the noodles always curly? How can a hard, brittle block become soft again in only a few minutes? And who figured out how to turn a bowl of noodles into a product that could be stored for months, transported around the world, and prepared almost instantly? #noodle #instantnoodles #curlynoodle #3minutes