Crafty Ramen, the first brand to bring restaurant-quality frozen ramen to supermarkets and other grocery outlets in North America at scale, is now available across the USA at Target and Kroger stores. The launch puts the product line in nearly 6,400 locations, joining listings at Sprouts Farmers Market, Schnucks, Meijer, Albertsons and Kings/Balducci’s.
Crafty Ramen was founded in Ontario, Canada in 2017 by husband-and-wife Jared and Miki Ferrall (pictured below) after training received at the Yamato School of Ramen in Japan. What began as a 24-seat neighborhood ramen restaurant has grown into a fresh-frozen ramen brand available in thousands of retail freezer aisles in Canada and the United States.
“Throughout our travels in Japan, we learned to make ramen the right way and have never been willing to cut corners on that, whether in the restaurant or in the freezer aisle,” said Jared. “We believe everyone deserves the comfort of a great bowl of ramen without spending hours in the kitchen.
Miki added: “We want to show noodle lovers what frozen ramen can really be: real bone broth, scratch-made noodles and toppings done right, all ready in minutes.”
Crafty Ramen makes every bowl in its own facilities in Ontario. Their noodles are produced in-house daily on Japanese noodle machines, the same process used at their restaurant.
“Crafty Ramen has experienced rapid retail growth, expanding from approximately 150 doors to 6,400 in just four years,” said Khalil Khamis, the company’s chief executive officer. “To date, we have sold more than two million bowls, while scaling production capacity from 2,500 to 55,000-plus bowls per week to support continued growth in North America.”
Crafty Ramen employs an innovative approach to creating a frozen layered “puck” made of real bone broth, scratch-made noodles, natural protein vegetables and toppings together in one complete meal. The bowls can be prepared in minutes on a stovetop or in a microwave-safe bowl. Five frozen varieties (MSRP: $7.99) inspired by dishes served at Crafty Ramen restaurants are available:
• Spicy Chicken Tantanmen: The best selling flavor, featuring sesame chicken broth, topped with Szechuan-braised ground chicken, corn and green onions.
• Brisket Birria: Bold and aromatic frozen ramen boasting birria broth, topped with tender brisket, black beans, white onion, cheese and tomatillo salsa.
• Chicken Shoyu: Lively and invigorating frozen ramen, featuring shoyu broth, topped with ginger-ground chicken, corn, kikurage (wood ear mushrooms), and pickled ginger.
• Spicy Pork Miso: Robust miso frozen ramen boasting spicy miso chicken broth, topped with pork chashu, corn, green onions, and chili crunch.
• Shiitake Pork Shoyu: An homage to the Tokyo roots of ramen cuisine, featuring shoyu broth, topped with pork chashu, shiitake mushrooms, and green onions.
