I tested 5 brands of instant ramen noodles and found that the spiciest one came out on top

The 2.25-ounce cup of Maruchan Instant Lunch in the roasted chicken flavor cost me just 69 cents.

The roasted chicken flavor gave the soup a more homemade-tasting broth, but I would have liked it to be slightly thicker in consistency.

Overall, I was slightly unimpressed by the soup. However, if it was the only thing on offer for a quick lunch, I definitely wouldn't turn it down.

The 2.29-ounce cup of Tradition instant noodle soup cost me $2.99 at my local Stop & Shop grocery store.

The noodles also had significantly less broth than the other brands that I tried. The focus was definitely more on the noodles, which had a nice texture despite not being able to be picked up with chopsticks.

I didn't get much chicken flavor from Tradition's instant noodle soup, but perhaps that was to be expected in a vegetarian version. Regardless, I enjoyed the soup's flavor.

Still, I couldn't get over the fact that this wasn't really instant ramen — it was chicken noodle soup with ramen noodles.

The 3-ounce packet of Nissin Top Ramen cost me only 55 cents. My store was out of the chicken variety, so I decided to try out the shrimp flavor and see how the flavor, texture, and value compared to the chicken ones I tried.

Preparing these noodles involved boiling the water and cooking the noodles and flavor packet in a pot on the stove. It definitely took the most time and utensils to make these noodles, as opposed to simply pouring boiling water into a cup.

When it comes to making instant ramen, I really don't want to have to do dishes afterwards.

I thought this kind would be delicious if jazzed up with egg, ground meat, green onion, or other toppings, even despite the advertised shrimp flavor. Overall, the noodles were just a little lackluster on their own — and a little more effort than they were worth.

Read more: 14 instant ramen hacks that will make it taste even better

The 2.25-ounce cup of Nissin Cup Noodles cost me 89 cents.

Read more: 12 things you probably didn't know about instant ramen noodles

The chicken flavor of the broth was mild at best, but I felt that the Cup Noodles ramen held the flavor slightly better than the Maruchan Instant Lunch noodles.

Cup Noodles are a go-to for a reason and definitely didn't disappoint. However, they didn't blow me out of the water either.

The 3.32-ounce bowl of Nissin Hot and Spicy ramen noodles cost me $1.29.

To prepare, I simply poured tap water into the bowl of noodles and topped it with a shrimp flavor packet, dried vegetable packet, and put it in the microwave.

Before I even dug in, I was impressed that this was the only ramen to include multiple flavor packets.

I'm not going to lie — I can't always handle my spice. However, despite my reservations, I decided to pour in the entire content of the spicy sauce packet.

The ramen immediately looked like something I might order in an actual ramen restaurant. The broth and noodles were both super flavorful, without being too spicy. The perfectly tender noodles stuck to the thick, spicy broth and sopped up all of the delicious flavors in the best way.

Overall, I found this ramen to be super flavorful and perfectly spicy. It also had a fantastic texture between the thicker broth and tender noodles. To cut to the chase, I was blown away.

Not only was this meal super filling and delicious, but it was also very affordable. This is the one instant ramen noodle brand I'll be adding to my grocery list week after week.