Knorr Spicy Korean Kimchi Soup
Published
Knorr Spicy Korean Kimchi Soup is an instant powder built mostly on maize starch, noodles and sugar, with only a trace of kimchi. It scores DC5: low on nutrition because of the starchy base, middling on ingredients because of gums, phosphates and flavouring, and at the top of the risk scale because of very high sodium. Best kept for the odd bowl.
Ingredients, decoded
17 listed- Maize Starch
- Noodles (18.4%)
- Refined Wheat Flour (Maida)
- Palm Oil/Palmolein
- Iodised Salt
- Wheat Gluten
- Acidity Regulator (500(ii))
- Texturizer (450(iii))
- Thickener (415)
- Sugar
- #Dehydrated Vegetables
- Onion
- Garlic
- Ginger
- Iodized Salt
- Potassium Chloride
- Dehydrated Cabbage
- Nature Identical Flavouring Substances
- Soya
- Kimchi (0.4%)
- Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein
- Dehydrated Carrot Flakes
- Thickeners (412 & 415)
- Flavour Enhancers (627 & 631)
- Hydrogenated Palm Oil
- Spice Oleoresin
- Spices & Condiments (Chilli (0.5%))
- Acidity Regulator (330)
- Anti Caking Agent (551)
The label gives no sugar figure, so there is nothing to count in teaspoons.
| Energy | 398 kcal |
|---|---|
| Protein | 5.6 g |
| Carbohydrates | 67.1 g |
| Added sugars | 11.1 g |
| Dietary fibre | 4.7 g |
| Total fat | 13.3 g |
| Saturated fat | 2.3 g |
| Trans fat | 0.1 g |
| Cholesterol | 0.1 mg |
| Sodium | 3429 mg |
Think this score is wrong?
What to know about Knorr Spicy Korean Kimchi Soup
A kimchi soup that is mostly starch and salt
A 49 g sachet of instant soup powder that makes four servings in 600 ml of water. It is built from maize starch, noodle pieces (18.4%: refined wheat flour, palm oil, salt, wheat gluten), sugar, dried onion, garlic and ginger, salt and potassium chloride. Cabbage (4.1%), carrot (2%), chilli (0.5%) and kimchi flavouring (0.4%) come further down. It is bought as a quick, spicy, K-drama style dinner bowl.
Per 100 g of powder there are 398 kcal, 5.6 g protein, 11.1 g added sugar and 3,429 mg sodium, which is about 8.6 g of salt. One 12.25 g serve gives roughly 0.7 g protein, 1.4 g added sugar and 420 mg sodium, which the pack prints as 21% of the daily value. The whole pack in one sitting would bring about four-fifths of the day's sodium limit.
The name promises kimchi, and the list shows it only as a flavouring at 0.4%. The vegetables are real but a small share beside the starch and noodles. Hydrogenated palm oil is listed with no partly or fully qualifier, so it is scored as a partially hydrogenated oil. CleanPlate scores it DC5.
Why Knorr Spicy Korean Kimchi Soup scores DC5
Nutrition is a D on a starch base with 5.6 g protein per 100 g. Ingredients are a C, held back by gums, phosphates, flavouring and hydrogenated palm oil. Risk is a 5, driven by 3,429 mg sodium per 100 g.
Low nutrient density
- Protein
- 5.6 g
- Fibre
- 4.7 g
- Vitamins and minerals
- None declared
- Energy
- 398 kcal
01 Nutrition density: why D
Protein is 5.6 g per 100 g, about 1.4 g per 100 kcal, and much of it comes from the maize starch and refined wheat rather than from vegetables or pulses. That is low, so the protein earns little credit. Fibre is 4.7 g per 100 g.
No vitamins or minerals are declared, so nothing else lifts the grade. At 398 kcal per 100 g the powder is energy-dense, and the carbohydrate is mostly starch and sugar.
Scored on protein, fibre and twelve vitamins and minerals, against the Codex and FSSAI "source" and "high" levels, per 100 g and per 100 kcal. Protein also has to supply at least 12.5% of the calories to count, and 25% for full credit.
Mixed processing and additives
- Base
- Maize Starch
- Main fat
- Noodles, Palm Oil/Palmo...
- Sweeteners
- Sugar
- Additives
- 6
- Flagged
- Maida, Palm oil
02 Ingredient integrity: why C
Maize starch, noodles and sugar lead, and the kimchi is only a 0.4% flavouring. Cabbage at 4.1% and carrot at 2% are the declared vegetables, and the onion, garlic and ginger have no percentage.
Hydrogenated palm oil has no partly or fully qualifier, so it is scored as a partially hydrogenated oil, and the declared trans fat of 0.1 g is not accepted. The nature-identical flavouring, guar gum (412), xanthan gum (415), diphosphates (450), silicon dioxide (551) and the flavour enhancers 627 and 631 each cost ingredient points. Citric acid (330) and sodium carbonates (500) cost none.
Scored on how processed the ingredients are, which additives are used and why, and whether the label keeps its promises.
Very high risk
- Added sugar
- 11.1 g
- Sodium
- 3429 mg
- Saturated fat
- 2.3 g
- Trans fat
- 0.1 g
03 Load risk: why 5
Sodium is the main driver by far: 3,429 mg per 100 g, which puts the risk grade at the top of the scale. One 12.25 g serve has 420 mg.
Energy at 398 kcal per 100 g adds a good deal more. Added sugar (11.1 g) and saturated fat (2.3 g) are small parts of the number. The risk is scored on the powder per 100 g, not on the diluted soup.
Scored on free sugar, sodium, saturated fat and trans fat, each weighed by how strong the evidence of harm is.
Red flags
- −Red flag: High added sugar (11.1g per 100g)
- −Red flag: High sodium (3429mg per 100g)
- −Red flag: Refined flour (maida) base
- −Red flag: Palm oil listed
Green flags
- +Green flag: Source of fibre
Does Knorr Spicy Korean Kimchi Soup live up to its claims?
The no-preservatives claim holds. The kimchi is a 0.4% flavouring, the real vegetables are a small share, and the 40 kcal per serve on the front does not match the per-100 g figure.
- Product namePartly true
“Spicy Korean Kimchi”
Kimchi appears only inside the nature-identical flavouring, at 0.4%. Chilli is 0.5%, and starch and noodles make up most of the powder.
- On the packBe careful
“With 100% Real Vegetables”
The vegetables are real, but cabbage is 4.1% and carrot 2%, with onion, garlic and ginger undeclared. Noodles at 18.4% are a bigger share than all of them.
- On the packHolds
“No added preservatives”
No preservative is listed. The acidity regulators, gums, flavour enhancers and anti-caking agent are additives, but not preservatives.
- On the packBe careful
“40 kcal per serve”
The front prints 40 kcal for a 12.25 g serve, but the 398 kcal per 100 g works out to about 49 kcal for that serve. The same serve has 420 mg sodium, 21% of the daily value.
What's in Knorr Spicy Korean Kimchi Soup?
Maize starch, noodles and sugar lead the list. Watch the salt, the hydrogenated palm oil and the gums and flavour enhancers.
The ingredient list, read for you
Maize starch comes first, then noodles at 18.4% (refined wheat flour, palm oil, salt, wheat gluten and texture aids), then sugar. Dried onion, garlic and ginger, salt and potassium chloride give the savoury base, with cabbage at 4.1% and carrot at 2% as the visible vegetables.
The kimchi taste comes from a nature-identical flavouring (0.4% kimchi), helped by hydrolysed vegetable protein, flavour enhancers 627 and 631, spice oleoresin and chilli at 0.5%. Guar and xanthan gums thicken it, and hydrogenated palm oil adds fat.
Ingredients to watch
- SodiumConcern
3,429 mg per 100 g of powder, about 8.6 g of salt. One 12.25 g serve has 420 mg, and the whole pack about 1,680 mg.
- Hydrogenated palm oil (type not stated)Concern
Listed with no partly or fully qualifier, so it is scored as a partially hydrogenated oil and costs ingredient points. Trans fat is declared at 0.1 g per 100 g.
- Gums, phosphates and flavour enhancersWorth watching
Guar gum, xanthan gum, diphosphates (450), silicon dioxide, flavour enhancers 627 and 631 and nature-identical flavouring all cost ingredient points.
- Added sugarWorth watching
11.1 g per 100 g of powder, about 1.4 g per serve, and sugar is third in the list.
- No preservativesFine
None is listed, which matches the pack's claim.
What it doesn’t have
- No vitamins or minerals are declared.
- No total is given for the vegetables, and the onion, garlic and ginger have no percentage.
Who should eat Knorr Spicy Korean Kimchi Soup?
Rarely for most adults, and best avoided by children and anyone watching blood pressure, since one serve has 420 mg sodium.
- Most adultsRarely
One serve has 420 mg sodium and the powder has 3,429 mg per 100 g.
- ChildrenAvoid
Hydrogenated fat and very high sodium, with under 1 g protein a serve.
- High blood pressureAvoid
420 mg sodium per serve, about 1,680 mg for the whole pack.
- Weight managementRarely
398 kcal per 100 g of mostly starch, with little protein to fill you up.
Recipes with Knorr Spicy Korean Kimchi Soup
Add vegetables, egg or tofu and use less powder to lift the fibre and protein and cut the salt.
Kimchi soup with extra vegetables
Add sliced mushrooms, spinach or more cabbage, as the pack suggests, to lift the 4.1% cabbage and 2% carrot the list shows.
Egg or tofu kimchi bowl
Stir in a beaten egg or cubed tofu for protein, since a serve of the powder has only about 0.7 g.
Lighter-salt bowl
Use less powder in the same water and add vegetables to fill it out. Sodium from the powder falls in proportion to the amount used.
Knorr Spicy Korean Kimchi Soup: common questions
What is the CleanPlate score of Knorr Spicy Korean Kimchi Soup?
Knorr Spicy Korean Kimchi Soup is an instant powder built mostly on maize starch, noodles and sugar, with only a trace of kimchi. It scores DC5: low on nutrition because of the starchy base, middling on ingredients because of gums, phosphates and flavouring, and at the top of the risk scale because of very high sodium. Best kept for the odd bowl. Nutrition D, ingredients C, load risk 5; nutrition and ingredients run A to E, risk runs 1 to 5, and A and 1 are best.
How many calories and how much protein are in Knorr Spicy Korean Kimchi Soup?
Per 100 g, Knorr Spicy Korean Kimchi Soup has 398 kcal, 5.6 g protein, 67.1 g carbohydrate, 13.3 g fat and 2.3 g saturated fat. One serve (12.25 g powder, one serve (pack serves 4)) has 49 kcal and 0.7 g protein.
What are the ingredients in Knorr Spicy Korean Kimchi Soup?
17 ingredients, in label order: Maize Starch, Noodles (18.4%) (Refined Wheat Flour (Maida), Palm Oil/Palmolein, Iodised Salt, Wheat Gluten, Acidity Regulator (500(ii)), Texturizer (450(iii)), Thickener (415)), Sugar, #Dehydrated Vegetables (Onion, Garlic, Ginger), Iodized Salt, Potassium Chloride, Dehydrated Cabbage, Nature Identical Flavouring Substances (Soya, Kimchi (0.4%)), Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein, Dehydrated Carrot Flakes, Thickeners.... Flagged: Maida (low concern), Palm oil (low concern).
Does Knorr Spicy Korean Kimchi Soup live up to its claims?
4 claims checked: 1 holds, 1 is partly true, 2 need care. "Spicy Korean Kimchi" is partly true: Kimchi appears only inside the nature-identical flavouring, at 0.4%. Chilli is 0.5%, and starch and noodles make up most of the powder. "With 100% Real Vegetables" needs care: The vegetables are real, but cabbage is 4.1% and carrot 2%, with onion, garlic and ginger undeclared. Noodles at 18.4% are a bigger share than all of them.
Who should limit Knorr Spicy Korean Kimchi Soup?
Most adults: rarely. One serve has 420 mg sodium and the powder has 3,429 mg per 100 g. Children: avoid. Hydrogenated fat and very high sodium, with under 1 g protein a serve. High blood pressure: avoid. 420 mg sodium per serve, about 1,680 mg for the whole pack.
How much sugar, salt and saturated fat does Knorr Spicy Korean Kimchi Soup have?
Per 100 g, Knorr Spicy Korean Kimchi Soup has 11.1 g added sugar, 3429 mg sodium (about 8.6 g salt) and 2.3 g saturated fat. The FSSAI and UK FSA "high" lines are 10 g added sugar, 600 mg sodium and 5 g saturated fat per 100 g. It is high in sugar and salt.
Last reviewed October 29, 2026. Scored with the CleanPlate method from the published label. Spotted a mistake? .
Label read on 29 October 2026, from photos of the pack. If the pack has changed since, tell us.
Score history (1)
| Date | Score | Method | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| 29 October 2026 | DC5 | v5.0 | History starts here |
Every change to this score is logged. See corrections and the method changelog.
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