Have You Tried The Frozen Momos by Musha Musha?

While nothing really beats the flavor or overall experience of eating momos from a street vendor, frozen momos aren’t the worst when you want some at an odd hour. Musha Musha, a new entrant in this aisle with not one, but eight variants. In our Musha Musha Momos review, we tested one from the vegetarian category and the other was Original Chicken. Let’s see how they fared.

Did you know? Musha Musha means ‘munching’ in Japanese. 

The variants we tried and the ratings awarded to them:

What were we looking for when reviewing Musha Musha momos? Flavors and texture were our key parameters. We also observed and recorded the convenience and value for money of this product. 

1. Taste

Freshness and flavors were our key factors. How do these packaged momos taste? Were they fresh? Were they seasoned well? Was there a particularly dominant spice or herb? What is the combination of ingredients used in the stuffing? Any aftertaste?

The flavors of the chutney were also tested. 

2. Texture

Was the proportion of stuffing to casing favorable? Did we get doughy bites? Was the casing thick or thin? If thin, did it break? Were the veggies shredded or were there bits or chunks? 

3. Convenience

Steaming, pan frying, deep-frying or heating in a microwave? What are the possible methods of cooking these momos? Oil, water, what does it call for?

4. Value For Money

For a fair idea, we would not compare these with street cart momos, but other packaged brands. Are Musha Musha momos priced competitively?

5. Other Parameters

The packaging, shelf life, and ingredients were checked in this section. 

The following section holds our detailed experience with Musha Musha momos. 

Price + Packaging

The momos are placed in a tray and further in a pouch pack. There are two sachets of sauces inside. This holds 190 grams (eight pieces) of content and is priced at Rs 150/- The shelf life is nine months. The packaging gets a thumbs up as there were no broken pieces or spilled sauces.

The momos were sealed securely and delivered within 24 hours of placing the order. The main carton also had an ice pack which is a commendable factor, taking into account the climatic conditions here (Delhi NCR).

Main Ingredients

Veggie Momos– Chopped Vegetables (42%) (Cabbage, Onion, Carrot, Spring Onion), Pastry Sheet [Wheat Flour, Water, Wheat Gluten, Common Salt, Emulsifier (INS 471)], Paneer, Edible Vegetable Oil (Sunflower), Red Chilli Sauce, Tomato Sauce, Flavour Enhancer (INS 635), Garlic, Common Salt.

Momo Sauce– Water, Tomato Paste (16%), Red Chili, Sugar, Edible Vegetable Oil (Sunflower), Spices & Condiments, Seasoning, Common Salt, Aroma Booster Seasoning, Vinegar, Soy Sauce, Binder (INS 1422), Flavour Enhancer (INS 635), Thickener (INS 412).

How did we make them?

The pack suggests four ways to heat these momos- pan fry, steam, deep fry, and microwave. We pan fried and microwaved them for our tasting.

Pan fry- we heated up a non-stick pan with two tablespoons of oil, four tablespoons of water, covered the pan, and let it heat for 2-3 minutes. Then we added half a batch of momos and let them fry on a medium heat until the base developed a golden brown surface. At this stage, the pan was covered.

Once done, we took off the lid, let the extra water evaporate while the base turned crispy, and better cooked. 

Microwave- this was relatively easier. We placed the momos in a microwave-safe dish, sprinkled some water over the frozen momos, put on the microwave-safe lid, and let it cook on high for two minutes. 

That’s it, now we dipped them in the sauces and began tasting. 

Aroma + Appearance

As mentioned above, the momos maintained visual consistency and none of them were broken. They emitted a prominent warming aroma of garlic. As for the dip, it had a red hue with notes of chilli, tomato, and garlic. 

Taste + Texture

First things first, these momos were cooked well within the mentioned time frame of five minutes. Our momos had a crisp, golden brown surface. The casing was soft, thin, and desirably chewy. We liked how there were no empty pockets, the stuffing was added generously. Unlike most vegetable momos, this was not heavy on cabbage. It had a healthy mix of carrots, onions, paneer, and cabbage. The stuffing looked vibrant and had a fresh, natural taste. It was seasoned really well, the salt and spice were in a rhythm. 

That said, the flavor was not robust but it was delicious, nonetheless. 

On the other hand, the flavor of the dip was certainly questionable. It was nowhere close the the SUPER spicy street-style momo chutney. It had more sweet and garlicky flavors with hints of tomato-like tang. Not really impressed with this. 

This was our experience with the pan fried momos. When it came to the ones we heated in the microwave, they were not half as good. Despite sprinkling water as suggested, the momos were dry and crusty. The casing became too hard. Therefore, we do not recommend this method. 

Price + Packaging

The overall packaging is quite similar to the Vegetarian variant. This holds eight pieces (190 grams) and is priced at Rs 160/- It has a shelf life of nine months. 

Main Ingredients

Chicken Momos- Chicken Mince (34%), Pastry sheet [Wheat Flour, Water, Wheat Gluten, Common Salt, Emulsifier (INS471)], Onion, Water, Edible Vegetable oil (Sesame), Spring Onion, Wok Seasoning, Soya Sauce, Garlic, Chicken Seasoning, Stabilizer(INS407), Common Salt

Momo Sauce- Water, Tomato paste (16%), Red Chili, Sugar, Edible Vegetable oil (Sunflower), Spices & Condiments, Seasoning, Common Salt, Aroma Booster Seasoning, Vinegar, Soy Sauce, Binder (INS1422), Flavour enhancer (INS635), Thickener (INS412)

This mentions chicken seasoning and wok seasoning. On researching we found that chicken powder is an aroma booster. It replicates the flavors of stock that’s been simmered for hours within seconds. This powder does not have any notes of celery or onions, or other veggies, just plain roasted chicken. 

How did we make them?

Our heating process was similar as the above variant, pan frying and heating in a microwave. 

Though quicker, we do not recommend heating these momos in a microwave as it will dry them out. 

Aroma + Appearance

The aroma of chicken was the most intense, most prominent. It was favorable, but also felt like it is added artificially. Owing to the secure packaging, all momos were intact, none broken, or oddly shaped. 

Taste + Texture

Just like the first variant, the casing was thin and soft. The ratio of stuffing to casing was perfect, zero complaints here. However, the texture of the stuffing was not as appreciable. The chicken felt slightly dry and the greens (onions, spring onions) did not really add much of a bite. 

In terms of seasoning, these were not spicy. The salt was well-rounded. 

Here are some interesting FAQs on Musha Musha Momos.

Quick preparation, maximum convenience, with a decent taste and texture, though frozen cannot be compared with fresh, Mishry had a better-than-average experience with Musha Musha momos. The sauce needs some work. 

Would you give these frozen momos a go?