In today’s fast-paced life, the instant food industry is experiencing an unprecedented wave of transformation. Convenient products such as self-heating hot pots and self-heating rice have quickly captured the market, becoming reliable companions for consumers amid their busy schedules. Meanwhile, traditional condiments like hot pot seasonings and soy sauce have also actively integrated with these emerging instant food products, injecting new vitality into the industry’s development.
Self-heating hot pots once became a "internet-famous" food category thanks to their convenience and unique dining experience. Their heating principle relies on a chemical reaction between substances in the heating pack and water, which releases a large amount of heat in a short time to quickly warm up the ingredients. Around 2018, driven by celebrity endorsements, variety show advertisements, and live-streaming e-commerce, the sales volume of self-heating hot pots surged. Numerous enterprises entered the market, including traditional hot pot brands such as Haidilao and Xiaolongkan, emerging brands like Zihiguo and Moxiaoxian, as well as snack companies such as Bestore and Three Squirrels. However, with market development, self-heating hot pots have also faced challenges such as issues related to pricing, taste, and safety hazards, leading to a gradual slowdown in industry growth.
As another popular product in the instant food sector, self-heating rice has also been continuously evolving. The "rice" in self-heating rice is mostly extruded reprocessed rice made from rice as the raw material, through processes such as grinding, steaming, and pressing. Some products also add nutritional fortifiers or dietary fiber. Its heating principle is similar to that of self-heating hot pots: calcium oxide and other components in the heating pack react with water to generate heat, and the rice can usually be heated to an edible state within 10-15 minutes. Today, self-heating rice continues to innovate in flavors, launching various dual-flavor options such as Kung Pao Chicken and Braised Chicken with Rice to meet consumers’ diverse needs.
While instant food products are constantly innovating, traditional hot pot seasonings and soy sauce are also actively seeking integrated development with instant food. Hot pot seasonings are no longer limited to hot pot restaurants or home dining tables; some brands have begun to launch customized seasoning packs for self-heating hot pots, which not only ensure convenience but also enhance the flavor richness of self-heating hot pots. As an indispensable traditional condiment in cooking, soy sauce is also used in the seasoning of instant noodles and self-heating rice, adding a unique flavor to these instant products. For example, some instant noodle brands have launched signature flavor products based on soy sauce, which are well-received by consumers.
It is worth mentioning that major brands continue to make efforts in product innovation. At the 25th China Convenience Food Conference, Master Kong launched its new product — "He Mian" (Combined Noodles). This product adopts RP Fresh-Locking Technology to achieve an ingredient texture comparable to that of home-cooked meals, perfectly combining "chewy wide noodles + original-cut large meat pieces + crisp and tender vegetables + meat broth". It only takes 4 minutes to make a complete "meal with vegetables, meat, and soup", accurately addressing the pain point of new-generation white-collar workers aged 25-35 who "need to solve meals quickly during overtime but are unwilling to compromise on quality". In addition, through technologies such as aerospace temperature control, He Mian solves problems of traditional instant foods such as unnatural taste and soft meat texture. Its box-type packaging further enhances product quality, opening up a new track for the instant noodle category.
In addition, Yang Zhanggui, a leader in industry innovation, has continuously upgraded its "Fen Mian Cai Dan" (Noodle, Vermicelli, Vegetable, and Egg) series. After insight into young people’s love for spicy flavors, the brand launched hot pot-flavored products, combining vermicelli with noodles, matching hot pot flavors, and adding Yunnan jelly ear (a type of edible fungus). Within one month of its launch, sales reached 2 million barrels. In 2025, it further launched Henan Spicy Soup-flavored Fen Mian Cai Dan, which restores the authentic flavor and has won consumers’ favor. As a pioneer in the non-fried instant ramen category, its "Gao Ren La Mian" (Expert Ramen) adds whole grains and eggs to the noodle cake, restores the texture of restaurant-style ramen through a unique extrusion process, and also builds a rich flavor system to attract young consumer groups.
In terms of channel expansion, the industry is also showing new trends. The popularization of mobile Internet and the rise of the "lazy economy" have promoted the transformation of instant retail from "emergency demand" to a "lifestyle". Master Kong has actively laid out emerging channels, involving snack stores, membership stores, and instant retail (flash warehouses). From January to August 2025, the sales scale of Master Kong’s instant noodle business in the instant retail sector ranked first in the instant noodle category, and it also won the "2025 Golden Flash Award" from Meituan Flash Purchase, becoming the only brand in the instant food industry to receive this honor. Its innovatively developed "home-cooked meal-level" new product He Mian chose to enter the instant retail track for its first launch, selling in flash warehouses to accurately target lunch and dinner consumption scenarios. Through online live broadcasts on Meituan and other channels, it successfully gained popularity among consumer groups.
However, the development of the industry is not without challenges. The safety hazards of self-heating foods have always been a Sword of Damocles hanging over the industry. Heating packs are flammable and explosive items; if consumers use them improperly (such as using them in enclosed spaces or with hot water), it is easy to cause dangers. Although enterprises continue to strengthen product R&D to improve heating pack technology and enhance consumer education on safe use, safety accidents still occur occasionally. In terms of taste, even though instant food products have been continuously improved, there is still a significant gap compared with traditional home-cooked meals. How to further improve the taste quality of instant foods to make them as close as possible to the texture of freshly cooked meals remains a difficult problem that enterprises need to solve urgently.
However, the development of the industry is not without challenges. The safety hazards of self-heating foods have always been a Sword of Damocles hanging over the industry. Heating packs are flammable and explosive items; if consumers use them improperly (such as using them in enclosed spaces or with hot water), it is easy to cause dangers. Although enterprises continue to strengthen product R&D to improve heating pack technology and enhance consumer education on safe use, safety accidents still occur occasionally. In terms of taste, even though instant food products have been continuously improved, there is still a significant gap compared with traditional home-cooked meals. How to further improve the taste quality of instant foods to make them as close as possible to the texture of freshly cooked meals remains a difficult problem that enterprises need to solve urgently.
Looking to the future, the instant food industry will not stop its pace of innovation. As consumers’ awareness of health and nutrition increases, self-heating foods and instant foods will move toward a healthier and more nutritionally balanced direction. For example, increasing the proportion of whole grains and vegetables in products allows consumers to enjoy convenience while ensuring nutritional intake. In the field of technological innovation, it is expected that safer and more efficient heating technologies will be developed to greatly improve the user experience of self-heating foods and completely eliminate safety hazards. The integration of traditional condiments and instant foods will also continue to deepen, creating more novel and unique flavors to meet consumers’ increasingly diverse dietary needs. Standing at a new crossroads of development, the instant food industry will seek a better balance between convenience and deliciousness, safety and health through continuous innovation and in-depth integration, providing consumers with more high-quality choices and opening up a broader market in the fierce market competition.
