All saimin establishments have their own, often secret recipe for the soup base, but primarily use kombu and dried shrimp as major ingredients.

Common table condiments mixed in the saimin broth are Chinese hot mustard and soy sauce, added in small quantities according to each individual's taste.

Many local residents of Hawaii also enjoy barbecued teriyaki beef sticks (skewers) or American hamburgers as a side dish.

[1] It is a local comfort food eaten all year round at any time of day for breakfast, lunch, dinner, or as a late-night snack.

It is commonly eaten at sporting events as well, with concession stands offering the hot noodle soup alongside popcorn and nachos.

This common, yet supposed history of saimin's origins is highly debatable, since there are recorded accounts of much racial tension between the various ethnic groups during this time.

During the same time period, ramen was not the widely popular phenomenon in Japan as it is known today[9] and would not be considered a food Japanese immigrants immediately associate with their homeland.

Saimin was first sold as a menu item in the early 1900s from unmarked and unnamed 'saimin wagons'[14] as "an immigrant family's first step into American entrepreneurship".

[16] The first of these saimin stands could be found near the old plantation towns and farms of Hawaii as early as the 1930s, feeding hungry fieldworkers for as little as $0.05 a bowl.

Also at this time several public schools throughout Hawaii began offering saimin as a regular option for students who did not want to eat the scheduled weekly menu.

It was not until the opening of Honolulu Stadium and its addition to the concession stand's menu when saimin became acknowledged as a popular fast food and put under a national spotlight.

"[19] Saimin became less popular in the 1980s and 1990s as the appearance of other exciting noodle soup dishes made their way to Hawaii such as tonkotsu ramen and pho.

[23][24] McDonald's, an American fast-food giant based in Oak Brook, Illinois, became aware of the saimin phenomenon in the Hawaiian islands in the late 1960s.

That night, Sullivan convinced Kroc to expand McDonald's menu for the first time in its corporate history to include a local "ethnic" food.

Sullivan secured deals with Ajinomoto, a local Japanese saimin noodle factory and fishcake supplier, to manufacture a special soup base.

The noodles are also pre-cooked, making it a ready-to-eat food by simply adding hot water with a soup base packaged separately.

Instant saimin has since become a staple in many Hawaii households because of its quick and easy preparation, in addition allowing the consumer to add any toppings they desire.