She returned to television in 2003, in the highly acclaimed historical telenovela, "Amor real", in a story that was set in the Mexican post-independence period of the mid-19th century. This costume drama registered very high records of audience in Mexico and at the time of its airing on Univision, it occasionally managed to beat leading U.S. networks in the ratings. In 2005, "Amor real" was released on DVD and due to its success, it became the first telenovela to be released with English subtitles. Noriega received various recognitions for her portrayal of the aristocrat, Matilde Peñalver y Beristáin.