Easy Recipes For Better Instant Ramen
If you’ve ever been to a good ramen shop, you know that nothing compares to the silky-smooth broth, bouncy noodles, and mouthwatering flavors you’ll find there. It’s a borderline magical experience that basic instant ramen recipes, consisting of basically nothing but powdered broth, can’t beat.
But if you don’t have a way to taste those delicious, succulent flavors right now, fear not. There are some secrets these noodle shops have been keeping in the kitchen. Luckily for you, not all of them require years of cooking experience to master.
In fact, some of the key components to an excellent bowl of noodles can be recreated in your own kitchen, using ingredients you can find in your own neighborhood.
These easy instant ramen recipes can elevate a drab bowl of prepackaged noodles to heights that neither you nor this instant noodle’s manufacturer ever dreamed of. But that’s mainly becasue they’re mass produced and meat to be quick. Quick is everywhere from instant coffee to minute rice.
The next time that you’re watching your favorite food documentary and the inspiration hits, check out these recipes. Just be sure to use the best ramen brands so that your ramen can be the best it can be.
It won’t just be better than it used to be. It’ll be unrecognizable.
Shoyu Pork Ramen
This recipe imitates the classic Tokyo-style ramen bowl that’s come to be beloved all over the world. Featuring delicate flavors, fresh vegetables, and hearty pork, it’s sure to satisfy your ramen cravings.
This recipe serves two people.
Recommended Instant Noodle Bases
Nissin Top Ramen Soy Sauce Flavor
Myojo Chukazanmai Soy Sauce Flavor
Ingredients
- 6 oz pork chops
- 2 tsp black pepper
- salt to taste
- 2 tbsp vegetable or peanut oil
- 2 eggs
- ½ cup Mirin, divided
- 1/2 cup soy sauce, divided
- two 3-5 oz packages instant ramen, with flavor packets
- 4 cups water
- ¼ cup dried shiitake mushrooms
- 2 tbsp dry sake
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 inch peeled and grated ginger
- 3 stems scallions
Directions
You’ll want to plan ahead for this recipe a little. At least half an hour before you’re ready to eat, preheat the oven to 400 degrees, for the pork. At the same time, soft boil an egg. It will need to cook for 4-6 minutes at a rolling boil.
When the oven’s preheated, cover the pork in the sesame oil, salt, and pepper, and put it in the oven for 15-25 minutes, or until the internal temperature reaches 145.
Gently make cracks in the surface of the eggshells. You don’t want to break them completely. Then place them in a small container with ¼ cup of the mirin and one tbsp of the soy sauce. If the eggs are not completely submerged, add water until they are.
Put your noodles on to boil. Do not let them boil for longer than a few minutes, unless the package directions say otherwise.
While the water heats, add the dried mushrooms. Add the minced garlic, grated ginger, and the flavor packets.
“Shoyu ramen” is simply ramen that heavily features soy sauce, especially as a finishing ingredient. That’s why, in addition to using soy sauce flavored ramen, you’ll want to use soy sauce in the “tare,” a sauce added just before the ramen is cooked. Make the tare by combining the remaining soy sauce and mirin with the sake, and add it to the pot.
Transfer the finished noodles and broth to two separate bowls. Once your pork has cooked and rested for at least ten minutes, slice it into small strips. Place those on top of the noodles.
Retrieve your eggs from their container and remove the shell. They should have a marbled pattern on their surface that will add to their flavor. Cut each one in half and add them to the surfaces of the bowls. Cut the scallions and sprinkle them on top.
Serve immediately.
Vegan Miso Ramen
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Whether you’ve got vegans to cook for or you’re trying to cut out meat yourself, this is a hearty option that has plenty of flavor.
This recipe serves two people.
Recommended Instant Noodle Bases
Please note: Sapporo Ichiban Miso Flavor may have traces of non-vegan ingredients.
Ingredients
- Two 3-5 oz packages of instant ramen, with flavor packets
- Four cups water
- Two oz enoki mushrooms
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
- Three stems scallions
- One small bunch cilantro
- ½ oz pickled bamboo shoots, thinly sliced
- 1 inch stem ginger, peeled and grated
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- ½ tbsp lime juice
- 1 tsp rice vinegar
- 1 ½ tbsp miso paste
Directions
Sauté the mushrooms briefly in the sesame oil, until they are soft. Set them aside.
Boil the noodles for 3-5 minutes or according to the package directions. As they boil, prep the scallions by trimming the roots and chopping the rest into small pieces, and pick the cilantro leaves from the stems.
Skim a little hot water from the boiling noodles and combine it with the miso, then stir them together until there are no lumps and the mixture is smooth and runny. Add it back into the pot.
Add the flavor packets to your noodles. As soon as they dissolve, add your mushrooms, bamboo shoots, ginger, soy sauce, rice vinegar and lime juice to the broth.
Separate the ramen into two bowls and top with the cilantro and scallions. Serve immediately.
Spicy Chicken Ramen
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This one’s for the ramen heads who love bold and spicy flavors.
While traditional Japanese ramen is not typically spicy, spice has become a delicious, common addition to modern noodle bowls.
Since the flavor of this ramen is so hearty, it’s best served with a thick and substantial noodle like udon.
Note: because of the spicy additions you’ll be adding to the ramen, it’s not recommended you start with a spicy flavor packet.
On the other hand, fortune favors the brave.
This recipe serves two people.
Recommended Instant Noodle Bases
Maruchan Roasted Chicken Flavor
Ingredients
- Two 3-5 oz packages instant ramen, with flavor packets
- 4 cups of water
- 3 large chicken thighs
- 2 tbsp peanut oil
- 2 tsp smoked paprika
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
- 2 oz bok choy, rinsed and chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
- 1 tbsp chili oil
- 1-2 whole dried D’Arbol chilies or 1 tsp chili powder
- 1 tsp coriander powder
- 1 tbsp rice vinegar
- ¼ cup chopped peanuts
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Coat the chicken with peanut oil, paprika, and the salt and pepper. Roast the chicken thighs for 45 minutes, flipping them halfway.
Once the chicken is out of the oven and resting, heat the sesame oil in a pan on medium high heat. Add the garlic and brown it slightly.
Once it’s browned, add the chili powder or whole chilies and the coriander powder to the pan and toast your spices gently. Separate your rested chicken meat from the bone. Turn the heat down to medium low and add your chili oil.
You can make your own chili oil, but if you don’t have the time, your local supermarket or import market most likely carries some. Once it’s added to the pan, add your chicken meat and your bok choy and saute them with the spices until the bok choy is wilted.
Boil your noodles for 3-5 minutes or according to the package directions, and add the flavor packets. Tip your pan full of bok choy and chicken into the pot and add the entirety of the contents to the ramen, including any leftover oil or whole chilies.
Separate the ramen into two bowls and top with chopped peanuts. Serve immediately.
Improve Your Instant Ramen Recipes
While it’s nearly impossible to make restaurant quality ramen out of the instant stuff, it is possible to capture some of the magic you’d find in ramen that was made by a professional. The key to great instant ramen recipes is, above all else, creativity.
With a few tweaks and the addition of fresh meat and vegetables, you can have a delicious dinner budget-friend dinner ready without spending the time and money on rich and traditional broth and noodles.
When cooking’s off the table—some healthy takeout while sipping on your favorite breakfast smoothies could be the way to go when you’re not in the mood for this tasty Japanese meal.
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