Real World Ramen

Let's be honest - ramen noodles are a part of any household and actually have a lot of other uses aside from the standard soup recipe printed on the back.  Now, this isn't about those uses but about how you can make some really tasty soup with relatively few ingredients and time involved.  Ramen is simple and relatively good on its own but now that I've had it spruced up, I can't go back.  I know there are places you can actually go out for ramen and plenty of places to find recipes online so lets just add another to it. 


 First, here is a user submitted recipe from a good friend of mine, Edie.


Step 1: Boil the water - use a teapot, don't use a regular pot - who are you kidding?
Step 2: Pour water into the ramen.
Step 3: Wait 3 mins.
Step 4: Gourmet!

*~*~MASTER CHEF~*~*

That is, without a doubt, the most straight forward way to make ramen.  I laugh every time I read this because she really can't cook (ramen and pizza are her diet) and I just picture her making this with a teapot and I laugh harder.  There really are some simple steps and ingredients you can use to spice it up - almost all of which you should have on hand. For these recipes I used 2 basic flavors: Pork and Chicken.  You want to start with "good quality ramen" (I know, I know.  Is there even such a thing?) so opt for Maruchan over Nissin.  Another thing to note is how easy it is to make a meal out of this.  If you have some ingredients (leftover chicken, shrimp, etc) its easy to skimp on one part of the meal and make up for it in another.


Garlic Pepper Chicken Ramen


 You will need:


- 1 packet chicken ramen
- 2 large cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tbsp minced white onion
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1 green onion, sliced
- 2 cups chicken stock
- 1 pinch cumin


In a small sauce pan, pour 2 cups stock, garlic, pepper and cumin and turn burner to high.  Just as bubbles are starting to form at the bottom of the pan, pour in the seasoning pouch for the Chicken flavor and whisk with a fork. Dump in the dried noodles and lower heat to medium.  Allow to boil for 2 minutes, breaking up noodles as they soften, and then turn burner off.  Put half your green onion in your serving bowl and pour in ramen, then top with the remaining onions.

You really can add any vegetable you want to your ramen, just be sure to add it in before everything starts to boil and make sure its cut relatively small since you only have a short cooking time.

The reason I use chicken stock in this is because it ups the flavor by a lot and takes away some of that weird sweetness that nearly every standard ramen flavor pack has.  If you plan to buy chicken stock, always go for a low sodium version - no need to make this any less healthy than it already is.

Garlic Pepper Pork Ramen


You will need:


- 1 packet pork ramen
- 2 large cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tbsp minced white onion
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 2 green onions, sliced


Because pork ramen packs don't have that weird sweetness in them, you can go without any sort of stock in this.  Bring your two cups of water along with garlic, onion, pepper and half the green onion just to a boil before adding the flavor packet.  Reduce heat to medium and allow to cook for 2-3 minutes.  Turn off burner and allow ramen to sit until no longer bubbling, then serve and top with green onion.

Spicy Ginger Curry Chicken


You will need:


- 1 packet chicken ramen
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tbsp grated ginger
- 1/2 - 1 tsp spicy curry powder
- 1 cup chicken stock
- 1 cup water
- 1 green onion sliced


Bring your water/stock, ginger, garlic and black pepper to just a boil and add seasoning packet. Add your ramen noodles and lower heat to medium. Once the noodles have softened add your curry powder (as much as you like, really, but a 1/2 of a tsp will give lighter curry flavor as opposed to a full tsp) and mix well.  Allow the liquid to boil out of the pot. Serve warm with green onion garnish.

I will continue to add more to this as I experiment. I'm looking forward to teriyaki shrimp & steakhouse beef.


Update: 5/31/12


Teriyaki Shrimp 


You will need:


- 1 packet shrimp ramen
- 2 - 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 green onion, sliced
- 1 cup shrimp stock (not required but adds more shrimp flavor)
- 1 cup water (2 if omitting the stock)
- 1 tbsp teriyaki sauce
- 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
- 2 tbsp diced white onion
- 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes


Bring your water/stock, garlic, onion, red pepper flakes and black pepper to a light boil. Whisk in your teriyaki sauce and add the sauce packet.  Bring to a full boil and add in your ramen.  Allow to boil 2 - 3 minutes until noodles are tender. Remove from heat and serve with sliced green onion.  If you have any shrimp left over (I reserved some from a previous meal) you can add it to the soup after its removed from heat and allow it to heat through. If the shrimp isn't cooked, add it in when there's about a minute left of boil time.

Enjoy!


Have some ramens that you do?  Leave a message in my gravy boat so I can try it out and add it to the list!

Chinese Enchiladas

I love pot stickers. I like to imagine everyone loves pot stickers because they're just fucking delicious.  If you don't like pot stickers then I suggest you take a moment to sort out your priorities.


I came up with this as a way to make a meal out of an appetizer without having to create each individual little pot sticker because honestly, who has that kind of patience when you're hungry?


For the filling you will need:


-1/2 - 1 lb ground pork sausage (depending on how many you're making)
-5 green onions, sliced
-3 cloves garlic, minced
-1/2 tsp salt
-1/2 tsp pepper
-1/2 tsp sesame oil
-1 tsp soy sauce

For the wrapper you will need:*


- 2 cups flour
-1 cup water, brought to a simmer
-1 tsp salt

For the sauce you will need:


-1 cup soy sauce
-2 cloves garlic, minced
-1/4 - 1/3 cup brown sugar

In a bowl, combine all ingredients for the filling and mix well.  Cover with plastic wrap and set in fridge for up to an hour.

Pour flour into a large bowl and sprinkle with salt. Bring water just to a light boil and slowly pour into the flour, stirring to combine.  Form a ball (careful, it will be hot) in the bowl, cover with a towel and set aside.

In a small sauce pan combine sauce ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce to simmer, stirring occasionally, for about 20 - 15 minutes or until sauce has thickened. Remove from heat.

Take out your meat mixture and let it come to room temperature.

Flour your counter/board/whatever.  Rip off a chunk of dough a little larger than a golf ball and roll it out to the size of a medium tortilla - be careful as it will be very delicate.  It doesn't need to be super thin, either. Place 2 tbsp or so of meat mixture in and brush edges with water.  Seal the edges together. If you notice any cracks, brush some water on and massage it til sealed. When you have used up all of your meat mixture, heat a large skillet to medium-high heat (electric stoves at about a 7ish) and place 4 - 5 of your "enchiladas" in the hot oil and brown for 3 - 5 minutes.  Take a quarter cup of water and pour into skillet and immediately cover with a lid.


Do not remove the lid until the water has boiled out.


Once its been boiled out, gently roll onto side and brown.  Brown each side and let rest 2-3 minutes on paper towels. Serve hot with warm sauce.  Goes great with fried rice!

ENJOY!


*Please note that I have never used wonton skins or anything like that when making these so I don't know how it will turn out.