homemade ramen noodles

it seems that every few days i make the same demand to joe, "we must find a good noodle house around our parts!" mama loves her some noodle bowls. tied with mexican, italian, american, chinese and all other food, japanese food and sushi are my favorite.

and we both know that everybody loves ramen noodles. don't even try to deny it. how many of those forty-six-packages-of-noodles-for-a-dollar did you consume during college? too many to ever want to admit to, i'm sure. and what is oriental flavor? can anyone explain that to me? pork flavor was my jam.

happily, these are not those. they're better. and they're appropriate for a married mother of one to admit to eating. we're grown-ups now, people. here's the recipe in case you're interested. note: my version is vegetarian but you could easily add left over chicken or steak to it and change the type of broth you use to jazz it up. i just used what i had on hand. 

the what

4 cups of low-sodium mushroom or vegetable stock

3 scallions, light green and white parts, with some reserved for garnish

handful of fresh baby spinach

1 cup assorted fresh mushrooms 
(cremini, shitake, and oyster are what i used)

1 package of ramen noodles* 

1 tsp fish sauce

1 tsp oyster sauce

sriracha to taste

1 egg (optional)

1 tsp sesame seeds for garnish

1/2 tsp toasted sesame oil

*discard the flavor package. just throw that shit in the trash. it's gross and holy sodium.

the how

bring your stock to a boil

put your noodles in and cook for about three minutes

then add all your veggies and cook until they're tender and the spinach is wilted

turn the heat down so the stock is at a simmer
add oyster and fish sauce. if you don't have these sauces on hand it's not a deal breaker.

*if you want to add your egg, now is the time. stir your noodles like mad until you create a well in the center of the pot and crack your egg into it. with the heat on low, your egg will poach in the broth until the whites are solid and the yolk is still creamy. it takes about 3-4 minutes.

turn off the heat. 

serve and garnish with sesame seeds, sriracha, and scallions. 

technically, this should serve two people. 

last night, however,

it only served me. 

ka-pow!