It always felt like my parents were early adopters to the whole health-food kick of the 1980s. If you weren’t around then… or you weren’t old enough to be scarred by tofu-heavy dinners, you might not understand. Health food in the 1980’s was all about tofu and strange rices. That’s my 6 year old self using the word ‘strange’ to describe what was like just brown or black rice… more toothsome and nutritious and, to my horror, not nearly as buttered as white rice. The saving grace of the 1980s health food epidemic (fast and loose with the vocabulary), is that no one stopped to think that cheese might not be good for us (so we ate a lot of cheese thank goodness), and also… the whole dang saga might have taught me fine, borderline good eating habits. I’m such a troll for complaining.
All of that to say that, really all I wanted- what would have made me feel like a Child Queen- was a 25 cent pack of instant ramen. So salty, carby, satisfying and delicious. How ungrateful is that?
Now is the time when I thank my parents for spending their hard earned money- more than 25 cents of it- on food for our family, and then also let them know that instant ramen is now my guilty pleasure because dang that salty bite is good and I really have to think that they agree somewhere deep down on the inside.
Here’s my homemade + store-bought version of Ramen for dinner inspired by my salty tooth and my maj Tracy.
Here’s what you’ll need for this ramen dinner:
• Vegetables for roasting: things like carrots, zucchini, onions, garlic, mushrooms… think about what vegetables you like roasted and go for it. You’re the boss of you and all those vegetables you bought.
• Chicken stock, or beef or vegetable, or turkey. Turkey stock is my absolute favorite, followed closely by this homemade mushroom stock.
• Instant Ramen Noodles. I used the sort that come in the 25 cent package with a very salty seasoning pack. Seasoning pack aside, the noodles cook quickly and keep their clever curl. They’re familiar and so satisfying to gobble.
• Leftover takeout chopsticks. Essential, really. I knew I had a drawer full of those dang things for a reason.
• Soy sauce (for that umami saltiness), fish sauce (because we all just trust the process), and a troubling amount of chili paste (again, because we trust the very spicy process). This is the kind of dish that is flavorful and spicy… so spicy that you have to keep eating it in order to manage the hot hot hot. Know what I mean? Bring it on.
• Seaweed sprinkles for topping because what is dinner without a damn garnish?
I feel like roasting vegetables is always a worthwhile, satisfying, menagerie of color and flavor.
That’s the second time I’ve used the word menagerie today and both times I think I’ve used it incorrectly. There’s just no stopping me.
Once the vegetables are roasted to brown and softened, it’ll be hard to not to eat the entirety of them with two crab-like pincher fingers straight from the baking tray. If a few of the roasted vegetables survive the binge we’ll add them to the ramen bowls.
This ramen is more noodles that broth (my preferred proportions) with a hard boiled egg, and a very good (almost) handful of crushed dried seaweed.
It’s totally hold-the-bowl-up-to-your-face slurpable and satisfying.
Other equally satisfying Bowls of Food include:
Pan-Seared Salmon with Roasted Vegetables
Baked Eggplant with Creamy Polenta
Thai Beef and Fresh Vegetables
Print
Spicy Roasted Vegetable Ramen
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 6
- Total Time: 16 minutes
Ingredients
- 1/2 of a medium yellow onion, peeled and sliced
- 3 carrots, peeled and sliced into rounds
- 1 green zucchini, sliced into half moons
- 2 handfuls of cremini mushrooms, halved
- 4 cloves of garlic, peeled and smashed
- olive oil + sea salt + black pepper
- 2 packs dried instant ramen noodles, seasoning pack discarded
- 2 cups chicken stock
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 2 teaspoons fish sauce
- 3 teaspoons chili paste sauce (sambal), less if you don’t want it spicy
- 2 hard-boiled eggs, peeled and sliced in half
- seaweed flakes
Instructions
- Place a rack in the upper third of the oven and preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Spread all of the sliced and diced vegetables in a single layer across the sheetpan. Drizzle generously with olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and toss to coat evenly.
- Bake for 15 minutes, remove from the oven and toss the vegetables. Return to the oven and continue roasting until all of the vegetables are soften, sizzling, and beginning to brown, about 15 more minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside.
- To make the ramen, bring a medium pot of water to a boil Add the ramen noodle cubes, and cook until just softened through, about 2 minutes. Drain the boiling water and return the noodles to the pan.
- In a liquid measuring cup stir together chicken broth, soy sauce, fish sauce, and chili paste sauce (sambal). Pour the mixture into the pan over the noodles and heat over low heat to a simmer. Simmer for 3 minutes.
- To serve, divide the noodles and broth between two bowls. Top noodles with roasted vegetables, two egg halves, and seaweed crumbles. Enjoy warm.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 2
30 Responses
Hey! Just spotted an issue with the timings in this recipe – it says up top that it takes 16mins total to cook, but roasting the vegetables alone takes 30 mins!
Thanks for sharing your recipe! Would you know if I can simply replace the butter with oil? I’ve replaced it for other recipes before but never in this part of the recipe (melting butter with chocolate).
I made this tonight and it was so tasty! Such and easy dish but really hits the spot and my husband loved it!
I’ve been on a long quest to find an amazing ramen dish, and this is it. I loved it!
Have made this for dinner twice since you posted the recipe. It is a quick, easy and delicious dish that really satisfies. Hubs wanted 2 eggs the second time, Left out the fish sauce as I am a vegetarian but the soup base was very good anyway. Made it with herbamare, water, soy sauce and spicy harissa sauce as that is what I had on hand. Genius to use packaged Nissan noodles!
My mom was scarred by her own mother’s dabbling in health trends. Specifically: sprinkling everything with bran. We felt like we were super deprived because of the total lack of Lucky Charms, and yet there *were* brown sugar poptarts, so…. The rules were confusing.
As for this ramen, I am 100% on board — sounds delicious!
This looks so yummy! I remember those days of buying 25 cent ramen noodles.
I started in on the “health food” trend early on in life thanks to parents and a grandma who were already on board. It was scary times back then…my life was full of “bird seed-buckwheat muffins” , tapioca bread and rice milk.
Lovely Ramen recipe, I’ll try it out sometime soon!
See the disk of noodles and beer that belly hungry : D
All my favorite dishes, I had liked your site :p
I haven’t tried making my own ramen yet, but you make it seem approachable :)
One of my husband’s best dishes is instant ramen. He sautes a package of Trader Joe’s Beefless Strips with a little BBQ sauce and adds frozen peas, corn, and broccoli, AND the killer sodium packet. I add a heaping spoonful of roasted red chili paste. Best consumed with lots of water (or white wine) to combat sodium overload.
“A troubling amount” of spicy is exactly the right amount;)
Not only was my mom on the health food bandwagon in the late 80’s, I had food allergies. So i ate a lot of millet (UGH) and buckwheat pasta and mung bean noodles. And let’s not forget the bean ice cream my mom developed using chickpeas. Also, carob, anyone? NOT THE SAME AS CHOCOLATE, NOT EVEN CLOSE…
Awwwww, dammit, CAROB! My mom tried so hard to incorporate it into our lives. It was so, so bad. (But chickpea ice cream – oh dear.)
My allergies were identified in Jan ’95; sodium, alcohol, & caffeine, in respective severity. At 15 & in high school, NO pizza, NO “Cool Ranch Doritos,” NO chocolate, & NO bread.
22 years later, I am a chef, specializing in personal diet recipe accommodation.
On occasion & arranged in advance, I sink my teeth into a sausage & mushroom pizza, glass of white wine, & chocolate cake.
I know it’s not the same… But I do like carob! For years I made a carob cake that my friends loved and asked for. It’s been a while, but it was a fine cake! Chickpea ice cream though – no words!
carob IS disgusting!!!
This looks so yummy – I love ramen!
Izzy |https://www.pinchofdelight.com
How would you feel about stirring some miso paste into this broth? Currently have an abundance to use up, and it couldn’t be bad, right? If I add miso, should I leave out the soy and/or fish sauce? Many thanks and happy noodle slurping!
Just finished looking at the online Website of Rizzoli book store in NYC, there’s nothing for Joy Wilson, in the events list for March 20? I also called same on the phone, and the lady advised me to call back in three hours to speak to the manager, because she can’t find anything in her computer about you!
Called at 3pm, and she said everything is good, she just waiting on pictures for newsletter.
Yessss, I’ve been looking for a good ramen recipe! Will definitely have to try this. Thanks Joy!
I was spared peculiar tofu dishes, but boneless skinless chicken breasts were the blight of my childhood. So dry and rubbery! My parents were also sensible enough to keep around ramen packages for snacks (and to this day remain confused when I tell them I went out for ramen for dinner). This ramen looks so easy and deeply satisfying.
I still remember the day my family went back to “unhealty” white flour in the early 1990s. After months of experimenting with the flour mill my parents had bought, my mother thought it would be great to use the self-milled, whole grain flour to make the family’s favorite dish, Käsespätzle (aka a German version of mac’n’cheese with homemade pasta). We sat down around the table, took a bite each, and from that day on, the flour mill moved out of the kitchen and into the basement.
I wouldn’t even say that we have eaten unhealthily ever since, but certainly not following every single health food trend…
Menagerie is a fun word and your use of it is perfect!!!
Making this for dinner tonight ?? Might even be listening to a True
Crimes podcast while I’m at it.
Looks delicious! Gotta love that ramen — so so so much eaten in college– and it makes this look so easy.
Fellow child of the 1980s health food parents here: let’s add to that list of weird foods in OUR house – grainy whole wheat pasta, natural yogurt with fruit ON THE BOTTOM, Knudsen brand flavored sparkling juice, nutritional yeast. My parents were part of a food co-op called, aptly, the ‘John Lennon Memorial Food Co-Op’ – bulk flour was weighed and allocated in our living room. Oh the horrors. Now, I’m all, pass the natural yogurt, but I was terrified of it back then!
I burst out laughing at fruit ON THE BOTTOM, because my god the struggle was real.
And rice cakes? I remember oh so many rice cakes.
loved it very nicely prepared and posted
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