Easy Homemade Soba Noodle Ramen
Ramen Re-make
I have to admit; my family loves ramen. Mark and I actually prefer the spicier, Korean version: shin ramen. Unfortunately, these pre-packaged goodies are full of sodium, fat and who knows what else!
I decide to try my hand at a healthier version of the popular, college student staple. I took inspiration from the only fresh veggies currently thriving in our garden: spinach and scallions.
Even with that blast of ice and rain we had a week ago, these babies survived. You gotta love cold hardy vegetables!
The Stock
My recipe begins with my homemade chicken stock. You can use store bought stock if you want: just grab the kind without the added salt in it. You’ll be adding soy sauce to the stock, so you’ll want to be able to control the amount of salt from the get-go.
The best part of this stock is that you can add as much flavor as you want. If you are a garlic lover, double the garlic. Not too keen on using fresh ginger? Skip it. Customize it you however you like!
About the Noodles
I chose to use soba noodles in my ramen re-make. Traditional ramen noodles are made from wheat , but the prepackaged type are infused with oil and then dried. My goal was to make a healthier version. I decided to go with soba noodles: Japanese buckwheat noodles. You do not have to use soba noodles . If you can not find soba noodles at your local grocery store, go ahead a grab a few packages of the 20 cents ramen noodles and toss the season packet. You may not get to control the noodle quality, but at least you can make a healthier version of the stock.
Serve this delicious ramen re-make on a cold afternoon.
Ingredients
- 8 cups of chicken or vegetable broth
- 1 inch piece of fresh ginger, sliced
- 4 cloves of garlic, smashed
- 1 bunch of scallions, chopped
- 1 bunch of fresh spinach
- 1 cup of shredded carrots
- 2 hard boiled eggs, sliced in half
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 6 oz of dry soba noodles
- 1 tablespoon of oil
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Heat up the broth in a quart pan. Add the cloves of garlic, sliced ginger, and soy sauce to the broth. Bring the broth to a light boil. Let the broth simmer while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.
- In a non stick pan, heat up a tablespoon of oil and add the fresh spinach. Cook for a couple of minutes until wilted. Lightly salt the wilted spinach. Set aside.
- Next, cook the soba noodles to package directions. Once the noodles are done, rinse the noodles under cold water. Set aside.
- Add the cooked soba noodles to a soup bowl. Ladle about two cups of the broth into the bowl. Add the wilted spinach, shredded carrots, chopped scallions and the sliced hard boiled egg on top of the noodles.
- If you like things on the spicy side, try adding a teaspoon or two of garlic, chili sauce or sriracha.
- You can add just about any type of your favorite veggies on top of your soup. Try mushrooms, corn, and other types of fresh greens like kale or pak choy.
This was amazing. Thank you for the inspiration 😀
Didn’t have carrots so I added broccoli instead with coconut aminos instead of soy sauce, and topped with roasted sesame seeds.
It may be crazy sounding but I exchange the ramen noodles for brown rice noodles. It works out nicely in the flavor and texture department. I will look for Soba noodles though. Our local market caters to the foodies coming up from the SF Bay area and may well have them. The perks of being a tourist destination.
Brown rice noodles!! That’s an excellent suggestion. I’ll try that next. Thanks Pamela!