How to make a gourmet ramen

From its creation in 1958 to its popularity in college dorm rooms today, instant ramen has always been a heavily revered food. The biggest mistake people make when having ramen is following the instructions exactly. You should look at instant ramen like a canvas: a blank template from which you can add so much onto. With just a little bit of preparation and effort, you can make a much tastier (and much healthier) ramen. 

The first step is to prepare your broth.

Start your broth with basic spices like garlic powder, onion powder and coriander. After this base, pick what kind of ramen you want to eat and pick whatever spices fit that flavor. If you are trying for spicy, put in chili flakes, for stronger ramen, try some grated ginger. 

For the base:

• 1 Teaspoon Coriander
• 1 Teaspoon Garlic Powder
• 1 Teaspoon Onion Powder
• 2 Teaspoons of Salt
• 2 Teaspoons of Pepper
• 2 Cups of Broth (Beef, Chicken or Vegetable)

For a spicier Ramen:

• 2 Teaspoons of your favorite chili flakes

For a stronger ramen:

• One thumb of ginger (grated)
• 1 Teaspoon of whole black peppercorns

After your spices are chosen, pick whatever else you want in the broth. It could be mushrooms or a meat of some kind, really just any solid you want to add flavor to your ramen. 

I suggest:

• 1 Teaspoon Sesame Seeds
• 2-3 Slices of Seaweed
• Dried vegetables
• ¼ Cup of Dried Mushrooms
• Any meat you wish to cook in the broth

For a spicier ramen:

• 1 Teaspoon of Sriracha  

For a stronger ramen:

• 1-2 Cloves of Garlic

After you have your spice mix, it is time to cook the noodles. I recommend using regular Maruchan ramen. Drop the noodles into boiling water and cook them for 2-3 minutes. After your ramen is cooked, drain the water and place the noodles and broth base back into the pot. Bring the pot up to temp to make sure the ramen noodles absorb the broth’s flavor. Then place your ramen and broth into a bowl.

After you have the ramen and broth in your bowl, it is time to add toppings as you please. I usually use green onions, but you could try all sorts of things.

I suggest:

• 1-2 Green Onions
• 1-2 Sliced Radishes
• 1 Handful of Fresh Mushrooms
• 3-4 Bok Choy

If you want to get a more elevated ramen, you could also add any meat that you didn’t want to put in the broth at this point. I have used both spam and bacon before. These two meats that wouldn’t give the broth much flavor, but they taste great on top of the noodles. Frying an egg for 1-2 minutes and placing it on top is also a great idea.

I suggest:

• 1 Fried Egg
• ½ Can of SPAM (thinly sliced and pan-fried)
• 2 Slices of bacon (fried and chopped or diced)

After you have your ramen and meat topped with green onions and a fried egg, it is time to enjoy! With just a little bit of preparation, you took a bland five-minute ramen and made it an exquisite ten-minute ramen. That five additional minutes will surely be worth it.