Healthy Ramen

First things first, ditch the flavor packet that comes with the ramen. It is loaded full of sodium, preservatives and other chem lab crap you can’t pronounce. Instead you are going to use good old fashioned stock (chicken, vegetable, beef....whatever you fancy). If you are making this vegetarian, make sure to stick to vegetable stock, and if you want to make this vegan use vegetable stock and leave out the egg.

Did you know you can get organic ramen noodles. I found them at Whole Food Market alongside all of the regular ramen. They are made by Koyo www.koyonaturalfoods.com

Miso is fermented soybean paste, it can be purchased in a refrigerated tub (looks like a tub of cream cheese or cottage cheese). Make sure to get the unpasteurized version. It is full of beneficial enzymes, antioxidants and microorganisms. Miso aides in digestion, restores probiotics to the intestines, is a good source of B vitamins (namely vitamin B12 which vegetarians are always in need of), strengthens the immune system, lowers “bad” cholesterol, protects against free radicals and reduces the risk of certain cancers. You only need 2 teaspoons for this recipe but you can add it to any soup you are having in the future to give it a healthy boost. Just make sure to add it at the end of cooking because heating it above boiling temp will kill many of the the beneficial enzymes.

Makes: 1 serving

Preparation time: 5m
Cooking time: 5m
Total time: 15m

Ingredients:

  • 1 spring onion (sliced)
  • 1/2 cup frozen spinach (no need to defrost)
  • 1/4 cup frozen corn (no need to defrost)
  • 1/2 cup carrot (shredded or chopped)
  • 1 small zucchini (chopped)
  • 1 package ramen (single serving)
  • 1 egg (Vegan: omit this)
  • 2 teaspoons miso paste (more or less depending on how much you like it)
  • 1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds (white or black)
  • 2 cups low-sodium vegetable stock

Equipment: saucepan

Instructions:

  1. Place the stock, onion, spinach, corn, carrot and zucchini in a small saucepan. Turn the temp to high and set a timer for 5 minutes.
  2. Crack the egg into a small bowl and whisk with a fork.
  3. After the 5 minute timer goes off the water should be just about ready to start boiling. If it is not, let it come to the boil before moving on. Next, open the ramen, throw out the flavor packet and add the noodles to the saucepan. Set another timer for 4 minutes.
  4. When the second timer goes off use a spoon to swirl the soup in the pan then slowly pour the egg in. It will create ribbons of egg that cook quickly in the hot soup.
  5. As soon as you are finished pouring in the egg remove the soup from the heat and stir in the miso paste.
  6. Pour into a nice big bowl, sprinkle with sesame seeds and enjoy! Watch out, it’s hot!
  7. If you like your ramen spicy feel free to scatter some red pepper flakes on top at the end.