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As mentioned in my IG Stories recently, I’m kicking off a mini series of posts I’m dubbing “Husband Hacks” in honour of Father’s Day. Since we’re not a big gifting family, perhaps this is my way of acknowledging what a great father he is!
My husband is an amazing caretaker to myself and the kids. Part of great caretaking requires feeding those in his care. So, he’s learned to prepare a few very tasty meals over the last couple years. And they are EASY. If they weren’t easy, surely he would not even bother and we would be living off takeout.
So first in our Husband Hacks series is how my husband creates the most delicious ramen noodle bowl…from instant noodles!
Jump to RecipeI am a little embarrassed to admit that we eat these A LOT. It’s not the healthiest meal in the world, but there are worse! Even our 2-year old loves this (we just omit the fresh jalapenos and use a quarter of the seasonings in the packets for him).
What Noodles To Use
For the noodle and soup base, you can use whatever instant noodles packages you have on hand or enjoy.
We’ve tried this recipe with all types. MAMA noodles in any flavour are always a reliably good option. But we think the best instant noodles that balance all the flavours in this recipe are the Nongshim brand Tonkotsu Ramen noodles.
We came upon these by accident.
During the pandemic, my husband has been our family’s exclusive Costco shopper. He is easily tempted into purchasing new and interesting looking items. What drew him to these noodle bowls was the image on the package that has these noodles loaded up with seaweed squares, soft-boiled egg and sliced pork belly.
Guess what? Slow clap for the marketing guys, but these noodles do not come with ANY of those things. HAHAHA! I can’t help but belly laugh at my husband’s gullibleness when it comes to food packaging.
These noodles as prepared exactly according to package instructions are….not good. So it motivated my husband to get innovative and elevate them to the next level.
Key Ingredients To Add
Of all the ingredients used in this recipe, I would say the key ones are sliced double smoked bacon and fresh jalapeno peppers. I personally really enjoy adding an egg to this soup as well, although it doesn’t make a regular appearance. Mainly due to the extra prep time required for it.
If adding an egg, I like it either one of three ways:
- fried omelette style and sliced into thin strips;
- soft boiled and cut in half lengthwise; or
- cracked raw right on top of everything and cooked by pouring boiling water over it.
The type of bacon we use in our soups is a dry cured double smoked bacon. We grab this is bulk from our local Italian Supermarket. The fattier, the better!
Fresh jalapenos are a must have in this soup. Even if you can’t handle anything spicy, I would recommend that you add a small amount to amp the flavouring up a bit.
My husband wanted to show how he dices jalapenos below:
He slices the pepper into strips lengthwise, then chops to get beautifully tiny proportioned pieces.
Cooking Time!
Once all the ingredients are sliced/chopped and thrown on top of the dry instant noodles, pour boiling water over everything JUST to cover the ingredients.
The instructions on the package usually state to let the noodles sit and cook for 4-5 minutes. Our recommendation is to double that time. The longer these noodles get to sit and cook, the softer they become and the more time the flavours have to meld with each other.
In the past, we’ve emptied the seasonings and oils that come in the noodles package on the stovetop before pouring everything over the dry ingredients. But over time, got lazy and think the reward for putting that extra effort in is not totally there. So, we’re back to just boiling water in a kettle with a push of a button!
And that’s it! An easy breakfast, lunch or dinner meal that no one will believe is made from instant noodles, if you present it beautifully in its own soup bowl.
Try it out for yourself and let me know how it works out for you!
Loaded Instant Ramen Noodles
Course: Everyday, Easy CookingCuisine: AsianDifficulty: Easy1
bowl5
minutes8
minutesAn easy way to eat like a gourmand without having to cook like one.
Ingredients
instant noodles package, any flavour or brand will work
1/2 cup sliced double smoked bacon
1/4 of a medium yellow onion, thinly sliced
1 green onion, diced
1/3 of a large fresh jalapeno, diced
1 fresh garlic clove, half of it minced and half thinly sliced
2 heaping tablespoons of kimchi
splash of Tabasco sauce
Directions
- Put water to boil in a kettle.
- Empty package of instant noodles into a large bowl. Include all the seasonings and condiments that come in the package.
- Add all other ingredients into the bowl except for Tabasco sauce.
- Pour water over noodles just enough to cover all ingredients.
- Cover bowl with a large plate and allow to sit and cook for ~5-10 minutes. The longer the noodles sit covered, the softer they will be and the more the flavours will meld together.
- Uncover noodles. Add a splash of Tabasco sauce to taste and enjoy!
Notes
- We have found that using the NongShim brand Tonkotsu ramen noodle bowls produce the best flavour.
