Chicken Ramen Bowls

I have a small ramen obsession. My most favorite "snack" is drained ramen noodles doused in "lite" soy sauce. Preferably eaten with chopsticks. I used to enjoy this snack after school when I was a kid. It is a comfort food for me. The best flight ever for me was on Eva Air, manily because there was an unlimited ramen supply in the back of the plane...you could have it all flight long! I adapted this recipe from my favorite stir fry recipe.  Feel free to add whatever vegetables you have on hand....carrots, mushrooms, onions, zucchini...whatever works!

Chicken Ramen Bowls

2 packages ramen soup
½ cup chicken broth
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
2 teaspoons cornstarch
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite sized pieces
1 bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 head broccoli, cut into bite sized pieces

Bring four cups of water to boil in a saucepan. Discard the seasoning packet from the ramen, then boil the ramen noodles for 3 minutes. Drain and set aside. In a two cup measure, whisk together the broth, soy sauce, vinegar, oyster sauce and cornstarch. Set aside. In a large wok or skillet, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the chicken, bell pepper and broccoli. Sauté for five minutes, until chicken is cooked through. Pour the broth mixture into the pan, heat for a minute more, until thick. Divide the noodles between four bowls, then top with a quarter of the chicken mixture in each bowl. Serve.

Pin It Now!

Pork “Lo Mein” Ramen

I was obsessed with ramen when I was a kid. I would have a bowl nearly every day after school. I would drain the noodles and toss them with La Choy Lite Soy Sauce. It had to be La Choy Lite Soy Sauce, there was no substitution. In college, I learned to make the noodles in the microwave since I didn't have access to a stove. After college, I would come home to my loft nearly every day for lunch. One of my go tos for lunch was a grilled cheese sandwich and a bowl of beef ramen soup, dubbed the KT special. I always preferred ramen noodles to rice for serving stir fry, so I wanted to try using them in a lo mein recipe. It was fantastic! Totally curbed my ramen craving and added a little healthiness with a nice helping of fresh vegetables.  One thing I have yet to try is a fancy ramen noodle restaurant...I think I would be disappointed.

Pork “Lo Mein” Ramen

1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 teaspoon minced ginger
1 teaspoon Sriracha
2 tablespoons soy sauce
½ cup chicken broth
2 packages ramen noodles, flavor packets discarded
1 tablespoon canola oil
½ pound pork loin chops, sliced thin
½ pound mushrooms, sliced
¼ pound snow peas
½ green bell pepper, julienned
½ cup carrots, julienned
1 clove garlic, minced
½ teaspoon sesame oil

In two cup measure, whisk together the cornstarch, ginger, Sriracha, soy sauce and chicken broth. Prepare the ramen per package instructions, drain and set aside. Heat the oil in a large skillet or wok over medium-high heat. Stir fry the pork, mushrooms, snow peas, bell pepper and carrots for 3 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic and sauté 30 seconds more. Pour the broth mixture over the chicken and vegetables, bring to a boil and cook for a minute more. Add the noodles and sesame oil, toss well to coat completely. Serve.

Pin It Now!

Chicken Lo Mein with Vegetables

I love cooking lo mein, as a kid, I hated rice. So whenever my mom would make a stir fry of any kind, I would boil up a pot of ramen to serve with mine, so that I didn't have to have the rice. I now love rice, but I am still a noodle girl at heart. One of my favorite snacks to this day is drained ramen tossed with lite soy sauce. I used to have it after school all the time, it is a comfort food for me. Miss F loves lo mein, but we couldn't get her to try the mushrooms, she was happy to send hers over my way.  This dish is heavy on vegetables, there are more veggies than there are noodles.  Which makes it tasty and a bit healthy.  Nice to have after days of turkey, gravy, butter and pie!

Chicken Lo Mein with Vegetables

1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 teaspoon minced ginger
1 teaspoon Sriracha
¼ cup soy sauce
½ cup chicken broth
8 ounces uncooked Asian noodles
1 tablespoon canola oil
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, thinly sliced
½ pound mushrooms, sliced
¼ pound snow peas
1 large red bell pepper, julienned
½ cup carrots, julienned
1 teaspoon sesame seed oil

In two cup measure, whisk together the cornstarch, ginger, Sriracha, soy sauce and chicken broth. Prepare the noodles per package instructions, drain and set aside. Heat the oil in a large skillet or wok over medium-high heat. Stir fry the chicken, mushroom, snow peas, bell pepper and carrots for 3 to 5 minutes. Pour the broth mixture over the chicken and vegetables, bring to a boil and cook for a minute more. Add the noodles and sesame oil, toss well to coat completely. Serve.

Pin It Now!

Chicken Pancit Canton

Canton noodles are my most favorite noodle. Our grocer sometimes has them in stock, but I can always count on Ranch 99 for having a huge selection of Canton noodles. So when my mom wanted to go to Ranch 99 to get some dishware, I knew I would get at least a couple bags. The noodles are traditionally served with shrimp, but that wouldn't fly with C. I found this recipe for chicken and adapted it a bit to better suit my taste. This dish is amazing. It is a perfect weeknight meal and you can add whatever vegetables you have on hand, it would be great with carrots, zucchini, broccoli or even yellow squash.

Chicken Pancit Canton

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon minced ginger
2 chicken breasts, sliced into thin strips
½ small onion, sliced
1 red bell pepper, sliced
1 cup snow peas
2 tablespoons light soy sauce
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
½ teaspoon sugar
8 ounces canton noodles
1 ½ cups chicken broth
1 lime

Heat the oil in a large wok or skillet over high heat. Add the garlic and ginger, sauté for 20 seconds. Add the chicken, sauté for 2 minutes. Add the onion, bell pepper and snow peas, sauté for 3 minutes more. Pour the soy sauce, oyster sauce and sugar over top. Toss well to coat. Add the noodles and chicken broth, simmer for 5 minutes, until the noodles have softened. Serve with lime wedges.

Pin It Now!

Sriracha Soy Chicken and Vegetable Vermicelli

I much prefer stir fries with noodles instead of rice. As a kid, I hated rice. I am not quite sure when I came around to it, probably around the same time I started eating sushi (in my 20s.) I would always prepare a plate of ramen noodles instead of rice whenever I ate any sort of stir fry dish. Nowadays, I use rice noodles instead of ramen, which I love even more. I was really wary of the ketchup in the recipe I pinned from STL Cooks. But there was no need to be scared, it was amazing. I didn't even hear any complaints from C about the use of fish sauce, which is quite a win. Feel free to add whatever vegetables you have on hand.

Sriracha Soy Chicken and Vegetable Vermicelli

1 package (10.5-12 ounces) rice noodle vermicelli
1 tablespoon canola oil
1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into strips
1 red bell pepper, cut into strips
1 head broccoli, cut into bite sized pieces
2 carrots, peeled and diced
3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 to 3 teaspoons Sriracha
1 tablespoon ketchup
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon grated ginger
1 ½ teaspoons fish sauce
2 teaspoons sesame seeds

Prepare the vermicelli per package directions. Heat the canola oil in a wok or cast iron skillet and add the chicken strips, bell pepper, broccoli and carrots; saute until the chicken is cooked through, 3 to 5 minutes.

Whisk together to soy sauce, Sriracha, ketchup, sesame oil, ginger, fish sauce and sesame seeds in a large bowl. Toss the noodles in the sauce, stir in the chicken and vegetables.

Pin It Now!

Shrimp Drunken Noodles

Drunken Noodles is one of Miss F's favorite dinners and C hates it. Since he is in Colorado during the week, I decided to make it with shrimp, something that would be impossible to do if he was home. The smell of shrimp and fish sauce might cause him to move out permanently. Luckily, there is no scent-ivision via Skype, so Miss F and I enjoyed this dinner with C, free of any complaining about the smell. I actually prefer the shrimp to the chicken, it is the perfect sweet complement to the spicy noodles. Miss F was zeroed in on the bell peppers the last time I made it, not sure what that was about, but I am always a happy lady when she eats her veggies.

Shrimp Drunken Noodles

8-10 ounces flat rice noodles
2 tablespoons canola oil
¼ onion, chopped
6 garlic cloves, minced
1 bell pepper, cut into strips
1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 tablespoons fish sauce
2 tablespoons black soy sauce
2 tablespoons Golden Mountain sauce or light soy sauce
1 to 2 tablespoons Sriracha
½ tablespoon sugar
1 large plum tomato, cut into 8 wedges
¼ cup Thai basil leaves

Cook noodles in large pot of boiling water until tender but still firm to bite, stirring frequently. Drain. Meanwhile, heat oil in heavy large pot over medium-high heat. Add onions and sauté for a minute, add garlic and sauté 30 seconds more. Add bell pepper and shrimp and sauté about 2 minutes, flipping the shrimp halfway. Whisk the fish sauce, black soy sauce, Golden Mountain sauce and Sriracha together in a small bowl. Add to the shrimp mixture and cook 3 minutes more. Add the cooked noodles, tomatoes, and Thai basil; toss to coat.

Pin It Now!

Hoisin Pork with Rice Noodles

I always buy rice noodles when I am at the Asian grocer. I am quite excited for crawfish season to begin so I can have some Viet-Cajun crawfish at Ranch 99 Market, with grocery shopping to follow. I have had Hoisin Pork with Rice Noodles from Pinch of Yum pinned for quite some time. I knew it would be the perfect use for a nifty little tool my friend Courtney had gotten me as a hostess gift. It is a small peeler and grater that is perfect for prepping the carrots for this dish. Miss F was a fan and so was I. This was an easy meal for a weeknight and it will definitely go into our regular rotation. I am sad I didn't make it sooner!

Hoisin Pork with Rice Noodles

⅓ cup soy sauce
¼ cup water
3 tablespoons canola oil
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon fish sauce
3 tablespoons rice vinegar
3 tablespoons hoisin sauce
juice of half a lime
2 cloves finely minced garlic
1 tablespoon Sriracha
1 pound pork, cut into thin strips
9 ounces rice noodles
2 carrots, peeled and grated

Whisk together the soy sauce, water, oil, sugar, fish sauce, vinegar, hoisin, lime juice, garlic and Sriracha. Marinate the pork in the sauce overnight.

Heat a skillet over medium-high heat, stir fry the pork until cooked through, about 5 minutes. Prepare the noodles per package instructions. Toss the cooked noodles and carrots with the cooked pork and sauce. Serve.

Pin It Now!

Szechaun Chicken with Noodles

As soon as I saw Szechaun Chicken with Noodles on Prevention RD, I knew I had to make it. It is such a simple, quick and easy dish to prepare.   I also knew I wanted to make a few changes.  I never like traditional pasta in Asian dishes, the texture doesn't work for me.  Unfortunately the Asian section of the grocery store in Aspen leaves a lot to be desired.  I was able to find rice noodles, but there was only one kind.  I am used to the countless varieties at Ranch 99.   Miss F wasn't a huge fan, she said she only liked the chicken.  She likes broccoli whole, but I think the slaw confused her a bit.  I really enjoyed this dish, I will make it again at home with my preferred noodles and with shrimp.

Szechaun Chicken with Noodles

8 ounces rice noodles
2 chicken breasts, sliced into thin strips
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
10 ounces broccoli slaw
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
1 tablespoon Sriracha
2 teaspoons sugar

Prepare noodles per package instructions, drain and set aside. Toss the chicken with the cornstarch in a large Ziploc bag. Heat the oil in a large wok or skillet over medium-high heat. Once hot, add the chicken and sauté 3 minutes. Add the broccoli slaw and sauté 3 minutes more. Add garlic and sauté until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the drained noodles to the skillet. Add the sugar, soy sauce, and vinegar to the wok and stir fry for 1-2 minutes to heat through. Serve hot.

Pin It Now!

Warm Asian Noodle Salad

I love any type of Asian noodles, cold or hot, spicy or sweet, full of meat or packed with veggies. I love it all. This recipe is from Gourmet Day to Day.  I made a lot of changes to suit what I had on hand.  Whatever leftover vegetables are in your refrigerator would work great in this dish.  I happened to have broccoli slaw, carrots and a bell pepper, so I went with that.  Next time I will increase the Sriracha by even more.  I doused my bowl pretty liberally while I was eating it and it still wasn't spicy enough.  Miss F loved the shrimp and the noodles, but wasn't as sold on the vegetables.  Shocker!  I much prefer using rice stick or other Asian noodle rather than using a traditional pasta.  I need to try rice noodles in Peanut Chicken Pasta and see how that works.

Warm Asian Noodle Salad

¼ cup peanut butter
¼ cup soy sauce
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
1 teaspoon dark sesame oil
2 teaspoons Sriracha
½ teaspoon ground ginger

½ pound rice sticks
1 tablespoon oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
½ pound of shrimp
½ cup shredded carrot
½ cup shredded broccoli
1 red bell pepper, cut into thin strips

To prepare sauce, combine first 8 ingredients (peanut butter through Sriracha) in a small bowl; whisk well to combine. Soak the rice sticks in hot water for 5 minutes. In a large sauté pan, heat the oil over medium high heat. Add the garlic and sauté for 30 seconds. Add the shrimp, carrots, broccoli and bell pepper. Sauté until shrimp are cooked through and vegetables are crisp tender, about 5 minutes. Add the noodles to the pan, pour the sauce over top and toss well to combine. Add ¼ to ½ cup of the soaking water to the pan to thin the sauce to taste.

Pin It Now!

Drunken Noodles

I am so lucky to live in such an amazing and diverse city, Houston. I am able to go to my regular grocer and find black soy sauce, Golden Mountain sauce and a wide range of flat rice noodles to choose from. And we have even better Asian grocers where I always overwhelmed with choices. C didn't enjoy this very much, I think he wasn't a fan of the fish sauce.  Miss F and I were obsessed.  She loved it so much, I sent leftovers with her to school the next day.  And all those were gone as well.  And all the rest was saved for me...yum!  Thanks to Elly Says Opa for the awesome recipe, this is a huge winner in my eyes.  Now does anyone have any recipes with black soy sauce?  Cause I have a massive bottle.

Drunken Noodles

8-10 ounces flat rice noodles
2 tablespoons canola oil
¼ onion, chopped
6 garlic cloves, minced
1 bell pepper, cut into strips
½ pound chicken breast, cut into small pieces
1 tablespoons fish sauce
2 tablespoons black soy sauce
2 tablespoons Golden Mountain sauce or light soy sauce
1 to 2 tablespoons Sriracha
½ tablespoon sugar
1 large plum tomato, cut into 8 wedges
¼ cup Thai basil leaves

Cook noodles in large pot of boiling water until tender but still firm to bite, stirring frequently. Drain. Meanwhile, heat oil in heavy large pot over medium-high heat. Add onions and sauté for a minute, add garlic and sauté 30 seconds more. Add bell pepper and chicken and sauté until chicken is about halfway cooked, about 2 minutes. Whisk the fish sauce, black soy sauce, Golden Mountain seasoning, and chili paste together in a small bowl. Add to the chicken mixture and cook until chicken is cooked through, about 4 minutes. Add noodles, tomatoes, and Thai basil; toss to coat.

Pin It Now!

Sticky Chicken Noodle Salad

One of my most favorite dishes is Bun, Vietnamese vermicelli. I love the lettuce, cucumber and herbs tossed with the vermicelli. I drown mine in peanut sauce instead of the traditional fish sauce. When I saw this recipe on JBean Cuisine, I was intrigued. It was part of the chicken recipe swap I did a few weeks back and I put it on my list to make for the following week. This dish did not disappoint. I did make a couple of changes, adding soy sauce to enhance the flavor of the delicious sauce.

Sticky Chicken Noodle Salad

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 tablespoon cooking oil
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
2 garlic cloves, minced or grated
1 tablespoon tomato paste
¼ cup chicken stock
1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
2 teaspoons honey
2 tablespoons soy sauce

1/3 pack of Thai rice noodles, cooked and cooled
½ cucumber, diced
½ head of romaine lettuce, sliced
1 tablespoon cilantro, minced
2 tablespoons mint, minced

Heat a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add oil and heat for a minute.

Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Add chicken to sauté pan and cook, flipping half way through. Cook for approximately 3 to 4 minutes per side. Remove cooked chicken from pan and set aside.

Add the minced garlic to the pan and cook for one minute. Stir in tomato paste and chicken stock. With a wooden spoon, scrape the bottom of the pan to pick up all the yummy bits. Add the balsamic vinegar, soy sauce and honey to the pan and bring to a boil for 3 minutes or until the liquid has reduced by half.

Return the cooked chicken to pan. Continue to cook over medium heat, for an additional 10 minutes, or until chicken is completely cooked and covered in the balsamic sauce. Season to taste. Toss the noodles with the chicken and sauce. Divide between two bowls and top with cucumber, lettuce, cilantro and mint.

Adapted from JBean Cuisine

Pin It Now!

Recipe Swap: Spicy Asian Noodles with Chicken

My recipe swap submission comes a bit late, but we had such a busy week last week that I didn't get a chance to make this until Sunday night. The original recipe can be found here. I made a couple of changes to the recipe and I added snow peas so we could have a one pot dish. Miss F loved the noodles, she kept asking for me to twirl them. Be sure to check out the last Recipe Swap Roundup for Side Dishes at A Taste of Home Cooking.

Spicy Asian Noodles with Chicken

2 teaspoons vegetable oil, divided
1 tablespoon grated peeled fresh ginger
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut into bite size pieces
1 teaspoon sesame oil
½ cup chopped green onions
¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro
3 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
2 tablespoons hoisin sauce
2 teaspoons sambal oelek (ground fresh chile paste)
1 (6.75-ounce) package thin rice sticks (rice-flour noodles)

Heat 2 teaspoons oil in a small skillet over medium-high heat. Add ginger and garlic to pan; cook 45 seconds, stirring constantly. Add chicken and cook until cooked through, approximately 5 to 7 minutes. Stir in sesame oil and next 6 ingredients (through sambal). Cook noodles according to package directions. Drain and rinse under cold water; drain. Cut noodles into smaller pieces. Add noodles to pan; toss well to coat.

Pin It Now!

Mee Hoon Goreng

C and I had an amazing honeymoon in Malaysia. One of my most favorite dishes was Mee Hoon Goreng. I think I ate it for lunch almost every day. Of course, I was eating it at the Four Seasons Langkawi, so I am pretty sure it was not totally authentic, but it was delicious nonetheless. In the picture, I used vermicelli made from green beans. While good, the rice stick vermicelli (which I had in the cabinet, but didn't use) works much better and holds up better to the stir frying. This dish is very similar to Jap Chae, which I love. I came up with this on my own trying to remember the flavors that I loved so much six years ago. Anyone know a good Malay restaurant in Houston?

Mee Hoon Goreng

8 ounces rice stick vermicelli

2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
2 teaspoons chili garlic paste (add more if you like more of a kick)
½ cup chicken broth

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 carrots, peeled and cut into matchsticks
½ cup sliced cabbage
½ cup bean sprouts
¼ cup green onions, chopped
1 boneless skinless chicken breast, sliced thin
¼ pound shrimp, peeled and de-veined
1 teaspoon minced ginger
1 teaspoon minced garlic

In a large bowl, pour hot water over the vermicelli, just enough to cover. Set aside. In a small bowl, combine the soy sauce, oyster sauce, chili garlic paste and chicken broth.

In a wok or large skillet, heat the oil over medium high heat. Add the carrots, cabbage, bean sprouts and onions. Stir fry for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the chicken and stir fry three minutes more. Add the shrimp and sauté for 1 to 2 minutes, just until pink. Add the garlic and ginger, sautéing for 30 seconds, just until fragrant. Pour the chicken broth mixture over chicken, shrimp and vegetables. Cook for 2 minutes. Add the drained vermicelli noodles and toss to combine. Serve hot.

Pin It Now!

Creamy Chicken Noodle Soup with Homemade Noodles

The best chicken noodle soup I ever ate was at Falling Water in Pennsylvania. I grew up in Maryland and my family had taken a day trip up to visit the house. My father is notorious for not feeding us while we are on vacation. It is a running joke in our family. Of course, we hadn't eaten and had been touring around all day and I was a starving kid. I begged to get something at the cafe and I selected chicken noodle soup. It was the nest chicken noodle soup I have ever had, even 20+ years later. The noodles were what made it. They were obviously made fresh. I decided to try my hand at it and I did it all by hand, not even using the pasta attachment to my KitchenAid and they turned out great. This dish was even better the next day as the noodles absorbed even more of the delicious liquid. I used leftover chicken from a chicken I had roasted and just added it in at the end to warm it through.

Creamy Chicken Noodle Soup

3 tablespoons butter
1 pound chicken, cut into bite sized pieces
½ onion, diced
3 large carrots, peeled and diced
½ teaspoon parsley
½ teaspoon thyme
¼ cup flour
7 cups chicken broth, preferably homemade
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
2 cups egg noodles, recipe follows
1 cup milk

Melt butter in soup pot over medium heat. Sauté onions and chicken, until the onions are translucent. Add carrots, parsley and thyme, sauté for a few minutes until the carrots begin to soften. Stir in the flour until it is incorporated, about 2 minutes.

Add broth, salt and pepper, stir and bring to a boil. Add noodles and boil for 10 to 15 minutes more, stir in milk during the last 5 minutes of cooking.

Egg Noodles

2 cups flour
3 egg yolks
1 egg
2 teaspoons salt
¼ - ½ cup water

Measure flour into bowl; make a well in the center and add egg yolks, whole egg and salt. With hands, thoroughly mix egg into flour. Add water, 1 tablespoon at a time, mixing thoroughly after each addition. (Add only enough water to form dough into a ball.). Turn dough onto well-floured board; knead until smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes. You can also knead it in your Kitchen Aid Mixer with the dough hook attachment. Cover; let rest 10 minutes. Divide dough into 4 equal parts. Roll dough, 1 part at a time, into paper-thin rectangle on a Silpat, keeping remaining dough covered. Roll rectangle around rolling pin; slip out rolling pin. Cut dough cross-wise with a pizza cutter into 1/8-inch strips for narrow noodles and ¼ -inch for wide noodles. Shake out strips and place on towel to dry, about 2 hours.

Noodles adapted from food.com

Pin It Now!