Monday, August 23, 2010

How To Make Proper Ramen Noodles

Being that this is the first post on this blog dedicated to helping people survive college, the first thing any organism needs in order to survive is, of course, FOOD. And what better food for a broke college kid than Ramen noodles?

Here I have outlined the proper way to prepare Ramen noodles in both the microwave and on the stove top. After your done reading this you'll be able to stop those pesky noises coming from your stomach and finally stave off that whole hunger thing that's been bothering you ever since moving away from your mother, who cooked for you all the time. You can thank me later.



Let's begin....

Stovetop Instructions:
  1. Heat at least two cups of water in a small sauce pan until it comes to a boil and then dump the noodles in.
    • I've seen the preparation of the noodles before putting them in the pan done a variety of ways:
      • Breaking the noodles apart into to halves.
      • Crunching the noodles still in the packaged to make many little individual noodles.
      • Keeping the noodles whole and dumping the entire thing in the pot so that the they are long and connected.
  2. After at least 3 minutes of cooking, remove the Ramen from the heat and drain the excess water leaving a little to help mix the seasoning...
  3. Open seasoning packed and pour into bowl with noodles.
  4. Now stir the seasoning into the noodles and enjoy.
Extra Twist: I also like to fry up an over easy egg with a slab of cheese on and mix it in with the noodles. It gives it a little more flavor and adds a little protein as well.
Microwave Instructions:
  1. Dump noodles in microwave-safe bowl with enough water to at least cover the noodles.
    • Since microwaving isn't the normal way of cooking Ramen, a lot of cooking it is trial and error and depends heavily on how powerful of a microwave you are using.
  2. Place bowl with noodles and water into the microwave (covering them with a paper towel is always a safe bet as well) and set the time to around 3 minutes.
    • The time of cooking ramen is very up in the air. Depending on your microwave it may only take 2 minutes to cook or it may take up to 5 or 6!
  3. Take out bowl VERY carefully, because it can get really hot (pot holders recommended). Stir the noodles and check to see if they have become soft and to your liking. If not, place back into microwave for a few more minutes.
  4. Once the noodles are just right, drain excess water from noodles leaving a small amount, add seasoning packet and stir.
  5. Enjoy!