I consumed my fair share of instant ramen cups back in my college days, but it’s been quite a while since then! Today I’m sharing a recipe for homemade instant ramen cups that you put together yourself, that you can save in the fridge for up to a week, and that tastes delicious! This is the perfect lunch to take to work or school, and it’s much healthier than the store-bought alternative.
You’ll start your homemade ramen cups with a container. Glass is the way to go because you’ll be pouring boiling water over the ingredients. A good ol’ mason jar works perfectly, but I also love these flip-top glass jars! Anything will work as long as it can hold boiling water and the lid will close tightly.
Next, you’re going to make your broth base. Better Than Bouillon is a great option for that classic meat broth flavor, and it has much less sodium than other instant broth options. It’s also a great place to start if you don’t want to invest in a bunch of different ingredients.
If you’re looking for a more authentic ramen flavor, you can add miso paste, chili-garlic sauce, hot sauce, soy sauce (or Ponzu, a citrus-flavored soy sauce) and/or red curry paste. This is what I just love about these ramen cups – there are so many options and ways to customize your cup!
I decided to use 1 teaspoon Better Than Bouillon, 1 teaspoon miso paste, and a small squirt of Sriracha hot sauce. The Bouillon tastes like classic beef broth, while the miso paste adds some richness and depth of flavor, and the Sriracha brings some heat. You can customize your own personal broth blend, but this is a good place to start!
When it comes to veggies, you can add them fresh or frozen! I stopped by a local oriental market and found some napa cabbage, enoki mushrooms, and radish sprouts. You could also use regular green cabbage, sliced shiitake mushrooms, and been sprouts. Carrots make a great addition, but you’ll need to shred them.
All your veggies should be cut thin so that they cook by steeping in the hot water.
Frozen veggies are also a great option – some peas and corn would fit right in!
Just add your veggies right on top of the sauces, and fill your container about half way.
When it comes to noodles, I picked up some maifun noodles and some yaki-soba noodles. I chose these two types of noodles because they are so easy to work with!
The maifun noodles are very thin rice noodles that cook quickly in the hot water, while yaki-soba have been pre-cooked and will heat up perfectly in your ramen cup! You could also add leftover spaghetti noodles, as long as they have been pre-cooked.
Just fill your container to the top with noodles, and feel free to pack them in!
The final step for your ramen cups is an herb “packet.” These items won’t be cooked in the ramen cup, but they’ll be added after cooking to add some fresh herb flavor! Some chopped green onions, chopped cilantro, and grated ginger make your ramen cup perfect!
I chopped up my fresh ingredients, placed them in a baggie, and set it right on top of the noodles.
Just put on the lid, and these ramen cups can be stored in the fridge for a week! This recipe is great because while you make yourself a ramen cup for lunch, you can make a few extras for the coming week. So easy!
When you’re ready to eat, remove the herb packet, and simply fill the jar to the top with boiling water. Close the lid, and let the cup sit for 3 minutes. When the time is up, dump the herb packet into the jar and stir – being sure to get all of your broth ingredients mixed in.
Grab a pair of chopsticks (or a fork if you’re chopstick-challenged like me) and enjoy! You’ll be amazing at how good this tastes – SO much better than the store-bought cups!
Give this recipe a try, and experiment to find the perfect recipe for you. You might even want to have the kiddos make their own cups – it’s an activity and a meal in one cup!
Homemade Instant Noodles
Ingredients
- 1 8 oz glass jar
- 1 teaspoon Better Than Bouillon
- 1 teaspoon miso paste
- 1/8 teaspoon Sriracha
- 1/2 cup thinly sliced or frozen veggies
- 1/2 cup maifun or yaki-soba noodles
- 1/8 cup freshly chopped herbs
Instructions
- Add bouillon, miso paste, and Sriracha in the bottom of the glass jar.
- Add veggies.
- Add noodles.
- Fill jar with boiling water and let sit for 3 minutes.
- Stir to combine.
- Add fresh herbs.
