25 Bowls of Ramen That Taste Way Better Without the Spice Packet

Hello and welcome to this thing we’re doing where we help you figure out what you’re gonna put in your mouth this week. Some of these are recipes we’ve tried, some of these are recipes we’re looking forward to trying, all of them are fucking delicious. Tell us what you want to put in your piehole or suggest your own recipes, and we’ll talk about which things we made, which things we loved, and which things have changed us irreversibly as people. Last week, we ate without baking.

food list rachel hansen crop

Right now I am T minus two days from moving, so I am a gibbering mess of a human being and also really past the point where I can buy or cook perishable foods, since all but one of my pots is packed up. Given that one pot and my microwave, I’m eating mostly Amy’s frozen meals and ramen. Prepackaged frozen meals don’t make for good recipe hunting (although homemade ready-to-freeze meals do; stay tuned for that list someday!) but ramen does.

You already know we love ramen because duh, who doesn’t. And you probably already know there are lots of ways to eat it, from the super-legit and super-delicious authentic restaurant ramen to Maruchan in your underwear at home. No matter how you’ve eaten ramen in the past, here are some ramen ideas for your future that we’re pretty sure you haven’t seen before.


1. Packet Ramen Makeover

Via recipetineats.com

Via recipetineats.com


2. Ramen Alfredo Bake

Via amongtheyoung.com

Via amongtheyoung.com


3. Avocado & Cherry Tomato Ramen Noodle Bowl with Lemon Basil Vinaigrette

Via soupaddict.com

Via soupaddict.com


4. Spicy Peanut Butter-Sesame Ramen with Chicken

Via mybarecupboard.com

Via mybarecupboard.com


5. Mushrooms Spinach Saute with Noodles and Egg

Via teczcape.blogspot.com

Via teczcape.blogspot.com


6. Sambal and Peanut Butter Ramen Noodles with Tofu

Via olivesfordinner.com

Via olivesfordinner.com


7. Three Cheese Mazemen

Via ladyandpups.com

Via ladyandpups.com


8. Oven Fried Shrimp and Thai Coconut Ramen Noodle Bowl

Via soupaddict.com

Via soupaddict.com


9. BLT Frittata with Ramen Noodles

Via soupaddict.com

Via soupaddict.com


10. Spicy Gourmet Kimchi Ramyun

Via sandraseasycooking.com

Via sandraseasycooking.com


11. Spicy Shrimp and Saucy Guacamole Ramen Noodle Bowl

Via soupaddict.com

Via soupaddict.com


12. Spicy Ramen Noodle ‘Macaroni’ and Cheese

Via thespicekitrecipes.com

Via thespicekitrecipes.com


13. Garlicky Curried Noodle Soup (GF , Vegan Option)

Via thepigandquill.com

Via thepigandquill.com


14. Ginger-Scallion Noodles

Via spachethespatula.com

Via spachethespatula.com


15. Mee Goreng in the Prairie

Via rotinrice.com

Via rotinrice.com


16. Ramen Gnocchi with Cheez Whiz and Shrooms

Via pepper.ph

Via pepper.ph


17. Mapo Tofu Ramen (Mabo Ramen)

Via appetiteforchina.com

Via appetiteforchina.com


18. Chilled Noodle Salad

Via lafujimama.com

Via lafujimama.com


19. Perfect Instant Ramen

Via tastingtable.com

Via tastingtable.com


20. Cleansing Ramen Soup (Vegan, GF)

Via foodwellsaid.com

Via foodwellsaid.com


21. Butternut Squash Ramen Bowl with Rice Noodles, Tofu & Fresh Pea Shoots

Via inpursuitofmore,com

Via inpursuitofmore,com


22. Ramen Broccoli Slaw

Via mycatholickitchen.com

Via mycatholickitchen.com


23. Mie Koclok Cirebon aka Indonesian Ramen

Via bicilthebaker.wordpress.com

Via bicilthebaker.wordpress.com


24. Miso Mushroom Ramen with Vegetarian Wontons and Crispy Tofu

Via forbiddenriceblog.com

Via forbiddenriceblog.com


25. Coconut Curry Ramen Noodle Soup

Via cookingandbeer.com

Via cookingandbeer.com

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Rachel

Originally from Boston, MA, Rachel now lives in the Midwest. Topics dear to her heart include bisexuality, The X-Files and tacos. Her favorite Ciara video is probably "Ride," but if you're only going to watch one, she recommends "Like A Boy." You can follow her on twitter and instagram.

Rachel has written 1141 articles for us.

17 Comments

  1. There are very few things I like more than ramen, so I am very excited to try all of these recipes.

  2. I lived on a diet of various combinations of rice, beans, onions, frozen vegetables, made-over ramen, and fried eggs in college. This brings me back! Good times. Maybe not particularly *healthy* times, but tasty and cheap ones!

  3. i just last week discovered a lotus foods rice ramen noodle cake product that i can actually eat so perfect timing as usual

  4. I have never had Maruchan in my underwear, but it sounds interesting. Why no recipe or fancy picture?

  5. I can’t even express how happy I am about this post. The Spicy Gourmet Kimchi Ramyun picture is gonna make me drown in drool IT LOOKS SO GOOD.

    Also also also add Hawaiian-style Saimin to the list. Fry up some sliced Spam and toss it on top of the noodles. Fucken ‘ono.

  6. All this post reminded me of is that one time my best friend ordered ramen noodles online because they were cheaper than buying them at the supermarket. #unilyfe…

  7. Thanks for those – been meaning to look for different recipes and having this all in one place – nice.

  8. Thank you so much, Rachel! I eat so much ramen, and I’m constantly looking for ways to spice it up beyond the flavor packets.

  9. #22 Broccoli slaw needs the addition of soy sauce & a jolt of something spicy, e.g. fire oil or Siracha. This is a riff on Moosewood’s “Crunchy Asian Slaw.” Always a favorite in my house. And, given the rising cost of groceries these days, if a bag of broccoli slaw is too high for your budget, even shredding a small head of cabbage works in this recipe.

  10. In a search of these recipes on the webs, I asked myself what can I do with the season packets?
    what do you do?

  11. Autostraddle Weekly I see the light !

    I had to try the Google search “how to make mr. noodles taste better without as much seasoning packet and with different noodles” to see if it was true that it led to Autostraddle because I’m Ms. Incredulous, and, jumping jellybeans, here I am ! Everything pretty much leads to Autostraddle. Hell yeah !

  12. My favorite way is to soak it in water for 1/2 hour…it softens well. Cut in half, put one half in the freezer for another time. Use homemade chicken broth or beef broth and water, frozen broccoli, frozen carrots. Put in micro for 3-5 minutes, then add cooked beef or chicken and sauted onions…yummmy and very very healthy…no SPICE PACKET!

Comments are closed.