Easy Lunch Ramen

     A colleague asked me recently if I always make lunch when at home.  I did not have to consider the answer as it was, "Definitely".  If we are home for lunch as a family, then we sit down to a lunch together.  If I am at home at lunchtime, then I take the time to make a lunch,  sit down with a book and enjoy it.

     Recently, I have been on a ramen-binge.  I know that sounds a bit odd but I really enjoy noodle based soups.  So, I buy the cheap $0.20 packages of ramen that many of us lived on in college.  However, I just use the noodles.  The flavor packet, for the most part, gets thrown away - way, way too much sodium and I find the flavoring too intense.

     So,  here is how I change it.  I heat up 2 cups of high quality chicken broth and add a teaspoon of sesame oil.  Sometimes, I break open the flavor packet and add just a wee bit...a wee, wee bit.  Once the broth comes to a boil, then add the noodles and cook them for another minute or so until the noodles are cooked.  I pour it into a bowl and add whatever leftover meat I may have in the refrigerator and some sliced green onions.

    I use chopsticks and slurp up the noodles - in complete foodie heaven.  It is simple. It is comforting.  It is much, much more than the $0.20 I spent on the soup packet.

     Yesterday, I found an udon soup in the pantry and did the exact same thing.  Except instead of adding cooked meat, I had a few slices of filet from making carpaccio.  Once the noodles were cooked, I added the raw meat to the soup and the heat of the soup just cooked the outside of the meat.  Super, super tasty.

     Go ahead, throw a couple of cheap ramen soup packets in your grocery cart the next time you are shopping.  You won't regret it!

Enjoy!