A cheeky version of mega popular chicken ramen noodles, this is a quick and yummy look-alike packed with Asian flavours. Colorful, vibrant and aromatic, it just begs to be gobbled up until the last noodle! It is also super easy to prepare – a great dinner option for a busy weekday.
The Flavour Affair:
Chicken Broth + Chinese Five Spice + Soy Sauce + Garlic + Ginger + Sesame Oil
A basic yet very effective combo to give your usual chicken soup a complete makeover!
Chicken Broth: if you are planning your ramen ahead, invest 20 minutes of your time into homemade chicken broth. You can boil a whole chicken and use the meat later or get a pack of bones and go for just the broth. A rich bone-based broth is essential for a satisfying and comforting ramen bowl. You can prepare it days or even weeks ahead and freeze until ready to use. If you are short on time, go for a store-bought version. Just don’t use plain water!
Chinese Five Spice: this is a sweet, slightly pungent blend with prominent licoricey and peppery notes widely used in Asian cuisine. Flavourful and fragrant, it opens up quickly, infusing the soup with fresh and warm aromas of aniseed, cinnamon and cloves.
Soy Sauce: I prefer to use dark soy sauce for in this recipe. It has a more intense taste and a deeper colour which gives a more noticeable hue to the soup.
Garlic and Ginger: this iconic duo adds pungency and heat along with fresh, citrusy notes from ginger.
Sesame Oil: use to saute garlic and ginger to add a hint of sesame flavour to the broth.
Other ingredients:
For a more authentic feel, add ingredients that are frequently encountered in Asian cuisine. Enoki or oyster mushrooms, bok choi, boiled egg and scallions or coriander for garnish will help create a bowl with a distinctive Asian character.
Preparation tips for Five-Spice Chicken Ramen:
If you’ve made a large pot of broth, you won’t use all of it for ramen. You will need about or just over one full ladle per bowl. So if you are four people, pour 4-4.5 ladles into a small or medium sized pot and keep the rest in the fridge or freeze for future use.
- Prep the broth: in a small sauce pan, add a tea spoon of sesame oil and saute garlic and ginger for 20-30 seconds until just fragrant. Add 2 tbsp of dark soy sauce, stir to combine and add the mixture to the broth. This can be done in advance.
- Prep the spices: you can use store-bought Chinese five spice mix or quickly make your own if you already have a selection of spices in your pantry. You will need star anise, fennel, cloves, cinnamon and black pepper and a spice grinder.
- Prep the chicken: rub the chicken breasts with the five spice and pan fry them in a little oil until done. You can also do it beforehand.
- OR: if you’ve made your broth with a whole chicken, you can use it instead of raw chicken breasts. Shred the cooked meat into bite-sized pieces and add to the pan with garlic, ginger and soy. Fry everything together for a minute or two and transfer to the pot with broth. It may not look as pretty as sliced whole breast but it will still taste great!
- Boil the eggs: jammy eggs are traditional for ramen, but you can have them any way you like. Just check the cooking time for your preferred way and remember to place the eggs into very cold water afterwards. Otherwise they will continue cooking in the hot shell. For a jammy egg, you need 7 minutes in boiling water.
- Boil the noodles: while you can do it in advance, it’s best to prepare the noodles just before serving so that they stay warm. For easy portioning I suggest using dry bundles.
When ready to eat, bring the broth to boil, add mushrooms and bok choi and simmer for a couple of minutes. Slice the chicken breasts in the meantime. Arrange the cooked noodles in a bowl, top with the chicken and pour over the hot broth. Add the halved egg and garnish with chopped scallions or coriander.
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Five-Spice Chicken Ramen
Ingredients
- 4.5-5 full ladles of chicken broth
- 4 medium chicken breasts
- 1 tbsp Chinese five spice seasoning
- 4 bundles of dried ramen noodles
- 4 eggs
- 2-3 oyster mushrooms sliced lengthwise
- OR a bunch of enoki mushrooms
- 1-2 bunch of baby bok choi leaves separated
- 1 tsp minced garlic
- 1 tsp minced ginger
- 2 tbsp dark soy sauce
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- chopped scallions or fresh coriander for garnish
Instructions
- Heat 1 tsp sesame oil to medium and fry minced garlic and ginger for a few seconds until fragrant.
- Add 2 tbsp dark soy sauce and stir to combine. Add the mixture to the broth.
- Pound the chicken breasts until flattened to about 1cm thick. Rub with the five spice mix.
- Heat 1 tbsp oil to medium and fry the breasts for 3-4 minutes on each side until cooked inside.
- Boil the eggs.
When ready to assemble:
- Boil the noodles according to the instructions.
- In the meantime, bring the broth to boil and add sliced oyster mushrooms or enoki and bok choi leaves.
- Simmer for 2 minutes.
- Taste and adjust for salt (you can add more soy sauce at this stage).
- Slice the chicken breasts.
- Drain the noodles and place into individual bowls. Arrange the sliced chicken breasts on top or by side and pour over the broth.
- Divide the bok choi leaves and mushrooms between the bowls.
- Add the halved egg and garnish with chopped scallions or coriander leaves.
