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Instant ramen meal prep bowls with soft egg and vegetablesMeal Prep
same 30-cent noodles, twice the dinner

Instant Ramen Upgrade

STILL UNDER $1 A BOWL
20min
4serves
Easylevel

Instant ramen doesn't need to stay a 3am dorm-room cliché — with a soft-boiled egg, a handful of frozen vegetables, and about half the seasoning packet (it's mostly sodium anyway), the same 30-cent noodles turn into a bowl that meal-preps just as well as anything with a fancier price tag.

Ingredients

four bowls, still under $1 each once assembled.

Method
  1. Soft-boil the eggs: lower into simmering water for 6½ minutes, then transfer to an ice bath. Peel once cool.
  2. Cook the ramen noodles according to package directions, using only about half of each seasoning packet.
  3. In the last 2 minutes of cooking, stir the frozen vegetables into the noodle water to cook through.
  4. Divide the noodles and vegetables between 4 containers, keeping a little of the broth with each. Halve each egg and add on top.
  5. Store the green onions separately and add just before eating so they stay crisp.
Kantan Swapcan't find it? swap it — this dish works anywhere.

No frozen stir-fry mix? Frozen peas and carrots, or even just frozen spinach, work fine.

Want more protein? A few slices of leftover rotisserie chicken or a spoonful of peanut butter stirred into the broth both work.

Too salty? Use even less of the seasoning packet and season with soy sauce and a splash of sesame oil to taste instead.

No patience for a soft-boiled egg? A fried egg on top works just as well and takes half the time.

Storage & Reheating

Keeps 2-3 days refrigerated, stored with the egg separate as noted in the tip above. Reheat the noodles and broth together in the microwave for 1-2 minutes, then add the cold egg back in after — reheating it with the broth makes the yolk chalky. Not recommended for freezing; noodles turn mushy.

Make It Your Owna few ways to change it up.

Spicy miso Stir a spoonful of miso paste and a dash of chili oil into the broth instead of using the full seasoning packet.

Peanut ramen Whisk a spoonful of peanut butter and a little soy sauce into the hot broth for a Thai-inspired version.

Extra veggie-loaded Double the frozen vegetables and add a handful of fresh bean sprouts right before eating for crunch.

Kantan tip — reheat the noodles and broth separately from the egg — dropping the whole bowl in the microwave turns the yolk chalky. Add the egg back in after reheating the rest.

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Gear that makes this recipe easier

The tools this recipe actually calls for, with the one we'd reach for in each category — these link to our own comparisons, not straight to a store.