Sarah's Fancy Stir-Fry Ramen

So, due to popular demand, I am going to cook for you guys today. Better yet, I am going to teach you guys how to turn this:

 Into this:

Making ramen exciting is a particularly handy skill when:

1. You're a poor, starving writer
2. Any money you do get is going towards buying a couch before the big sale ends
3. You're eating instant ramen all the time anyway
4. You have that faint hope that your ramen tasted different for once

I'm sure we've all been there at least once. Am I right? *crickets chip* Yeah . . . I'm totally right. So let me teach you guys how to spice up instant ramen!

Sarah's Fancy Stir-Fry Ramen
In order to make this delicious meal for two people, you will need:

• 2 packets instant ramen
• 2 hard boiled eggs (peeled)
• Delicious veggies of your choice
• Sesame oil
• Soy sauce
• Rice vinegar
• 1 clove garlic (minced)
• 1 green onion stalk (chopped)
• Fresh ginger (minced)
• Sesame seeds

Yes, you may notice the distinct lack of measurements in that ingredient list. This is because cooking this dish consists mostly of winging it. But don't worry, everything will turn out okay.

Right-o. To start with, we're going to make shoyu eggs, as seen on the excellent Japanese food blog, Just Bento. Why eggs in a noodle dish? They add protein and I love them.

To make these babies, you're going to need some soy sauce and your hard boiled eggs. In this case, I have 2 eggs and 2 tablespoons soy sauce. Heat the soy sauce in a small pan. Once it starts foaming, add the eggs and roll them around with a spoon so they get evenly coated in the soy sauce. When they're done, they'll look something like this:

Yum! Remove from the pan and chill in fridge. This will let the soy sauce set a little bit and make the eggs easier to slice later.

Next, pull out your delicious veggies. In this case I'm using ½ cup frozen corn and ½ cup canned bean sprouts, but I'm also a huge fan of Asian stir fry frozen veggie medleys. Pretty much anything can work though--peas, carrots, brocoli, edamame, water chestnuts, cabbage, etc. Just sauté the veggies of choice in a little butter until they're all warm and delicious. Set aside.

Now it's time to get the actual noodles out of the way. If you're feeling particularly skilled, you can do this while you're sautéing the veggies. If not, well, it's not big deal. Just place the ramen noodle bricks in boiling water, cook until done, strain, and set aside.

For a quick recap: at this point we've made shoyu eggs, sautéed our delicious veggies, and cooked our noodles. Next comes the sauce, which will tie the entire dish together. You will need all of this stuff:

Top row: sesame seeds, rice vinegar, soy sauce, and sesame oil.
Bottom row: ramen seasoning packets (chicken flavor), minced garlic, chopped green onions, and minced ginger.

Okay, so it looks a little intimidating (and expensive), but it's not that bad. Really. The bottled ingredients will last you quite a while and the fresh ingredients are A) not that expensive, and b) add a kick that their powdered counterparts lack.

So to get this started, add the garlic, ginder, and a dollop of sesame oil to your pot. When making this sauce I usually adjust ingredients based on taste, so unfortunately I'm not going to be much help when it comes to measurements. The thing about most of these ingredients is that, while having more or less of one will change the flavor of your sauce, it won't ruin the dish. Don't be afraid to experiment--too much or too little of something never killed anyone.

Anyway, I like to cook the ginger and garlic in the sesame oil until they get soft and a little browned. This seems to help the flavors come out and make them taste delicious. . . but I really have no idea what I'm talking about. Just do it.

Once that's done, it's time to add the rest of your ingredients. Start off with a splash of soy sauce and rice vinegar. You want to have enough liquid to cover your noodles, so make sure to at least cover the bottom of your pot. Mix in some sesame seeds and the two ramen seasoning packets until everything is well combined. Add the green onions and give them the opportunity to soften a little. This is a good time to taste test and adjust the levels of sesame oil, soy sauce, and rice vinegar to get the perfect flavor.

When everything is to your satisfaction, add the cooked veggies that you set aside earlier. Get them all nice and covered in sauce, and then add your noodles. When you're mixing everything, make sure to get the noodles completely covered in sauce. You should have little to no liquid left over and your noodles will visibly change color when they are properly sauced (feel free to compare the color in this next image to the image of the cooking noodles above).

Almost done! Dish out your lovely creation into two bowls. Cut the shoyu eggs we made earlier up into pretty slices and place along the side of your bowl. And look at that, you're done!

Now doesn't that look delicious? Of course it does! Alternatively, if you're feeling particularly ambitious, you can pan fry up some chicken tenders in a little sesame oil and soy sauce, slice them up like the eggs, and have another element to your noodles.

So, how do you guys feel about instant ramen? Is it one of those foods that you avoid like the plague? Have you ever had the opportunity to eat real ramen in Japan? And, most importantly, do you have any alternative ramen recipes worthy sharing? Tell me in the comments!

Some holiday recipes

One of my favorite things to do during the holiday season is mail munchies to people. Not only do I get to eat the leftovers (that is, after all, the chef's prerogative), but you can't really go wrong with giving people food. There's blood and sweat and toil in those goodies!

Right. Now, since I can't possibly gift munchies to all of you guys, I thought I'd at least share the recipes I used. Sound good?

The only picture I took. And it was to update my cookbook.

• Melt in the Mouth Caramels
  This is a recipe I'm pretty familiar with, as I've made these caramels about five times. I prefer softer caramels though, so we only cooked the mixture to 235ºF on the candy thermometer. It might just be an elevation thing though, so make sure to use the cold water test.
  
  
• Molasses Chocolate Chip Cookies
  One of my favorite chocolate chip cookie recipes. The molasses and sea salt really bring out the chocolate flavor, and the recipe makes a lot of cookies. We used semi-sweet chocolate chips because, uhh, we just did.
  
  
• Peppermint Bark
  Definitely my favorite peppermint bark recipe--I think the puffed rice cereal adds a necessary crunch. We we drizzled melted almond bark over the top of our finished bark, which was pretty and tasty. Just check that picture!
  
  
• Peanut Butter Balls
  Which are delightful and easy to make. But it's Boyfriend's recipe . . . and I'm not sure if I can share it. Sorry? O_O They look like this though:

This picture is actually from last year. Also for the cookbook.

ANYWAY. What treats do you guys make around the holidays? My family also whipped up sugar cookies, lemon bars, horns, and Russian teacakes. ^_^ Tell me what you munch on in the comments.

5 fabulous favorite foods

Knowing what kind of food a person likes says a lot about them. Are they a traditionalist rooted in meat and potatoes, or do they prefer things made out of foam? Keeping this in mind, what are the favorite (and maybe even least favorite) foods of the characters you write about? Easier question: can you list five of your favorite foods? I sure can! And now I'm going to:

Chips and Salsa
This might be the result of growing up in a community with a fairly large mexican population, but I don't care. Not only are chips and salsa delicious, but they're relatively healthy. I mean tortilla chips are a step above other chips *cough*potato chips*cough* and salsa is made from delicious, delicious vegetables.

Image credit to mooshee85

Eggs in every shape and form
It's called the incredible, edible egg for a reason. They're a protein goldmine and considering that breakfast is my favorite meal of the day . . . well, it all just compounds to awesomeness. Eggs can be fried, boiled, saladed, baked in a quiche, thrown on top of a hamburger, etcetera, etcetera, etcetera.

Image credit to myheartbehaves

Bagels with cream cheese
Okay, yeah, I know, this one is kind of weird. But I really like bagels and I really like cream cheese. And I'm not even talking flavored cream cheese or interesting bagels. Both of those things rock, but I seriously start salivating for just a plain, toasted bagel with boring, ordinary cream cheese. Just. So. Good!

Image credit to Birdny123

Sushi
I don't how or why, but sushi rice, assorted veggies, and sea critter bits wrapped in seaweed is tasty, tasty stuff. Also, there's nothing else like it. I enjoy the classic rolls, but I really get excited about recipes that take traditional ingredients and twist them into something new. Blue Hashi's Sleepwalker Roll is delightful.

Image credit to Wes_AW

Ice cream!!!
Hahaha, you know those people who can finish off one of those huge cups at Coldstone Creamery? Umm, yeah. That's me. It's creamy and made from milk and sugar . . . what's there to dislike unless you're lactose intolerant? Nothing. Because ice cream is always good. Especially cookies and cream. Yum!

Image credit to ivan.leung

Keep in mind that this is only five of my favorite foods . . . the, uhh, things I would want on that deserted island with me, you know? But there are still a bunch of other things I love. Like corn chowder and mashed potatoes and peach pie. *drools*

Oh crap, talking about all of this is making me hungry. >_> But before I run off to the kitchen, tell me, do my favorite foods tell you anything about me? If so, what? And, even better, what are your five favorite foods and why do you love them so? Are they things you have regular access too, or are your favorites something special? Tell me in the comments!