No More Ramen

Easy, budget-friendly recipes for folks with little time and even less money!

[no-more-ramen]

Fast potato

This is my 0 spoons go to. You can use a regular or sweet potato. Either way is yum! Who doesn't like potatoes?

Ingredients

1 (one) potato

plastic wrap

water

(optional) butter or butter substitute

(optional) seasonings that would taste good on a potato.

Directions

rinse potato in the sink, make sure it's fully bathed (wet)

stab your potato a few times with a fork

silence its screams and wrap it completely in a layer of plastic wrap

microwave 7-10 mins depending on the size of the potato.

take potato out of microwave, be careful unwrapping it's hot!

add butter and other seasonings to taste.

[no-more-ramen]

Lentils & Rice

One of the cheapest, easiest meals I know of; tastes pretty decent even with just salt and pepper, but can be wonderfully flavorful if you have the budget to invest in a few spices. (Lots of folks know this I'm sure, but in case you don't: you can save a lot on seasonings at most Asian or Hispanic markets if there's one near you, or if you shop at a big-box-type grocery, they probably have a sort-of-hidden little wall or stand [look around the produce] with spices that come in bags from a more generic brand instead of the expensive bottled ones you find in the main aisles.)

One pot, no chopping if you use only powdered seasonings. Makes about four hearty servings. Leftovers are great warmed up, but also taste pretty decent cold, in a pinch.

Essentials:

1 cup dried lentils (brown or green - I just get the store brand bag)

1 1/2 cups rice (I use brown; white is fine but don't get anything that cooks too quickly)

3 1/2 cups water

salt & pepper

oil for frying, if using fresh onion/garlic

a few tablespoons of olive oil (or melted butter, or some other type of oil/fat that you like the taste of - fat is really important here to bring out the flavors, to fill you up and to help digest all the fiber)

Optional seasonings - onion, garlic and broth/bullion are the basic easy ways to add flavor:

1 small white or yellow onion, or 1/2 a large one, diced (sub a couple teaspoons of onion powder if you don't want to cut it up)

A few cloves garlic, minced/pressed/grated (again, sub powder if you like)

Vegetable broth or bullion cubes to sub for water -- or chicken if you aren't veg

Paprika, especially good smoked

Minced jalapeño, cayenne pepper, chili flakes or whatever other ways you like to add spice

For a curry flavor -- a couple teaspoons yellow curry powder, plus a few shakes of any warm spices you like such as ginger and cinnamon

For a Tex-Mex-type flavor -- a teaspoon of cumin, a teaspoon of chili powder, a teaspoon of oregano

Instructions:

Heat a little oil in a saucepan/pot (2.5 or 3 quarts is good) and cook your onions, stirring occasionally, until quite soft. If you like them caramelized, keep the heat on low and let them sit a little more until they start to brown.

Add your garlic when the onions are almost done and cook for a minute or two until you can smell it.

Add your other seasonings and let them fry a bit until they smell nice and strong too. (If you don't have fresh onion and garlic, it's still nice to cook the spices in oil before you add the water and everything; flavors are stronger that way.)

Add your water/broth. If you have white rice, add both the rice and lentils; bring to a boil, then cover and simmer for about 20-25 minutes. If you have brown rice, add that alone; bring to a boil and simmer for 5-10 minutes, then add the lentils and keep simmering for another 20-25 minutes.

Feel free to taste to see when the texture gets to your liking. The times above leave things slightly on the firm side, but you can always add another 1/4 cup of water if it's mostly boiled away and you think you'd like it softer.

Drizzle with more oil just before serving.

[no-more-ramen]

German red cabbage

Ingredients: One head red cabbage, shredded, heart removed 1/2 onion, diced 2 cloves garlic, minced 1 small apple, peeled and diced 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar 1 tablespoon oil 2-3 tablespoons sugar (optional) 1/4 teaspoon allspice Salt/pepper Directions: 1. In a large pot with a lid, heat oil medium-high. Cook the garlic and onions until fragrant. Add apple, and cook 1 mintue. 2. Add cabbage. Stir so that all the cabbage is wilted. 3. Add vinegar and cover pot. Turn heat to medium low. 4. Let it cook 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally. 5. Add salt, pepper, allspice, and sugar to taste. 6. Keep covered and simmering, stirring occasionally, until cabbage is as soft as you like.

[no-more-ramen]

No more ramen-ramen...

So I know this blog is trying to get people away from those packaged ramen noodles (and I understand why) but when my wife was pregnant she craved ramen and I wouldn’t make her the packaged stuff (it has a ton of MSG) so I got a little creative. Traditionally ramen is noodles served in hot broth. So here is my recipe Things you will need: Pot A spoon Your imagination Ingredients: Broth your choice (my wife likes chicken broth but you could use any, I haven’t tried it with veggie broth but it would still work) Rice noodles (I prefer the stick noodles but any will work) Veggies! Things like peas, bean sprouts etc. are all really good And Soy (my favorite soy is silver swan but any will work really) Soft boiled egg (optional) Meat ( if you are using chicken broth I suggest chicken, beef with beef etc.)(optional) Directions: Prepare the rice noodles according to directions on package. Warm your broth separately (I find this gives the soup a better flavor) and season with soy to taste. Put the broth in your serving vessel of choice and place noodles in second, top with meat and raw veggies and egg, if you wish to you can also garnish with a piece of seasoned seaweed. This on my opinion tastes better than the packaged version and even better you can control what you are putting into it. I have seen people use tofu in the place of meat. This is a simple recipe and as long as the broth is nice and hot the options are limitless!

[no-more-ramen]

Cold Peanut Sauce Noodles

Okay, a bit of backstory:

I've gone all of May and June with no paycheck (yay graduate school!) and writing my July rent check wiped out my checking account. And the postal service lost my tax refund, so that was money I was relying on that I can't get for another three weeks. So I'm going "oh dear oh dear oh dear how will I feed myself until [various little things I've been expecting] pop in?" 

(N.B.: I did not say "oh dear," but I want to keep this submission family-friendly.

A couple of notes: I have tagged this recipe as "vegan" and "vegetarian." It is definitely vegetarian in its base (but you can add meat if you have it and want it). I didn't check my ingredients to see if they were all vegan, but if you're vegan, my guess is that what you have handy for this is also vegan. Because it's vegetarian, it's kosher. I express no opinion on whether it's halal. SO, without further ado, here's how I fed myself for almost three days:

1. Start your favorite pasta boiling. No, it doesn't matter what. BOIL THAT PASTA. Wanna use fresh? Go for it. All you have is half a bag of linguine left over from spaghetti sauce six months ago? That stuff ain't gone bad, use it up.

2. In a measuring cup, add:

2 parts soy sauce

2 parts peanut butter (you can use sesame seed butter or almond butter or tahini if you're allergic to peanuts)

2 parts fresh ginger (or as much ginger as you can stand)

1 part sesame oil

1 part chili garlic paste (or sriracha, if that's what you have, or hot sauce, if that's what you have)

salt, sugar, sesame seeds, and cilantro to taste (so if you think cilantro tastes like soap, leave it out)

3. Blend until smooth. A stick blender is the best option here, but anything (even a whisk) that gets the job done. Taste it - MAKE SURE YOU TASTE IT. If it's too spicy for you (like my first batch was), add sugar or honey or soy sauce. Too salty? Add sugar or honey or the spicy. Too dark (flavor wise, not color wise; dark flavors should remind you of chocolate)? Add more ginger. Too bright (bright flavors should remind you of vinegar)? Add more peanut butter.

4. Drain your pasta (cook it well past al dente, you don't want the leftovers to get crunchy in the fridge).

5. Toss sauce over pasta. Feel free to not use all the sauce; your goal is to coat, not swim. The amount of pasta should determine the amount of sauce you use. For half a pound of pasta, "2 parts" above should be "1/4 cup." (For those who don't keep conversions in your head, that means "1 part" is "2 tablespoons."

6. Go to town. If you made more than about a quarter pound of pasta, go to town for about three days.

[no-more-ramen]

Calzones

If you've never had calzones, they're like giant folded pizzas, or giant pizza pops. They're delicious and easy.

Preheat your oven to around 450 degrees Fahrenheit.

You will need:

- 1 premade pizza dough (not precooked - use gluten free if you want!)

- Cheese (use pre-grated if you want, I use my food processor to grate mine - we like mozzarella, but use what you like)

- Pizza sauce 

- Whatever toppings you want, like olives, mushrooms, pepperoni, anything your little heart can think of

What you do:

1. Roll the dough out fairly thin. Use some flour if needed to keep it from sticking. You want kind of an oval shape.

2. Spread a very light layer of pizza sauce over the whole thing, leaving about a half inch to an inch border free.

3. Add toppings. I like to do a couple layers of toppings and cheese starting with cheese at the bottom, and ending with cheese on the top for even distribution. 

4. Lightly oil a large cookie pan (I cover mine in tinfoil because easy clean-up) or use something like semolina flour if you wanna get fancy, and get that thing on there as best you can. (I suggest spatulas and being as quick as possible.

5. Cook for about 15 minutes, keeping an eye on the bottom to prevent burning.

LET IT COOL FOR A MINUTE BEFORE EATING SO YOU DON'T BURN YOUR FACE OFF. 

[no-more-ramen]

Tuna and White Bean Salad

This recipe from Budget Bytes is very easy and yummy, and decently healthy too! If you leave out the green onions or find them pre-sliced, it could easily be made a no-chopping recipe as well.

Ingredients:

1 5oz can of tuna

1 15oz can of white beans

1 Tbsp olive oil

juice of one lemon

2 whole green onions

salt and pepper to taste

optional: dash of hot sauce

Instructions:

1. Drain the tuna and beans

2. Put the tuna and beans into a mixing bowl

3. Chop the green onions

4. Add the green onions, lemon juice, olive oil, salt, and pepper to the mixing bowl. Mix to combine.

That's it! Very quick. This recipe makes two meal-sized servings for me, and could easily be doubled for meal prep.

It's great by itself, but also work on top of fresh greens or some toast if you're feeling it. I top it with some hot sauce to serve, but that's super optional. Enjoy!

[no-more-ramen]

Homemade Tortilla Chips

I learned this super easy way to make tortilla chips at home from an old roommate. It's super cheap, easy, and it tastes pretty good. All you need are: - corn tortillas - vegetable oil - salt - a microwave (although, I'm sure you could bake these in the oven) - any other toppings you'd like to include Evenly coat both sides of a tortilla with oil and add salt to taste. Place the tortilla onto a ceramic plate and microwave for 1 minute 30 seconds (my microwave is 1200 watt, cook time may change depending on your microwave). 🔥 Be careful, it's very, very hot! 🔥 Let it cool, then break into smaller pieces and enjoy!

[no-more-ramen]

Mushroom chicken

Pretty good copycat of Panda Express mushroom chicken, pretty cheap and tasty. Made enough for 3-4 servings with rice. Ingredients: -1lb Chicken thighs boneless and skinless, cut into small cubes (abt 3-4 thighs) -2 cups white mushrooms sliced into pieces (abt 8-10 large mushrooms) -2 cups zucchini or yellow squash, sliced and cut in half moon shapes (1 large zucchini) -1 tablespoon oil for cooking (I used vegetable oil bc it was a little hot and olive oil doesn’t do as well at high heat) -optional: 1 cup carrots, cut into matchstick size pieces. You could add other veg too -optional: 3 cloves chopped garlic (I really love garlic but there’s some in the sauce so up to you) For sauce/marinade: -2 tablespoons soy sauce -1 tablespoon red wine vinegar (rice wine vinegar would be better but I used what I had) -1 tablespoon sugar -2 tablespoons garlic powder -1 tsp black pepper -1 tsp ginger powder -1/2 tsp chili powder Step 1: Make sauce. Mix together the vinegar, soy sauce, sugar, garlic powder, ginger, pepper and chili powder. Step 2: Marinate. Put the chicken in a bowl or ziploc bag and cover with the sauce. Let it sit in the fridge for a few hours—I left mine overnight and cooked it the next day but even 30 mins should be ok. Step 3: Heat a large frying pan or skillet on high heat. You want the pan to be pretty hot. Add 1 tablespoon of cooking oil to the pan. Step 4: Once the oil is hot, use a spoon to add your chicken to the pan. Leave most of the sauce in the bowl if you can do the sugar doesn’t burn. Spread it in a thin layer and let it cook, stirring occasionally so the pieces cook on all sides. Step 5: Once the chicken looks almost cooked, add the mushrooms. Let them cook for about a minute, stirring. Then add the rest of the veggies you are using. Step 6: Pour in the rest of the sauce left over from marinating the chicken. Add chopped garlic now if you are using it. Stir everything until it is coated lightly with the sauce. Step 7: Cover the pan to help the veggies cook, check on it occasionally but maybe 3-5 minutes. Once the squash has started to soften remove the lid and cook uncovered for a minute or two until everything is cooked. Step 8: Serve over rice and enjoy! This recipe is a little more work but it definitely felt worth it as a healthy alternative to fast food. You can cut and prep everything the night before, or buy precut produce, then throw it together the next day in 15-20minutes. I had the spices and things on hand, so I only spent ~$5 for the chicken and veg. Pretty cheap for 4 meals and it felt like a treat!

[no-more-ramen]

Chile Lime Chicken

Ingredients -1 lb boneless skinless chicken breast -1-2 tablespoons lime juice -1 tablespoon olive oil -1 tablespoon garlic powder -1/2 tablespoon paprika -1/2 tablespoon cumin -1/2 tablespoon chili powder -1/2 tablespoon onion powder -1 tsp salt -1 tsp black pepper Directions 1. Mix spices, olive oil, and lime juice. Coat chicken in mixture. Let sit in the fridge for 30 minutes. 2. Preheat oven to 350 F. Put the chicken in a foil lined baking sheet, and cover with foil (basically you want a packet to cover the chicken). 3. Cook for 20-30 minutes until chicken reaches 160 F. Let it rest for 5 minutes or so. That’s it! It goes really well with rice or on top of salad, or chopped up for tacos or quesadillas. If you wanted more texture you could grill it or cook it on the stove top, but I wanted to keep it simple for meal prep.

[no-more-ramen]

Easy Orange Chicken

I saw this as a Facebook post and tried it out today. It’s delicious and incredibly easy! Ingredients 1. Pack of raw chicken breasts 2. Jar of sweet orange jam or marmalade 3. 1 cup bbq sauce 4. 2 TBSP soy sauce 5. (Optional) regular or instant rice Instructions: 1. Cube or thinly slice the chicken breasts. 2. Sauté with the orange jam and sauces until thoroughly cooked. 3. Serve over rice if you have any. 4. Enjoy! 🤤 (If you are only cooking for yourself or even two people this can also make leftovers)

[no-more-ramen]

Chocolate Chip Banana Bread Bars

You will need: 🍌 5 very ripe bananas 🥄3/4 cup brown or white sugar (i use white) 🥄1/4 cup oil OR omit if you use 3 eggs instead of 2 🥛1/4 cup milk (non-dairy works too-i use vanilla soymilk) 🥚2 eggs (or 3 if you omitted the oil) 🥄1 and 3/4 cup flour (i use all purpose but it works with wheat) 🥄1/2 teaspoon salt 🥄cinnamon and cloves to preference 🍫1-1 and 1/2 cup chocolate chips 1. Mash bananas! Add sugar, oil (if applicable), milk, and eggs. 2. Then add in flour, salt, cinnamon, cloves, and chocolate chips. Preheat the oven to 350F while doing this. 3. Get a large pan, spray with nonstick spray or shortening or whatever you use to make sure the food you bake doesn’t stick. Then add the batter. 4. Bake for about 20 minutes or until a utensil or toothpick stuck in the middle comes out clean. Notes: I make this without oil and baking soda, which makes these babies moist and soft. They don’t rise. If you prefer a more drier and risen texture, add 1 teaspoon of baking soda. I do not know if gluten free flours work well in this recipe but nondairy milks do. Subbing applesauce for eggs may make these very moist, make sure you use oil as a binding agent. (Coconut is supposed to work great for this one). Dats it! I eat these so much, they never last long and it’s easy and cheap. Enjoy!

[no-more-ramen]

Mushroom Soup

This recipe makes around 6-8 servings and freezes well. You will need a large pot to cook it in and a blender. If making it dairy free I recommend using a dairy free spread rather than oil if possible as it does add to the flavour.

Ingredients

2 tbsp butter (or vegan alternative)

1 yellow onion

approx 450g mushrooms (I like chestnut mushrooms but use whatever type you want)

2 cloves of garlic

1 can of coconut milk

700ml of stock

1 tsp of nutmeg

1/2 tsp of paprika

salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:

Melt the butter in a large pot, chop the onion and garlic and add to the pot.

Either chop or just break up the mushrooms, adding the to the pot as you go. Size doesn't matter because it'll all be blended. Stir everything in the pot occasionally so it doesn't burn.

Once the mushrooms are added make the stock and pour it over. Bring to the boil and then simmer for around 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add the coconut milk and blend using a hand-held blender. Scrape the bottom of the pot with a spoon to ensure you get all the large chunks.

Add the nutmeg, paprika, salt and pepper. Adjust quantities to suit your tastes. 

[no-more-ramen]

Easy Gravy

This recipe has saved me so many times making mashed potatoes!

Ingredients:

Chicken or beef boullion cubes (substitute with chick'n vegan boullion cubes and your easy gravy is vegetarian and vegan friendly!)

Flour

Butter or butter substitute

Instructions:

In a saucepan or small pot, heat boullion cubes with water until they are completely dissolved. Use 1 cup of water + 1 cube for every cup of gravy you want to make. So 2 cups of gravy, would be 2 cups of water and 2 cubes.

In a separate pot, mix your flour and butter together, using 2 tablespoons of flour for each 2 tablespoons of butter. This will be your roux. Cook the roux on medium heat for about 3 minutes.

Slowly pour the boullion water into the roux and stir/whisk constantly. You want to pour slowly and mix quickly to avoid lumps. Mix until the gravy is desired consistency and lump-free.

Taste test before serving, and add anything additional if you'd like (salt, pepper, spices)

[no-more-ramen]

for peeps who rlly like asian foods but are allergic to soy, maggies seasoning sauce is a wheat based alternative that tastes virtually the same. my small town only has it in the asian market right now, but one town over has it at general grocers like safeway and albertsons, and ive heard of people finding it at paces like walmart too

thx for the tip!! 

[no-more-ramen]

Pasta in a Pepper Bowl

These are super easy, hearty, and nutritious. Also, they freeze very well (both before and after baking) if you’re meal prepping.

Ingredients:

Four large bell peppers, I prefer green and yellow for the colour contrast.

Pasta, I think I used “4.5 servings” or half a large-ish bag. I used a short and curly pasta but I think bowties or spaghetti noodles would work great. To make this gluten free, sub in rice. Adding summer squash as well would be especially good with rice.

Spaghetti sauce, about half a costco-sized jar, maybe about a normal family-sized jar or large can.

Ground meat (or meat substitute or more veggies), about ½-2/3 of a pound. I used beef, but pork or turkey sausage would be great. 

Shredded cheese, I used parmesan. Optional.

Tools:

Pasta pot

Baking dish

Pan to cook meat in

Spatula for cooking meat

Big spoon for filling peppers

Steps:

Set the oven to about 350F.

Cook your pasta until it’s just a tiny bit too underdone for you, then drain it and leave it in the pot.

Cook your ground meat and drain/rinse if necessary, or prepare whatever you’re using in place of or in addition to ground meat.

Put your ground meat (et al.) and pasta sauce into your pasta pot and mix it with your pasta. 

Mix in as much cheese as you want.

Cut the tops off your bell peppers and take the seeds and white part out of them. Wash them thoroughly and place them upright in your baking dish (you can help them stand with tin foil crumpled in the bottom if you need to).

Stuff the peppers with pasta and sprinkle the tops with as much cheese as you want. I had a whole bunch of extra pasta, I could have filled at least three more peppers easily. I just froze it in a ziplock for dinner another time. 

Cover the baking dish with tin foil and bake for about 20 minutes. Until the peppers are as soft or still crisp as you want them.

Uncover the dish and bake for an additional 10-15 minutes. Until the cheese is as bubbly or crispy as you want it.

Done! Enjoy!

[no-more-ramen]

Tomato Salad

This is my go to on a low or no spoons day, and depending what dressing you use can be vegetarian or vegan friendly! Ingredients: • As many tomatoes as you want, or have the energy to chop up •Salad dressing of choice. Obviously you can add more but most days I’m not up for that haha Instructions: 1. Rinse off your tomato(es), then chop those suckers up however you’d like. 2. Drench in salad dressing. Done! It seems so simple, but usually I don’t have the energy to make a whole salad, tomatoes are good for you, and if you experiment with different dressings you get some variety there. :)