When I woke up this morning, I wasn't hungover like crazy, but I could feel my body craving some salt and protein and probably some iron, too. I usually long for that combination after a night of drinking, but instead of getting a burrito or a personal pizza with dark green veggies (I don't know how much protein that has, but it usually fixes me right up), I decided I wanted soup. Seeing as I was unemployed for several months before starting my first day of work and haven't been paid yet, I couldn't justify spending $8 some veggie noodle soup from the nearby pho place in my city.
My solution? Ramen.
I had never tried making ramen any differently from cooking the noodles and adding the seasoning packet, but I knew that today I needed my soup to pack more a punch where both protein and iron were concerned, and I wanted it to be as cheap as possible. So I decided to try something new.
I went to the grocery store and bought these supplies:
Chili flavored Top Ramen*- $0.30
Firm tofu- $2.15
12 eggs- $1.70
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Total- $4.15
This is how I made the soup:
I put the water on to boil, following the instructions on the package. While I waited for the water to boil I whisked the eggs together in a bowl. I set that aside and opened the package of tofu. I poured the water from the package into a tupperware container, so I could marinate the leftover tofu for tomorrow. One serving of tofu, according to the package, is about 1/5 of the package, so I cubed one fifth of the tofu and set that aside. The rest I sliced and put into the tupperware container with the water to marinate later.
When the water boiled I added the noodles and the tofu. When the noodles were about ready, I added the egg, stirring the pot so that they wouldn't stick to the bottom. I took the pot off the heat and added only about 1/4** of the seasoning packet, although you can include as much as you want.
It tasted pretty good, although a little bit bland, because I omitted most of the seasoning packet. It did make me feel more rejuvenated and filled me up really well. I think in the future, I'll buy some spinach or some other vegetable to include as well. To make up for using less of the seasoning packet, I think I will mix some powdered onion, garlic, and ginger into the broth next time as well. Altogether, though, I was pretty happy with the results of my experiment and will probably make this again soon.
As for the tofu I set aside for marinating, I mixed in some powdered spices, soy sauce, oil, and water, covered it, and put it in the fridge overnight. I don't know how it will turn out, but I will update you if it turns out the be a success.
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*Chili and Oriental flavored Top Ramen are vegetarian... except for the possibility of one ingredient listed on the package. Natural flavor. This is what I found when I looked up exactly what "natural flavor" is. Natural flavor can come from a lot of different sources. Some of them are vegetarian and vegan friendly, others are not. When I made my ramen, I elected to roll the dice and take the chance of ingesting some animal byproducts by including the seasoning packet. If you don't want to take the chance I would suggest a splash of soy sauce, and some powdered onion, garlic, and ginger. I haven't tried that mix myself, but I do know that when I make Campbell's Tomato Soup, adding a few pinches of powdered onion and garlic makes all the flavor difference in the world.
**I get freaked out by huge amounts of sodium. 1 package of Chili Top Ramen contains 2 servings, with 780 mg of sodium per serving.That's 1560 mg of sodium. The recommended daily allowance of sodium is 2,300 mg (the equivalent of 1 tsp of table salt) for healthy adults. Knowing that I was going to eat the whole package and not wanting to eat 68% of my recommended sodium for the day in one sitting, I elected to include less of the seasoning packet and make up for the decreased flavor with lots of black pepper.
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