Back to the changing season that is fall.

Leaves are changing, temperatures are cooler, and days are shorter…….except in Southern California. As I write this, the temp is predicted to be 94 today. Even with that, I’m shifting to more heavy foods as requested by my crew.

A while back (as in years ago), we tried Ramen, but I did not like how it came out.

One thing about the technology age, if you don’t know something, you have plenty of blogs, pages, and video to learn from. This was no different. As we know, the general rule is if I can make it at home, that’s what we do. Of course, there are exceptions, like Ramen.

We are planning to go to DTLA (Downtown Los Angeles) to have a family day of restaurants and such but until then, here we are!

Let’s talk ramen! What is it? Well it depends on who you talk to. Thanks to tasteatlas.com this was best definition I read with history #awinisawin

“Ramen is a noodle soup that first appeared in Japan in 1910, when Chinese cooks combined the noodles with a salty broth. These curly noodles were of bright yellow color and more elastic than the Japanese noodles prepared at the time – the dough was kneaded with a sodium carbonate-infused mineral water called kansui.

In 1958, its name was derived from the pronunciation of the Chinese word lamian (pulled noodles), and that same year, Nissin Foods produced the first-ever instant version of noodles with a chicken-flavored broth called Chickin Ramen.

Shortly after, the dish started to be exported around the world. Ramen should be cooked al dente and eaten quickly while it is still hot. It is not recommended to leave the noodles sitting in the broth for too long, as they tend to become too soft and mushy.”

Of course, I want to be respectful to other cultures, but it seemed open and simple. Right up our alley for a dinner. I don’t like to over complicated things. I also wanted to celebrate my kids diverse taste in food. As I was searching, a ton of recipes came up, but I felt like I was still beginner in this area, so we kept it simple yet modified it.

The first option was a big soup pot or will I use my crockpot?

You know I used my crockpot! I got stuff to do, like submitting my last final for this semester. Let the crockpot do the work for me not against me.

Protein. What will one choose? As I said in a previous live I did in a Facebook group, this is an open-ended soup. It kinda depends on who you are feeding, and what you can afford. I saw recipes even for tofu or vegan ramen. We chose chicken thighs because I had a lot of it, it goes further than most meat choices AND cooking bone in gives the ramen more flavor.

Yes. You want the bone in meat. The bone adds more flavors to the broth. Trust me, you’ll thank me later.

That leads into my first loophole. I didn’t have time to cook broth from scratch, so I bought the great value chicken broth, family size.

Ok. We got the broth and protein covered. Now for the important part. The costars of the meal……..vegetables!

I wanted the crew to eat more green beans, so I drained some, and threw them in. I chopped some bok choy (get some at an international store, it’s cheaper), celery, carrots, onions, and mushrooms and added that all in the crockpot. Turned it on and walked away.

Here’s the big part!

5 minutes before it’s done, pull out a bowl and open up some ramen noodles you have. I bought the top ramen brand. I didn’t use the seasoning packet, because their was no point. You have seasoned soup in the crockpot. Use a ladle to pour some of the ramen soup over the noodles. It then cooks the noodles in the bowl.

Yes it will be hot, so be every careful serving. This had to be some of the best soup I had in such a long time. Even with it being over 90 degrees outside. I was cozy, full, and happy. The crew was happy, and we had leftovers. #awinisawin

I believe it’s a keeper, I just wish I remembered the sweet chili sauce!

It’s ok, next time, it’s on and crackin!

Here’s the recipe, and I hope you enjoy it!

Slow Cooker Chicken Ramen Soup

Crockpot liner

4 lbs bone in chicken thighs, cleaned

1/2 stock Bok Choy, diced

1 can of green beans, drained

2 cans of musrooms, drained

1/2 of diced mirepoix mix (celery, carrots, onion)

2 boxes chicken broth family sized

12 packs of ramen noodles, flavor optional.

Line your crockpot with the bag, and then put all the ingredients in except the noodles. Cook on high for 4-6 hours. Before serving, put ramen noodles in a bowl, and then spoon out ingredients over the noodles. This will cook the noodles since the soup is really hot. Serve with boiled eggs, sweet chili sauce, teriyaki sauce, or just as is.

Let me know if you try it, AND what you decide to use in your ramen soup!

~CSM~