Instant ramen noodle fried rice

My teenage son is addicted to instant ramen noodles. His cousin got him hooked on them a few years back and he’s been making them as snacks and quick meals since then.  When he has friends over he often makes them as a midnight snack as they watch movies or play computer games into the early hours of the morning. Yes, I know they are incredibly unhealthy & saturated in salt and artificial flavors but it gives him a bit of teenage autonomy and it does show a bit incipient spirit of hospitality with the making of food for his guests.

My son considers himself a connoisseur of the instant ramen noodle, he buys them himself and favours the extra spicy Korean brands, so when I saw this recipe for two of his favourite things fried rice and instant noodles I knew I had to show him how to make it. Basically it is just crunched up noodles cooked with egg and rice but it really is freakishly good. It has now expanded my son’s cooking repertoire and is something he loves to make if we have leftover cooked rice in the fridge. He even made it for my partner and me for dinner a couple of weeks ago and it was delicious!!!

In this time of corona you can’t go out for a cheap, quick meal and even takeaway seems a bit too much effort it’s good to have fast almost instant meal to have on hand. If you haven’t got any cooked rice you can charge up your instant ramen noodles like Korean-American chef Roy Choi by poaching an egg in the soup, adding a nob of butter and a couple slices of cheese. The butter and cheese coats the noodles and give them an extra flavor boost. If you want to go for the full glamour look sprinkle some toasted sesame seeds and scatter chopped green onions on top.

Instant Ramen Fried Rice

Adapted from Serious Eats

Feeds 2 or 1 very hungry teenager

• 1 packet of instant ramen noodles
• Boiling water
• 3 tablespoons of neutral flavoured oil
• 1-2 eggs, whisked
• 1 cup or so of cooked rice (about the same amount of the noodles)

1. Crush noodles with packets of spices in a plastic bag or bowl. Pour boiling water over noodles until just covered. Don’t use too much water or your rice will be soggy.
2. Heat oil until it shimmers in a non-stick wok or frying pan.
3. Add eggs and stir, until lightly scrambled and almost cooked.
4. Add rice and stir round, breaking up lumps until mixed with egg about 1-2 minutes
5. Add noodles with liquid to rice and cook stirring until rice and noodles are heated through and liquid has evaporated.
6. Serve immediately.