Rediscovering that inexpensive college favorite, ramen noodles, has been an amazing culinary journey. I started quite innocently sautéing garlic, red chilies and red onion in extra virgin olive oil (EVOO). Then I scooted them to the side, cracked an egg and scrambled it quickly with a wooden spoon until it was beautifully fluffy. Next I doused the skillet with a glass of water, turned the dial from “medium” to “high,” dissolved the flavor packet, brought the water to a boil and added the noodles.
I took the above process up a notch the day I substituted toasted sesame oil for EVOO. Originally, I’d bought the toasted sesame oil to make a dip. As that oil sat untouched for months after making the recipe once, I grabbed it to sauté some veggies for ramen noodles and I’ve not looked back since.
The incredible flavor and depth toasted sesame oil brings to ramen noodles just hasn’t grown old for me. I’ve tried it in many more different combinations than I have presented below. Usually, I’ve just not bothered to take a picture of my plate before digging in.
For this version, I used frozen Asian vegetable mix with baby corn, edamame, red peppers and string beans and of course a scrambled egg. The orange slices frame the meal as a dessert.
For a rare moment in my diet, I actually had both broccoli and cauliflower! They must have been on sale for me to have bought them that week. I know for a fact mangoes were on sale the week I bought them.
After moving to Austin from Honduras, I boycotted buying these “expensive” fruits, which happen to be my favorite, since I had to pay more than a few pennies/nickels/dimes like I’d paid for them in Tegucigalpa.
I rounded out my vegetable bouquet with my usual kale, red onions and carrots. As dark as this dish appears, I must have used a few tablespoons of peanut powder to add a more pad thai flavor to the dish.
Around this time, small Texas peaches were in season. I love how their color contrasts with the red cabbage.Yes, another picture with red cabbage…a lesson learned: buying even the smallest head of cabbage means I’ll be eating it for nearly a month! I originally bought it to make a curried vegetable stir-fry for a potluck, but only ended up using about 1/4 of it for that delicious dish. Not that I’m complaining. I’ve had a wonderful time putting it in many other dishes along with my ramen noodle 2.0 creations, especially with these chopped navel oranges.