Raid the Fridge Fridays: Teriyaki chicken ramen

Back in 2020, when Gaylord and I started travelling New Zealand together, I was expecting to spend the next couple of months living off Pot Noodle. Then the world turned upside down, we all went into confinement, and those Pot Noodle dreams were poured down the drain, just like all that excess preservative-heavy liquid at the bottom of every pot. My diet and my gut were no doubt cheering.

Now, ramen and Pot Noodle shouldn’t really be associated – in fact, it’s probably insulting to ramen to be considered in the same breath as a Pot Noodle.

However, I will say that my version of ramen has more in common with Pot Noodle than any authentic ramen that you could buy in Tokyo.

You know those packets of ramen noodles? They are usually vac-packed and come with a sachet of who-knows-what-exactly, but apparently, it’ll flavour your ramen to taste like teriyaki chicken. This is exactly what I picked up at the supermarket the other day, you may be alarmed to know.

But wait! All is not lost for this is a cooking blog and I am also a snob. As I stood over my pot of boiling water, staring at that sachet of teriyaki chicken powder in my hand, I decided which path I had to take.

The path of the stock cube.

Which, technically, is no better. But this is a Raid the Fridge lunch recipe, or this case, raid the spice cupboard. Let’s make life easy for ourselves.

So, into my boiling water went a stock cube, spoonfuls of soy sauce and sesame oil, then aromatics like garlic, ginger and shallot. But what about that delicious teriyaki chicken flavour, you may be asking?

Well, my chicken thighs were already marinating in homemade teriyaki sauce – rustled up with some more soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, brown sugar, honestly this lunch really is a pillage of the cupboards. Those bottles and spice jars don’t know what hit them, and unfortunately, there’s no cumin-Robin Hood to save the day. The chicken can be quietly roasted while you potter around with the soup but keep the extra teriyaki sauce as you’ll want that to flavour your vegetables. I chose broccoli and mushrooms for simplicity’s sake. Blanch the broc in the broth and sauté those mushroom slices in more garlic, ginger and shallot – the more aromatics the better, I need less association to Pot Noodle – then pour in that teriyaki and let it bubble away until it’s thick and treacly.

Then it’s time to layer in your bowls – broccoli, teriyaki mushrooms, noodles, aromatic-and-stock-cube broth, a crispy-skinned teriyaki chicken thigh, and all the garnishes – sesame seeds, coriander, chilli, spring onions.

Your glamourous Pot Noodle is served.

Teriyaki chicken ramen/Pot Noodle

Prep Time: 25 mins

Cook Time: 20 mins

Course: Lunch, Dinner, Main Course

Keyword: teriyaki, chicken, noodles, broth

Servings: 2

Ingredients

Teriyaki chicken thighs

• 3 tbsp soy sauce

• 2 tbsp rice wine vinegar

• 1 ½ tbsp brown sugar

• 1 tbsp rapeseed oil

• 1 clove garlic

• 1cm chunk ginger

• Pinch of chilli

• 4 chicken thighs

Broth

• 700ml water

• ½ stock cube – chicken or beef

• 1 tbsp soy sauce

• 1 tbsp sesame oil

• 1 shallot

• 1 garlic clove

• 1 inch chunk of ginger

• 4 large florets of broccoli, chopped into smaller pieces

• 3 mushrooms, sliced

• 2 packs of quick-cook noodles

• Sesame seeds, coriander, spring onions, chilli

Instructions

• In a plastic tub, mix together the soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, brown sugar, rapeseed oil and the pinch of chilli flakes. Crush the garlic and grate the ginger, then mix them into the marinade. Submerge the chicken thighs, cover with a lid and chill in the fridge until needed.

• When ready to cook, preheat the oven to 200C/180C fan/395F. Once hot, put the marinated chicken thighs in an oven dish without the extra marinade, and cook them for 20 minutes or so until the skin is crisp, and the meat is cooked through.

• Finely chop the shallot, garlic and ginger, and combine in a small bowl or ramekin.

• Bring the water to the boil in a saucepan and crumble in the stock cube. Add the soy sauce, sesame oil and a spoonful of the shallot, garlic and ginger mixture. Throw in the broccoli pieces to blanch for 5-7 minutes.

• Heat a frying pan with a splash of oil then add the mushrooms and the rest of the shallot, garlic and ginger. Stir fry until fragrant and then pour in the extra teriyaki sauce. Let it bubble away for a couple of minutes.

• Once the broccoli is cooked, scoop out the pieces and split them between two bowls. Top them with the teriyaki mushrooms and all the sauce. Add the noodles to the pan of broth and cook for 2 minutes.

• Pile the cooked noodles on top of the mushrooms, cover in broth, then add a piece of teriyaki chicken. Garnish with your favourite toppings: sesame seeds, chilli flakes, spring onions and coriander.