Miso Ramen with Shitake and Chicken ~ this Japanese noodle bowl is an amazing protein packed 30-minute meal that also happens to be low calorie, low fat, and utterly delicious!
Here in the US ramen is synonymous with bare-bones, pre-packaged, microwaved eating on a budget, but in Asia, ramen has a long honored history as fine food. The fresh noodles were originally hand pulled by skilled chefs. This authentic version (minus the hand-pulled noodles) is a gourmet meal.
This is heartier than my Miso Soup but it’s based on similar flavors. The ramen noodles, the chicken, egg and the extra vegetables elevate it to a main meal. Everything is fresh, barely cooked, and delicate but the flavor is robust thanks to the red miso paste, a hot chili pepper, the rich shitake mushrooms, and a drizzle of sesame oil.
It’s a symphony of textures, too, from the slightly chewy mushrooms and noddles, to the crunch of the corn and red bell pepper, to the juicy bok choy, and finally the creamy egg.
You’ll find ramen noodles in the Asian section of your store. They cook up in just 4 minutes.
The Japanese have the longest life expectancy on the planet, so it makes sense to explore their diet and take a few tips from how they eat. I do always feel instantly healthier when I eat Japanese food. This meal contains no fats or artificial ingredients, and has a beautiful visual appeal. The only thing it has in common with the little packets of ramen is that it’s budget friendly.
Serve this miso ramen with chopsticks, or a spoon and a fork, but either way, be prepared to slurp 🙂
Reader Rave ~
“I tried this recipe to the T, and it really was a wonderful experience. The miso paste adds most of the flavor, and the bok choy and mushrooms add wonderful texture. Thank you for this recipe.” ~Bianca
Miso Ramen with Shitake and Chicken
Ingredients
- 1 ear fresh corn kernels removed
- 1/2 red bell pepper finely chopped
- 1 cooked chicken breast sliced on the diagonal
- 1 hard cooked egg halved
- about 4 oz dry ramen noodles use rice noodles for gluten free
- 4 cups water
- about 6 medium shitake mushrooms cleaned and sliced
- 1 hot chili pepper thinly sliced
- 2-3 baby bok choy sliced (including the green leaves)
- 6 scallions sliced
- 2 Tbsp red miso paste
- sesame oil
- sesame seeds
Instructions
- Microwave the corn kernels for about a minute just to take the raw edge off and set aside.
- Set aside the bell pepper, chicken, and egg, in separate bowls, for garnishing the finished soup.
- Cook the noodles in boiling water for about 4 minutes. Drain and put in two wide shallow soup bowls.
- Heat the water to a simmer and add the mushrooms and the hot pepper. Simmer for a couple of minutes.Add the bok choy and the scallions and simmer for a minute or so more, just long enough to bring out the bright green color.
- Turn off the heat and stir in the miso paste. (You do this off the heat so as not to destroy some of the beneficial nutrients in the miso paste) Stir well until the paste is completely dissolved.
- Pour the broth over the noodles in the two bowls.
- Garnish with the corn, red bell pepper, and egg halves.
- Finish with a sprinkle of sesame seeds and a drizzle of sesame oil.
notes and variations
- You'll find lots of different types of noodles in the Asian or International section of your supermarket, you can experiment with them in this dish, too. If you have trouble finding them, check Amazon
- For more info on how to buy, use, and store Japanese miso paste, see my post on HOW TO USE MISO.
Don’t forget to pin this Miso Ramen with Shitake and Chicken!
29 Comments
Mary McConnell
January 2, 2021 at 5:58 pmI made this for dinner tonight and it was delicious! I have never cooked with miso paste and now I will always have some in my fridge. My husband raved. I will make this often, so simple and so yummy! Thank you for this wonderful, nutritious recipe.
Josh
February 20, 2018 at 10:08 pmThis really is a great looking recipe Sue – but I’m absolutely IN LOVE with that blue and white bowl you’ve used! Do you mind me asking where you bought it?
Sue
December 30, 2018 at 5:25 pmMy bowl is part of the Spode “Blue Room” collection Josh, and I think the particular pattern is called Primula. Here’s a link to the collection on Amazon, but I scrolled a bit and couldn’t find my exact bowl.
aqui
February 20, 2018 at 1:44 pmWonderful recipe, I enjoyed it so much, the recipes on this site are very good.
Patricia
June 14, 2017 at 9:47 pmThis looks delicious! Can’t wait to try this one out. I only have the miso paste that is darker. Do you think it will work well with this recepie?
Sue
June 15, 2017 at 6:43 amYou can use any of the miso pastes, Patricia, it won’t make any difference except in the flavor, and they’re all good!
J.
January 3, 2017 at 12:41 amI can’t wait to make this gorgeous ramen!
I love your beautiful blue and white bowl <3 Who makes the bowl?
Sue
December 30, 2018 at 5:27 pmMy bowl is part of the Spode “Blue Room” collection, and I think the particular pattern is called Primula. Here’s a link to the collection on Amazon, but I scrolled a bit and couldn’t find my exact bowl.
Alycat
February 2, 2016 at 9:51 amlove your website, cant wait to cook everything 🙂
Sue
February 2, 2016 at 9:59 amWelcome in Alycat!
Julianne
October 26, 2015 at 8:12 amWhat kind of hot chili pepper did you use? Or is it personal preference?
Sue
October 26, 2015 at 8:19 amIt’s your preference Julianne, I go with whatever my store has at the time!
Nathan B.
September 10, 2015 at 6:58 pmIt tasted alright with egg noodles but needed chicken broth base not water. It filled my family up very quickly so was able to keep serving sizes fairly small.
Bianca
September 9, 2015 at 7:20 amI tried this recipe to the T, and it really was a wonderful experience. The miso paste adds most of the flavor, and the bok choy and mushrooms add wonderful texture. Thank you for this recipe.
Sue
September 9, 2015 at 10:31 amSo glad it worked out for you Bianca. I need to make it again now that the weather is cooling down.
Nina
December 10, 2014 at 5:07 pmThe first time I make a recipe, I usually follow it to a T, as I did with this soup. I rarely if ever change any of the ingredients or the amounts.
This soup makes a lovely presentation. BUT… the broth itself tasted bland, like a water soup without much taste. We added more miso paste and some soy sauce. It was OK, but still not that flavorful.
My measurements were exact and I had enough for 4 good sized bowls, and since there are only two of us, I had enough left over for two more bowls. So the next day, I heated a can of Swanson low sodium chicken broth and added the left over noodles and veggies and a about a half of a tablespoon of the miso paste.
It was excellent. The ‘new’ broth was perfect and changed the taste completely – from the original water broth to a rich flavorful broth. I will definitely make it again and again.
Sue
December 10, 2014 at 6:06 pmThanks for the feedback, Nina. I do think miso broth is an acquired taste, it is very delicate and to our modern Western standards it may seem bland. I like that about it, but I can also appreciate that the chicken stock must have been wonderful!
Sarah | Yahoo! Shine
September 10, 2012 at 8:45 pmHeavens this looks good! It would be a perfect addition to this month’s Yahoo! Shine Supper Club. Hope you’ll join us!
Sarah | Yahoo! Shine
September 10, 2012 at 8:50 pmAn informative link would be helpful! http://shine.yahoo.com/shine-food/share-weeknight-chicken-recipe-shine-supper-club-191200897.html
Mary
September 5, 2012 at 12:33 pmP.P.S. That is just off the top of my head. Now, if I were really planning a trip, I’d visit your recipe index immediately and provide you with a much more detailed list. I’m super easy like that. 😉
Mary
September 5, 2012 at 12:32 pmoh, yes. This looks amazing!!! Want to laugh? I was cleaning out my pantry just yesterday and I found a bunch of those noodles. I just stared at them and couldn’t remember for the life of me why I bought them. I tossed them… sad. I need to find a good gluten free noodle for dishes like this one. I’ve tried a few and they just haven’t been quite right. The search continues.
P.S. When I do come and visit you, I’d like a first course of this soup, followed by your mushroom marsala pasta (that I still haven’t made yet!) and then chased by your refrigerator chocolate cake, your lemon poppyseed cake and at least 2 each of all your shortbread cookies. Okey doke? Oh, and I’ll need at least 6 of your thin mints for a midnight snack.
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Kitchen Belleicious
September 5, 2012 at 1:41 amokay first of all I realize these are not the packaged little ramen noodles from the store but seeing the word reminded me of my brother who always tried to gain weight in highschool (yeah not fair I know) and he would come home and make like a huge bowl of ramen noodles from 3 packages and then put hot sauce and butter in it! I WAS LIKE WHAT! it was gross- yours are not the case though- this dish looks amazing, so flavorful with the mushroom flavor. I wish I had a huge bowl myself
belleau kitchen
September 4, 2012 at 8:40 pmoh Sue, I honestly think you’re gonna have to get the spare room made up for an impending visit… with the food you’ve been preparing lately I just have to move in!… this is divine!
Eileen
September 4, 2012 at 5:49 pmThis looks amazing! Real ramen for the win. 🙂 It’s super hard for us to find ramen in restaurants since there is vegetarianism to consider–making it at home is clearly the best possible solution.
Heather Schmitt-Gonzalez
September 4, 2012 at 6:13 pmI absolutely LOVE ramen bowls like this…I could eat them everyday. Wishing I had one now, actually. YUM.
hobby baker
September 4, 2012 at 4:38 pmIt certainly is beautiful! We haven’t been able to do ramen for years because of allergies to all the additives so I can’t wait to try out your recipe! Just need to find some good noodles… Thanks for sharing!
Averie @ Averie Cooks
September 4, 2012 at 4:09 pmIve been catching up on my Top Chef Masters episodes on m DVR and this looks like something the chef Takashi would make – and he keeps winning all the challenges! Gorgeous, Sue!
Tricia @ saving room for dessert
September 4, 2012 at 4:07 pmThis looks beyond delicious. It looks perfect! I wish I could order this somewhere and have it at least once a week. It is beautiful. Oh maybe I should just make it!