A simple recipe today for a fake Chashu Ramen you can make when you’ve got almost nothing in the house, like we do. It’s simple, it’s tasty and it goes a little something like this:

3 oz of uncooked ramen (for the love of Thor, not the freeze-dried kind, try for real ramen if you can!)
2 quarter-sized slices of fresh ginger (peeled and crushed)
3 C ready-made chicken, pork or beef broth (we used chicken)
4 hard-boiled eggs (peeled and cut in half from pole to pole)
2 large handfuls of fresh baby spinach
2 standard sized hotdogs (cut into strips)
Soy sauce to taste

Prepare your ramen according to the instructions on the package then drain it into a colander and rise with cold water to stop the cooking process. Set aside.

In a wok or large sauce pan bring the broth, hotdogs and ginger to a low boil then reduce the heat and simmer for a good 5 minutes. Turn the heat back up and add your salt and a few dashes of soy sauce. Return to rolling boil.

In a decent sized bowl portion out a fourth of the noodles in one fourth of the bowl, dedicate one fourth of the bowl to spinach, another fourth to hotdog strips and the final fourth to one of the hard boiled eggs (cut side facing upward). Once your bowl is arranged, ladle your boiling broth over the top and cover it your bowl with a bowl lid or plate for a few minutes.

It serves four, it’s cheap and easy to make and very tasty. It’s not really chashu ramen but still good when you don’t have a lot in your house. Be sure to serve it with a little red chili sauce and maybe some hot mustard.

I know I haven’t posted a recipe in forever and ever, but this one is one I created on the fly (and suggest you not get too bogged down about measurments, either!). It’s for yummy sweet ginger citrus chicken stir fry, and it goes a little something like this:

Veggie Base:

1/2 C each: Frozen Broccoli Florets, FrozenSnap Pea Pods, Canned Water Chestnuts, Red and Yellow Peppers (julienned)

3 Slices of FRESH Ginger Root (Can’t stress this enough, must be fresh!)

Dash of: Salt, Sesame Oil

Glazed Chicken:

3 – 4oz boneless, skinless chicken breasts, uncut.

Juice from half a lemon

3 T Pineapple Duck Sauce

1 tsp. Raw Minced Garlic

2 tsp. Raw Shredded White Onion

2 T Pineapple Mango Marmalade or Orange Marmalade

Dash of: Cinnamon, Fresh Grated Ginger, Salt, Pepper, Shoyu

Method:

Put your wok (or skillet, but I prefer a wok) over a medium flame and add a few dashes of your favorite sesame or peanut oil with half of your garlic and half your onions until translucent with a nice, fragrant aroma. Now add a dash of shoyu and a dash of your lemon juice and turn the heat up to medium high.

Lay your chicken breasts thickest side down in the pan and cook on medium high for 5 minutes. Once they’ve gotten a good browning on one side, add more sesame oil and shoyu and flip them over to their other side – cook another 2 minutes. Now you want to take your spatula and start to cut the chicken breasts into 1 inch by 1 inch pieces and turn the heat back down to medium.

When the chicken is almost cooked through (important – cannot be entirely done!), add the rest of your lemon and another dash of sesame oil to the pan and turn the chicken over to coat well. Now add the duck sauce, the rest of your garlic and onion, the marmalade and the rest of your spices to the pan and continue to cook on medium for another 5 minutes, stirring constantly until the glaze starts to thicken and the chicken is cooked through. Set this aside in a bowl with as much glaze as you can scoop out with your spatula – we want about a teaspoon left in the wok.

Deglaze the pan with a mixture of shoyu and a little sake (not much, only a tablespoon or two) then add your veggies and spices all at once (unthawed). Cook on medium heat, stirring constantly, until veggies are cooked through and the thawed water is evaporated. Push them over to the side of the wok and add the chicken back to the pan and turn the heat down to low. Now reheat on low for a few seconds, which will help melt the glaze enough that you can use your spatula to stir the meat and veggies together.

You can have it on rice if you want, but I liked it all by itself. Sorry my photos aren’t better, I was in a hurry and only had my phone! My total prep time and cook time was about 20 minutes – fast and delicious!