Category: In the Kitchen

Fancy Ramen using Not-So-Fancy Ingredients

Ramen has been growing in popularity in the past couple of years, which is a real head-scratcher to those who only ate it in college due to the ten-packets-for-a-dollar price tag. San Diego has a bunch of fancy ramen places that have grown in popularity (like RakiRaki and Underbelly), and consider me a real convert.

Doug and I made such pretty ramen at home last night that I had to document it, then I thought, considering how easy it was, that I should clue others in to this cheap and easy meal. Even though spring has come (yay!!) I know that cloudy and rainy days (snowy, in some parts in the country) will still show up in the next month or so, so have this recipe in your back pocket and you’ll have something easy and warm to eat.

Ramen at Home

Needed for one bowl:

Ramen packet
Miso paste
One egg
Green onions
Radishes
Soy sauce
Sriracha
Black sesame seasoning (mainly for looks)
(We also added carrots, which was not my favorite addition)

You probably have many of these things in your fridge/cupboard right now. The most expensive things on this list would probably be the soup base and the soy sauce, but broken down into a per-meal price, this whole bowl of soup probably comes to less than a couple dollars.

Instructions: 

Bring two and a quarter cups water to a boil. Once boiling, add the egg. Let the egg boil for three minutes, then add ramen noodles and boil three minutes, according to packet directions. (The egg will be boiling for a total of six minutes).

While the egg/noodles are boiling, chop as many green onions as you like, and slice the radishes thinly.

When the timer goes off, fish the egg out with a spoon, run under cold water, and peel. Be careful because the egg will be soft-boiled and easy to squish. While the egg is cooling off (before peeling, I guess) add the soup paste to the water and noodles, and stir to mix. Sometimes I use a little less than the soup base calls for and sneak in a little bit of the seasoning packet that comes with the ramen ;)

Serve up in a deep bowl. Add the egg (you can cut it in half with your spoon as you eat) and top with radishes, onions, sesame, and soy sauce/sriracha to taste.

Told you it was easy! Do you have any super-cheap go-to meals? Share the recipe with me! 

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Tabletop Topics

My fifth anniversary is coming up this weekend, so weirdly I have been thinking about dishes. I’ve been getting really into browsing Etsy in every moment of spare time. If I were getting married today, I would set up an Etsy registry and sign up for a bunch of pretty vintage china.

When Doug and I got married we registered for Crate and Barrel Aspen dinnerware, and I am still so happy with it. No chips, breaks, or anything in the past five years (knock on wood). We use it for two to three meals daily and have used it when large groups come over instead of buying (and subsequently throwing out) paper partyware. If something were to break I like knowing that they still carry it. I didn’t register for “fancy” china because honestly I wasn’t, and still really am not, a “fine china” person. But I was so ill-informed. I didn’t know all the options out there! Still, I probably wouldn’t use it. But… my collector side begs to differ. Now, I just want to have an amazing, colorful, retro, collection to gaze at 24/7.  The struggle!

The good thing is that my white set can mix and match with anything! Especially these patterns which I am totally crushing on.

Villeroy and Bosch, Acapulco (’83-’91)

This is it. This is the one. I am sure of it. Those prices, though! This would be an amazing thing to get pieces of here and there and build up a set over time. Hint, hint; family and friends.  More drool worthy pieces here on Etsy.

Studio Nova, Hi-Fi (’85-’87)

I passed up a set of this at Goodwill a couple of years ago and to this day I regret it! (Stereo would be an OK one too but Hi-Fi has that special something!) Check out more pieces here. This similar pattern is cool too.

Figgjo Lotte

This set is not as bright and vivid as the two patterns above but the cute little people on them get me every time. They are so adorable and I love the Scandinavian flair! Shop Figgjo on Etsy.

Honorable mention: Fiestaware. Every time I dine somewhere that uses Fiestaware I want to go out and buy up a huge mix and match bunch and serve all my food on the bright and fresh colors.

Did you register for fine (or not so fine) china? Are you still in love with your pattern, or has your taste evolved over time? Do you know any patterns I need to check out? Let me know in the comments :)

Thrift Score Thursday!

Okay, I finally know the secret to thrifting in Southern California. Get outta town! Seriously though, going to smaller suburban locales produces many more treasures than hitting the same old picked-over nearby places. I found some really cool stuff for my Etsy shop and some other cool stuff for my permanent collection.

Milk Glass Teacup

Check out these precious mugs and saucers I scored! I don’t know how old they are but I haven’t been able to identify them anywhere. The general shape makes me think that maybe they are older than you’d think– more teacup shaped than mug shaped, and very similar to the pink teacups in my mom’s depression glass collection. The disappointing part was that someone at Salvation Army had written on the bottom of them with a sharpie, “set of 10.” Despite their best efforts three pieces had been separated and I snagged three teacups and four saucers for a discount since it was an odd number. I did get the sharpie off using goo gone, and then later, rubbing alcohol. Definitely keeping these!

Jadeite Bowl

This item I’m on the fence about keeping. I loooove the look of jadeite but this is my first piece, since it’s so rare to find any in thrift stores (gets snatched up too fast!). Should I list it so that someone with an extensive collection can add it to their goods? Or should I begin a jadeite collection of my own? What does a person need with a single cafeteria-sized cereal bowl?

Every Thursday I have had so much fun checking out various bloggers’ scores (or photos of the items that got away). One of the ring leaders is Brynne who I recently started following on twitter. Check out her #thriftscorethursday posts here— 33 weeks running!