Simple Homemade Chicken Ramen
Easy homemade chicken ramen, with a flavorful broth, roasted chicken, fresh veggies, lots of noodles, and a soft cooked egg. Inspired by traditional Japanese ramen, but on the table in under an hour.
The Honey’s parents are American ex-pats living abroad in Tokyo, Japan, and while visiting them over the last seven or eight years, he’s collected dozens of favorite eateries throughout the city.
There’s the best izakaya in Kichijoji, serving up casual Japanese pub food, and countless kiten-zushi restaurants, where my English-speaking Honey can choose small plates of freshly-made sushi from a moving conveyor belt without having to order in Japanese.
He always makes sure to buy at least one Pocari Sweat from a vending machine (think Japanese gatorade), and of course, there’s his favorite ramen shop in Shinjuku, a tiny, crowded restaurant with a line out the door. Paintings of pigs adorn the walls, and big, steaming bowls of pork ramen are served to hungry patrons at a single bar counter.
what you’ll love about this easy chicken ramen
Real Japanese ramen, the kind that my Honey tells stories about, takes years and great skill to perfect. I wanted to create a simple ramen noodle soup that reminded him of Japan, but could be made quickly, with ingredients on hand.
I opted for chicken instead of pork, but kept the rest of the ramen vibe somewhat traditional: a killer chicken soup base with garlic, ginger, shitake mushrooms and soy sauce, filled with squiggly ramen noodles and slices of succulent chicken, and topped with fresh spring onions and a soft-boiled egg.
My version is on the table in less than an hour – and half that if you opt for store-bought chicken – and while it might not be completely authentic, it’s a flavorful, comforting soup just in time for the unmistakably crisp, chilly autumn weather that these first days of October have ushered in.
Be sure to check out these other weeknight dinner favorites:
- Easy spinach and goat cheese pasta
- Ginger noodle soup with Swiss chard
- Lemony kale and white bean soup
If you make this ramen, be sure to tag me on Instagram with the hashtag #forkknifeswoon and leave a comment and rating below letting me know how you liked it! Star ratings are especially helpful because they help others find my recipes too. xo, Laura
PrintSimple Homemade Chicken Ramen
- Prep Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 45 mins
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 2 Servings 1x
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Saute, Pan-Roast,
- Cuisine: Japanese, American
Description
Easy homemade chicken ramen, with a flavorful broth, roasted chicken, fresh veggies, lots of noodles, and a soft cooked egg. Inspired by traditional Japanese ramen, but on the table in under an hour.
Ingredients
- 2 chicken breasts (boneless, skin-on)*
- kosher salt and freshly-ground black pepper, to season
- 1 Tbsp unsalted butter
- 2 tsp sesame or vegetable oil
- 2 tsp fresh ginger, minced
- 1 Tbsp fresh garlic, minced
- 3 Tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
- 2 Tbsp mirin
- 4 cups rich chicken stock
- 1 oz dried shitake mushrooms (or 1/2 cup fresh)
- 1–2 tsp sea salt, to taste
- 2 large eggs
- 1/2 cup scallions, sliced
- 2 (3 oz) packs dried ramen noodles
- optional: fresh jalapeño or chili slices, for serving
Instructions
Cook the chicken: ¹
- Preheat the oven to 375℉. Season the chicken generously with salt and pepper.
- Melt the butter in a large oven-safe skillet over medium heat. Add the chicken, skin-side down, and cook until the skin is golden brown and releases easily from the pan, about 5-7 minutes. Flip the chicken over and cook for another 4-5 minutes, until golden.
- Transfer the skillet to the oven and roast for 15-20 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through. Remove from the oven, transfer the chicken to a plate, and cover with foil until ready to serve.
Make the ramen broth:
- Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat until shimmering. Add the garlic and ginger, and cook for a few minutes until softened. Add the soy sauce and mirin, and stir to combine. Cook for another minute.
- Add the stock, cover, and bring to a boil. Remove the lid, and let simmer uncovered for 5 minutes, then add the dried mushrooms. Simmer gently for another 10 minutes, and season with salt, to taste.
Make the soft-boiled eggs:
- Fill a pot with enough water to cover the eggs, and bring to a boil. Gently lower the eggs (still cold from the fridge) into the boiling water, and let simmer for 7 minutes (for a slightly-runny yolk) or 8 minutes (for a soft, but set-up yolk).
- Meanwhile, fill a large bowl with ice water. When the timer finishes, transfer the eggs to the ice bath to stop the cooking process. Wait at least 5 minutes, or until cool enough to handle, then carefully peel away the shell and slice in half, lengthwise. Set aside until ready to serve.
Assemble the ramen bowls:
- Meanwhile, chop the scallions and jalapeño (if using). Slice the chicken into thin pieces. Set aside. When the eggs finish cooking, add the ramen noodles to the boiling water.
- Cook for 2-3 minutes, until soft, then divide the noodles into two large bowls. Add the sliced chicken and the ramen broth. Top with the fresh scallions, jalapeño, and the soft boiled egg. Serve immediately. Enjoy!!
Notes
¹ Ask your butcher to remove the rib bone from the chicken breasts (leaving the skin on), or use bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts and increase the oven roasting time 5-10 minutes, as needed. You can also cut your ramen prep time in half by using a store-bought whole rotisserie chicken, simply slice off as much as you wish, and add to the ramen.
Keywords: ramen, chicken ramen, homemade ramen, easy ramen, japanese, soup, dinner, noodle, broth, quick, healthy
Delicious! I made the broth and cooked the chicken on a Sunday and then put it together for Monday dinner.
Next time I would add more mirin, soy and ginger because I like lots of flavor.
★★★★★
Thanks so much, Cindy!!
Made this tonight. The store I went to did not have dried shitake so I thinly sliced some baby Bella and added them when I added the broth to the pot. Did not use the jalapeños. All 3 adults loved it! Thank you
★★★★★
Happy to hear it! Thanks, Rebecca!!
Made this with pork belly instead of chicken and it came out amazing. Broth alone is an awesome base for anything you want to put in it.
★★★★★
Yum! Thanks, Phil! 🙂
This looks like a nice easy meal. I have to try this, thanks.
★★★★★
Thanks, Lisa! Enjoy!
mine exploded i dont know how i think my cousin put fireworks in it never got to finsh but it smelled amazing the whole time thank you for the recipe
★★★★★
Well that’s a first! 😉
I sautéed chicken thigh in a Dutch oven and after the chicken was cooked, I used fresh mushrooms and sautéed them until dry then declared with sherry and soy sauce. So I did change it up to build up my stock flavor a little more, but this recipe would be great regardless.
★★★★
Thank you, Joe!
Great recipe, I just builded on it a bit by adding oyster sauce and fish sauce. I used rotisserie chicken to cut on prep time for an easy lunch.
★★★★★
Thanks so much, Lauren!!
This recipe is really good and very easy to execute. I looked at a bunch of recipes on the internet and this one felt like the easiest, but you don’t sacrifice depth of flavor in the end result. My one mod is that I made the soft boiled eggs beforehand and marinated the eggs in a soy sauce/mirin mix, to get a true “ramen egg” which I would recommend. I’ll probably marinate the chicken in the same concoction next time to, to marry the flavors. I also added napa cabbage to the toppings and put chili garlic sauce on the bottom of my bowl to make mine spicy (husband prefers mild). But that’s the best part about this recipe – great simple-yet-flavorful base to add your magic to!
★★★★★
Thanks so much!! 🙂
Great recipe, I added some bean sprouts and cilantro and it was amazing
★★★★★
Thanks, Brandon!!
This recipe was so, so good! I added carrots and peas to the recipe and everyone really enjoyed it.
★★★★★
Thanks so much, Veronica!!
Thank you for the egg tip!! That was the only thing we thought to change.
★★★★★
This has become my go to Ramen recipe, simple, easy and totally wholesome. Just what I need after three days of rich food during Christmas. I do move away from the recipe slightly by adding a chilli to it for a small kick.
★★★★★
Thank you, Dafy!!
This reminds me of the chicken ramens I’d have while in Japan. Great recipe and thanks for sharing.
★★★★★
Thanks so much, Cameron!! 🙂
This was very easy to make and incredibly delicious! I did not like the broth first hand in the pot. But when combined with the ramen, they tasted delicious!
★★★★★
Thanks, Han Ly!!
Recipe was fantastic! Only thing we changed to save time was using a store bought rotisserie chicken
★★★★★
Thank you, Justin!! One of my favorite shortcuts 😉
Made this for my family and they loved it!
★★★★★
Thanks, Lily!! So happy it was a hit 🙂
My first Ramen from scratch – it was amazing!! Will make this again! Perfect for a winter’s night
★★★★★
Thanks so much, Wendy!!
Just made this and it was great, do you know how many calories or the basic nutritional info on this meal?
★★★★★
Thanks, Tommy!! I don’t add calorie info but there are lots of online tools to calculate that 🙂
New to cooking were would I find rick chicken stock? Could we make it at home?
Hi, Sarah! Homemade stock is always best, but any good quality, flavorful store-bought chicken stock is fine (just not a watery broth). Enjoy!!
So good. We just ate it. So, so good. Now we nap.
★★★★★
Ha! 🙂 Thanks so much, Jenna!
Made this for lunch today for the family. Used boneless skinless chicken, and no egg. Also used chinese noodles (China Bowl Select Chinese Noodles) from Whole Foods. The broth was really tasty (used Eden brand Mirin Rice Cooking Wine).
Everyone added the ingredients that they wanted (some wanted Jalapeno, some green onion, some everything).
In the end very little was left…straightforward and simple to recipe to follow. Perfect meal for a chilly and damp day. Thanks!
★★★★
Thank you, Rob!
Came out so good, could not find mirin so used a spoon of sherry
★★★★★
Thanks, Anil!!