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
This is amazing. There are so many good things about this:
– It’s my bfs fav meal
– It’s the only way I’ll eat mushrooms
– It’s easy
If you are considering trying this, do yourself a favor and just try it!
★★★★★
Thank you so much, Shelly!! So happy to hear that! 🙂
Tried this tonight with my Kids, as we are all trying to get over a summer cold. It is delicious, I should preface that my kids are adventurous when it comes to food, however this is simple and easy.
★★★★★
So glad to hear it! Thanks, Warren!!
The serving size, I felt, was off. Even splitting the amount of noodles and broth in half was too much for one person; it could have been for 3-4 people at the most. Also, the amount of ginger was way too much, so much so that it was overpowering and made me sick. The ginger could have been a little less or none at all. I cut out the shiitake mushrooms with skin-off chicken breasts, so other than some minor problems with the recipe, everything else was perfect.
★★★
Next time just open up a box of chicken broth add whatever u like (probably nothing because you obviously like your food bland) add some noodles and call it Ramen. Goodness, or simply make your own recipe. *Rolls eyes*
Or, and I’m going out a limb here considering that fact that I find it’s extremely hard for people to keep their rude comments to theirselves, you can stop being a bigot and keep your irrelevant and judgemental opinions to yourself. I never even said that I like my food bland, so where you got that from, I don’t really know. I’m sorry, is it not ok with you, your highness, for people to not like certain things? I didn’t realize you were my mother, my mistake.
This sounds so delicious can’t wait to try it, I’ve been looking for a halal recipe for Ramen since forever ,thank you so much
★★★★★
So incredibly tasty! I used fresh shiitakes, sliced, and added them to the broth during the simmer. I didn’t have ramen noodles so I used udon noodles.
★★★★★
This was absolutely delicious! My fiance and I were in the mood for a low-key evening at home and, as it turns out, homemade ramen & dessert with prosecco at home was the perfect evening to end a very long week. The recipe was easy to follow and was quick to make without buying a lot of ingredients (we already had a fairly well-stocked pantry). We did substitute coconut aminos for soy sauce without any discernible change in flavor from other ramen recipes we have tried in the past. Also, instead of using skin-on chicken (first started in a skillet and finished in the oven), we chose to use boneless, skinless chicken cooked entirely in the oven (375 degrees F for about 35 to 40 minutes). The only thing I might add next time would be wasabi sprouts (not spicy) or clover sprouts. This is more for personal preference as I can’t say anything was lacking in the depth and complexity of the flavors in this recipe. Overall we were very happy with the way this recipe turned out and we will definitely be making it again!
★★★★★
I’m eating this right now…it’s my first ever attempt eat trying or even cooking Japanese ramen and this is absolutely amazing.
★★★★
So yum, thank you!
Thank you, Laura. I’m slow in the kitchen and it still only took 1:20. Very, very tasty. I subbed sherry cooking wine for the mirrin. Earned the Master Chef’s seal of approval! 😉 Cheers, Bill
Simple Homemade Chicken Ramen, WOW just fantastic, thanks very much..
★★★★★
It was a great dish! I didn’t add the egg or mirin so I obviously missed more flavor but it was sooo tasty!
★★★★
Very Delicious recipe, i made the broth myself with chiken wings grated ginger garlic spring onions, fry in medium heat and boil.
I also added Japanese sea weed so to have a crunchy and deep sea flavor into it
This recipe is so simple and delicious! Easy to modify- I used shrimped instead of chicken. My whole family (2 year old included!) loved it!
★★★★★
Delicious!! My husband, 4 year old, & I loved it. Very easy, but did take me some time to make.
HI Laura,
Made this yummy recipe last night but substituted lobster stock and added shrimp and bok choy. Great, easy recipe that both myself and hubby devored. I was thinking of substituting the ramen noodles with zucchini or sweet potato to decrease the calories. What do you think?
I made the chicken ramen noodle soup for dinner a few nights ago and it was absolutely to die for…I was so happy..It was easy..so tasty and looked just like your picture so tnku I will be trying more of ur recipes
This is a great recipe! It was my first time making ramen and it was delicious. How long can I keep this for in the fridge?
★★★★★
This was fantastic! My family was so impressed – my son said that it was so good he “even ate a mushroom!”. I used chicken from a Rotisserie chicken that I bought earlier and I made the broth from the bones…That may have helped the “salty” factor that others have commented on. Also added some finely chopped spinach so that I felt I was getting some veg! That broth was divine!
★★★★★
This looks delicious I will try this tonight. Thank you for the recipe.
★★★★★
Easy, delicious and a great recipe with limited ingredients. Thank you for making me look like such a pro in the kitchen tonight. I’ll definitely be making this one again!
★★★★★