Kourtney Paranteau never stopped loving the “Asian-inspired” chicken salads that filled chain restaurant menus of her youth, even if she was embarrassed to admit it, but as she got older she realized she could make an even better version. Here is her take in this classic, with preserved kumquats replacing sad tangerine segments, a silken miso dressing rather than sticky and sweet one, and deep fried Umi yakisoba noodles for irresistible crunch.
Read moreBirria Ramen (aka Birriamen)
There’s only one way to improve upon the pure culinary genius of birria ramen: use Umi Organic noodles. And you don’t have to use take-out birria consomé (broth) or spend hours making it—by using a pressure cooker and boneless stew meat, this pared-down version of the exquisite Mexican stew makes it a more weeknight-friendly endeavor without sacrificing any of the complexity.
Read moreDan Dan Noodles with Ground Beef
This is my adaptation of a Fuchsia Dunlop recipe from her book The Food of Sichuan. She writes, “The following is my own re-creation of a legendary and unique version of dandan noodles served in a tiny restaurant near Sichuan University… These noodles are not for the faint-hearted—they are shamelessly spicy, but utterly delicious.” These dan dan noodles were even more satisfyingly delicious than I’d imagined AND it took almost no time to make, which shocked me. This is going to become a regular thing. If Fuchsia Dunlop’s is a re-creation, then mine is even one step further removed—an adaptation of a re-creation. I’ve changed some of the promotions I hope you will make it your own.
Read moreNaomi's Shio Chicken Ramen
Oops, Naomi tool a bite of tofu before snapping this picture!
Ready for a weekend project? Our friend Naomi Molstrom shares her recipe for delicious classic Japanese shio chicken ramen!
Read moreNaomi's Chicken Paitan Ramen
Naomi is the maser of inspiring from-scratch cooking. Chicken ramen is among Naomi’s favorites, and so we asked her to share some recipes. What follows is her chicken paitan broth and instructions on how to build a bowl. The word paitan means “white soup,” a reference to the cloudiness of the broth. As Naomi tells us, making broth is time consuming, but once everything is ready to use, making ramen is super quick. This is a recipe for someone looking for a kitchen project that yields a spectacular result.
Read morePork Wonton Noodle Soup
“When I’m already assembling homemade dumplings, the extra labor of hand-making noodles isn’t worth the bragging rights, and Umi Organic’s ramen noodles remain the best store-bought ramen noodle I’ve encountered. This wonton soup rests handmade pork dumplings, bok choy, and bamboo shoots on a nest of Umi Organic Ramen Noodles, then floods the bowl with an aromatic ginger broth. This soup will sooth your lingering winter chills and surpass anyone’s cravings for chicken noodle soup.”
Read moreBetty's Seasonal Yakisoba
“I love the versatility of yakisoba. When I was growing up, my mom prepared yakisoba using pork, carrots, cabbage, onions, and bean sprouts. Since I live in Portland where we have access to a wide variety of vegetables on a year-round basis, I use whatever seasonal vegetables I have on hand for my yakisoba. I always aim for at least 5 colors in all of my meals and yakisoba makes it easy to achieve my goal.”
Read moreCumin Lamb Sesame Noodles
Local author, recipe developer, editor, gardener, creatinve genius and all around cooking inspiration Heather Arndt Anderson shares how to turn our Noodles with Miso Sesame Sauce and 1/2 pound of lamb stew meat into a sumptuous meal reminiscent of the rugged Xinjiang Province. Cumin and lamb are hallmarks of Uyghur cooking, and Umi’s chewy, bouncy noodles make a fine stand-in for traditional hand-pulled biangbiangmian.
Read moreJammy Ramen Eggs, 2 Ways
Creating our perfect ramen egg has been something we’ve slowly worked on as we prep for one farmers market after another. What are we looking for in a great ramen egg? The white should be cooked, though tender. The yolk should start runny, but time spent in a salt-brine should cure the yolk, deepening the color to a vivid orange and transforming the texture into something jammy, gooey, akin in texture to dulce de leche. The egg should taste savory but not aggressive. Here are our rules of the road and recipes for steaming and boiling our perfect ramen egg.
Read moreKatherine's Simple Ramen with Baked Salmon and Ginger
This recipe shared enthusiastically with us by Katherine Deumling of Cook with What You Have is incredibly simple, and that’s the beauty. You’ll have to start with a store-bought or homemade broth, but once that’s in the bag, the rest comes together easily. The salmon recipe, on its own, is a keeper! Katherine is right: The fresh ginger is the key here!
Read moreStacey's Farmy Okonomiyaki
Okonomiyaki means “pancakes as you like them” and this is how Stacey Givens, chef extraordinaire of the Side Yard Farm & Kitchen likes hers. This is a true taste of Pacific Northwest farm as summer blurs into fall. And the ground cherry sauce is ridiculous!
Read moreJane's Yakisoba Pan
Yakisoba-pan was born in the 1950s, at the equivalent of a Japanese diner where bread had become a common yakisoba side dish to sop up the rich, glistening sauce. It takes the chewy savory noodles and tucks them into a milk bun known as koppe-pan that looks deceptively like a hotdog bun. Jane Hashimawari of Ippaipdx shared her recipes for one of the greatest after-school snacks of all time!
Read moreLola's Yakisoba with Brussels
Traditionally, yakisoba would be served with cabbage, but Brussels are a great replacement, offering their own distinct flavor and vivid color. Because you're shredding the Brussels sprouts, there's no need to core them. My secret is to simply use the Cuisinart shredder. I pop the Brussels in one by one and save myself all the work of cutting. This recipe is a riff on one our dear friend Jane Hashimawari of Ippai PDX shared with us. I almost always top with a bit of Kewpie mayonnaise because it takes it to 100.
Read moreNaomi's Richmond Yakisoba
Naomi Molstrom, our go-to favorite noodle lover and adviser (who claims her body is 90% comprised of noodles!), shared one of her recipes for yakisoba at home. This takes minutes and is hand’s down delicious! She makes this for lunch for herself and her two sons on the regular.
Read moreRangoon Bistro's Ohn No Khao Swe
Alex and Nick, the duo behind Rangoon Bistro, teach us how to make a predecessor to Thai Khao Soi — a rich coconut-and-chicken based noodle soup flavored with turmeric and black pepper and thickened with chickpea flour. The result melts on your tongue and coats our noodles beautifully. The fresh, crisp toppings add a layer of engagement and brightness to the bowl.
Read moreAyla's Noodle Night for the Family
We are a working family that loves a quick, delicious meal that incorporates some healthy vegetables with little effort. So happy to have Umi noodles and sauce to make dinner so easy. This was just cut vegetables - some raw some sauteed - added to the delicious sauce at the maker’s choosing!
Read moreNoodles with Miso Sesame Sauce, Meatballs, Broccoli Raab and Pickled Radishes
This recipe is inspired by the farmer market in spring, when the first radishes and raabs hit. It’s always amazing to see raabs—bouquets of greens that have overwintered and are sending up flowers to become seeds for the next season. Broccoli raab is the most famous of the raab, but we are also crazy for arugula, cabbage, collard, and kale raabs. And the best way we’ve found to cook them is to blanch them in boiling water, which happens to be exactly how you cook noodles! So we cook them together for a really easy dinner hack.
Read moretonya's Thanksgiving Ramen, Thanks-for-Noodlin'
The main idea here is to use your leftovers from preparing a traditional Thanksgiving meal (Turkey, stuffing, vegetables, cranberry sauce) and make them into bowls of ramen. Using leftovers is a huge timesaver and you can make a few things fresh if necessary to round out the dish. The broth alone will astonish you.
Read moreColorful Noodle Bowl with Roasted Vegetables, Mushrooms, and Pickled Radish
This is less of a recipe than a template you can adapt. This bowl has one roasted item (beautiful romanesco, which is in the cauliflower and broccoli family), one quick pickle (red radishes), a simple protein (fried tofu), and a sautéed item (chanterelle mushrooms). That may seem like a lot of steps for one dinner but think of it as a pallet you can choose a few colors from.
Read moreSquash and Miso Ramen
Honestly, we could just drink this soup as is. But it works beautifully with the noodles too, creating a big flavored vegan broth that clings to each strand. The center is creamy winter squash (we love the kabocha varieties) but ginger, kombu, and miso give the depth you need.
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