Today I am going to break down how you can make Delicious Gourmet Ramen that tastes like it’s a caloric bomb but is actually low calorie and high protein with a serving size that will leave you full and satisfied!
I will be breaking down how I do this with 4 incredible ramen recipes:
1️⃣ 463 Cal Beef & Broccoli Ramen
2️⃣ 445 Cal Sticky Honey Sriracha Chicken Ramen Stir Fry
3️⃣ 392 Cal Egg Roll in a Bowl Ramen
4️⃣ 442 Cal Chicken Birria Ramen
You can skip ahead to each recipe by clicking on each title but I recommend reading this breakdown of how to make macro friendly ramen of any flavor.
First a quick story to create some context
Until about 6 months ago, it had been YEARS since I made some ramen at home.
And when I say years, I mean like 10 years ago back when I was a poor college kid lol.
The past couple years I’ve gone to various Ramen bars because they are very popular here in Austin but never ventured into making it at home.
The ramen was always really good but if you know the macros of traditional ramen, you can’t really eat a ton of it without having it be a caloric bomb.
So I would always leave still pretty hungry.
And so about 6 months ago, I was at dinner at a ramen place and the topic came up (as it always does when I am eating out with any of my friends), “why don’t you make a macro friendly recipe version of ramen!?”
I thought it was a cool idea but I wasn’t super fired up about it
Fast forward a few days and I was at the grocery store.
I was in the pasta isle picking up some pasta elbows for some protein mac & cheese.
Then I noticed like some kind of divine intervention, the packages of ramen.
I’d been in that isle tons of times prior and I never noticed they were RIGHT there.
So I picked up a few packages just in case I got some inspiration to give the recipe a go.
A couple days later, I am on a call with Certified Angus Beef and we are doing a brainstorm of recipes ideas for our brand deal collaboration.
Then all of sudden, “what about a beef and broccoli ramen” comes right out of my mouth without me even noticing.
I found myself almost saying, “ohh never mind about that idea!”
BUT…
They loved the concept and so that lead me down the rabbit hole of figuring out a way to make ramen macro friendly.
I succeeded in a BIG way and it is now one of my favorite style recipes I’ve ever made.
Now let’s breakdown how to make Macro Friendly Ramen of any flavor 👇🏻
First issue: The Macros
You are more than welcome to use whatever brand of ramen you’d like BUT I am going with the tried and true classic (Maruchan) that is $0.36 for a block at any grocery store!
And when I show you how to make it macro friendly with these, you can make it even more macro friendly with other brands that have better macros.
So when you look at a Maruchan block of ramen, the macros wouldn’t be half bad if it wasn’t for the fat content!
14g of Fat for the whole block is annoying but it’s something we can work with.
And so what are the macros for Maruchan Ramen Noodles without the seasoning packet?
I had to do some FBI level investigating to even find the macros without the seasoning packet lol.
Turns out the packet only has 18 calories which is just 1g fat and 2g carbs that you can subtract from the macros.
The Next Issue: The Volume aka I want to eat A LOT of Ramen!
The goal with all my recipes is for you to be able to:
1️⃣ Eat the most amount of food we are craving aka eat till satisfied.
2️⃣ For as little calories as possible.
3️⃣ While the food still tastes amazing.
And obviously, we want it be healthy for reasons other than just being low calorie and high protein.
So the fact that the volume of noodles you get for one serving of ramen isn’t anything to write home to Mom about is something we are going to have to work with.
In order to make a macro friendly ramen, I’d need to fill in the gaps with low calorie, higher protein ingredients to provide more volume.
The Two Key Ingredients to Provide Macro Friendly Volume
The first is….. drumroll please!
Vegetables!
I know you probably didn’t want to hear that BUT veggies are a macro friendly cheat code for adding a ton of volume without a ton of extra calories.
And when I say trust me, TRUST ME the veggies taste really good!
The second key ingredient is your protein choice
For these 4 recipes we had a variety of steak, chicken and ground beef.
And with each recipe you have between 16oz-24oz of that protein source to provide a solid volume boost to the recipe.
With Ramen having a solid amount of fat all by itself (14g fat per block), it’s smart to have a leaner protein source to keep the macros as balanced as possible aka the fat not getting too high.
So now the FLAVOR without all the extra calories
With these recipes we have a variety of ways to add that extra flavor.
With the Beef and Broccoli Ramen, it was the flat iron steak marinade but also the stir fry sauce. And an overlooked component could be the sauteéd and charred broccoli.
With the Sticky Honey Sriracha Chicken Ramen Stir Fry, it was the sticky honey sriracha stir fry sauce but also the sauteéd stir fry veggies.
With the Egg Roll in a Bowl Ramen, it was twofold. The egg roll stir fry component with a wide variety of flavors but also the bang bang sauce that is added on top at the end.
With the Chicken Birria Ramen, it was the birria marinade.
Most of us could easily eat two blocks of ramen.
That’s a fact. All by itself it really is not a lot of food.
And that’s the amount of ramen I used.
But paired with all the pro tips I’ve outlined, it turned into a huge pan of food that 1/4th of the pan is now twice as big as a normal block of ramen would be!
Thus making it a great meal for a family outing or a great option for meal prep!
Here’s some of my macro friendly chefs who have already made these recipes 🔥
So the moral of the story is….
Macro Friendly Gourmet Ramen is just a few steps away!
so Here are 4 easy and delicious Ramen recipes to start with 👇🏻
463 Cal Beef & Broccoli Ramen
✅ Macros for ⅓ the Recipe:
463 Cals, 38g Carbs, 19g Fat, 35g Protein
✳️ Ingredients:
1 lb @CertifiedAngusBeef Flat Iron Steak
2 Blocks Ramen
160g Frozen Broccoli
5 Garlic cloves
4 Green Onion
✳️ Stir Fry Sauce:
21g Soy Sauce
21g Sriracha
7g Sesame oil
7g Rice vinegar
3g Zero Cal Sweetener
5g Corn Starch
✳️ Flat Iron Steak Marinade:
42g Reduced Sodium Soy Sauce
14g Brown Sugar
14g Honey
30g Rice Vinegar
6 Cloves Minced Garlic
1 Green Onion
½ Kiwi (Mashed with a fork)
3g Black Pepper
5g Sesame Seeds
❇️ Directions:
1️⃣ Take your 1 lb Flat Iron Steak and cut against the grain and at an angle into thin strips.
2️⃣ Now make your marinade. Add all your ingredients to a bowl and mix.
3️⃣ Combine strips of steak with the marinade. I added mine to a zip lock bag to help evenly disperse the marinade with the steak. Add to the fridge and let marinate for at least an hour but I did mine overnight.
4️⃣ Now make your stir fry sauce by adding all your ingredients into a bowl and mixing till smooth.
5️⃣ Right before you start cooking your steak, cook up your ramen and set to the side.
6️⃣ Then once ready to cook, preheat your stove top pan to a 7/10 heat. Add some strips to your pan but make sure they are not over crowded! Give them plenty of room to cook. They cook fast. About 2 minutes on each side and they are good to go!
7️⃣ Now cook your broccoli in the same pan on a 5/10 heat. Add cover on top to help steam. Once they’ve soften and start to char, add your green onion and garlic. Sauté for a minute or so. Then add your stir fry sauce, ramen and steak. Mix and then it’s time to enjoy!
Watch Full Recipe Video Here 🎥
445 Cal Sticky Honey Sriracha Chicken Ramen
✅ Macros for 1/4th the Recipe:
445 Cals, 42g Carbs, 13g Fat, 40g Protein
✳️ Ingredients for Sticky Honey Sriracha Sauce:
50g Sriracha
50g Honey
28g Soy Sauce
14g Rice Vinegar
7g Sesame Oil
7g Corn Starch
✳️ Rest of Ingredients:
1.5lb Chicken Breast
Sea Salt
Garlic Powder
180g Frozen Stir Fry Veggies
30g Green Onion
2 Blocks Ramen
❇️ Directions:
1️⃣ add all your sauce ingredients into a bowl and whisk together till smooth. Set to the side.
2️⃣ Now cut your 1.5lbs of chicken breast into cubes. Add to a bowl and season generously with sea salt and garlic powder. Add to a pan preheated on a 7/10 heat and cool till they start to golden. The combine with half your sauce and mix till they are coated. Set chicken to the side.
3️⃣ On that same pan, add your frozen stir fry veggies. Add a splash of water along with a cover on top to help them cook quickly. Then once they’ve softened and started to get some charring, add your minced garlic and green onion to the pan. Bring heat down on the pan to a simmer and add the rest of your sauce.
4️⃣ While those veggies were steaming, cook up your ramen.
5️⃣ Add cooked ramen to the pan with the veggies. Then add your chicken. Mix all together and enjoy! You can split into 4 meal prep containers and split to however many servings you want!
392 Cal Egg Roll in a Bowl Ramen
✅ Macros for the WHOLE Bowl (1/4th Recipe):
392 Cals, 40g Carbs, 12g Fat, 31g Protein
✳️ Ingredients (Makes 4 Servings):
1 lb 96/4 Lean Ground Beef
200g Sweet Onion
150g Carrots
3g Minced Ginger
3 Cloves Minced Garlic
60ml Chicken Broth
500g Shredded Cabbage
28g Soy Sauce (I used Reduced Sodium)
7g Rice Vinegar
Salt
Pepper
4g Toasted Sesame Oil
Green Onions
2 Blocks Ramen
✳️ Bang Bang Sauce:
113g Plain Non Fat Greek Yogurt
28g Honey
15g Sriracha
4g Rice Vinegar
*only used maybe a 1/4th of the bang bang sauce.
❇️ Directions:
1️⃣ Preheat your stove top pan to a 7/10 heat. Cook your lean ground beef for 2-3 minutes until meat is close to your preferred level of wellness. Add your sweet onions and cook with the ground beef until they start to soften.
2️⃣ Then add your carrots, garlic, ginger and chicken broth and sautè for a few minutes. Then add your green and red cabbage and add a cover on top of the pan to soften the cabbage so it’s easier to mix with the rest of the ingredients.
3️⃣ Then add your soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame oil, sea salt, black pepper and your 2 blocks cooked ramen. Mix for another minute or two till all is combined!
4️⃣ Then add your green onion, bang bang sauce, and sesame seeds on top and enjoy!
442 Cal Chicken Birria Ramen
✅ Macros per serving (¼ the recipe):
442 Cals, 32g Carbs, 10g Fat, 56g Protein
✳️ Ingredients:
2lbs Chicken Breast
1 Tbsp Paprika
1 Tbsp Oregano
1 Tsp Cinnamon
1 Tsp Black Pepper
1 Tsp Cumin
150g Green & Red Peppers
150g Onion
20g Jalapénos
2 Packets Ramen (nothing special. Just the Maruchan ones without the seasoning)
✳️ Birria Marinade:
2 Whole Red Onions
6 Garlic Cloves
1 Can Chipotle Peppers in Adobo Sauce
450g Liquid from Rehydrated Peppers
2 Whole Pasilla Peppers
2 Whole Guajillo Peppers
1 Tbsp Red Wine Vinegar
❇️ Directions:
1️⃣ Take 2 of your pasilla and guajillo peppers and cut off the tops. Then take out the seeds. Add to a bowl and soak in boiling water for 10 minutes to rehydrate them.
2️⃣ Once rehydrated, it’s time to make the birria marinade. Add ally our ingredients into your blender and blend till smooth.
3️⃣ Cut your chicken breast into cubes and season with the seasonings I have listed in the ingredients.
4️⃣ Add to instant pot along with your birria marinade. Pressure cook on high for 40 minutes and then do the natural release for 10. Once done, just let out the rest of the air.
5️⃣ Take out the chicken and shred it. Then take the rest of what’s left in the instant pot and strain it to get the birra consomé.
6️⃣ Now suaté up your peppers, onions and jalapénos on a 7/10 heat pan. Use your consomé to help soften and also season your veggies.
7️⃣ Once they are done, add your chicken, your ramen cooked al dente and as much of the consomé as you’d like! Mix to combine and then enjoy!
