Spicy Chicken and Pork *Mazemen*

As a pretty rude apparent ramen expert on Reddit pointed out, what I actually made was not ramen because it did not have broth so the name has been corrected!

For a vegetarian version, just omit the steps with chicken and bacon! Every other ingredient is meat-free. OR substitute some red / yellow peppers, asparagus, bok choy, snap peas, etc. for some more substance so you don’t just have noodles. 

We got 2 ½ servings out of this (the ½ serving is my lunch for tomorrow) so if you’re cooking for more than 2 people, adjust the ratios accordingly. 

It’s super easy to adjust the spice level with this. For very low spice, you’ll probably want a teaspoon or 2 of sriracha but I just went balls to the wall and put 2 tablespoons, which was PR E T T Y SPICY. Not unbearable but I drank a ton of water while eating and I usually have a good tolerance for spicy stuff.

All ingredients were very easy to find. I kept it simple and just bought two 3-ounce packets of 80-cent ramen at the grocery store. I didn’t have time to make my own sauce and used this Korean BBQ sauce I found at Fresh Thyme but feel free to get as fancy with it as you like!

Ingredients

• 8 oz., chicken breast, diced into approx. 1 inch pieces

• 4 slices, 6-inch bacon

• 6 ounces, dry ramen noodles

• ¼ cup, korean BBQ sauce 

• ¼ cup, low-sodium soy sauce

• Between 1 and 2 tbsp.,  sriracha

• ¼ cup, yellow onion, chopped

• 3 cloves, garlic, finely chopped

• 2 tsp., brown sugar

• 2 tsp. chives (optional for garnish)

• 2 tsp. sesame seeds (optional for garnish)

• Cayenne Pepper

• Garlic Powder

• Onion Powder

• Salt

• Pepper

Instructions

1. Season diced chicken with cayenne, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper to your liking. 

2. In a large skillet, cook the bacon on medium heat until crispy and browned, 5-6 minutes, flipping strips halfway through. 

3. Remove bacon from pan to a paper towel, thoroughly patting dry. On a cutting board, chop the bacon into pieces. 

4. In a medium pot, bring 3 cups of salted water to a boil. Once boiling, reduce heat to medium-low, place dry ramen in the water and stir until noodles are softened and separate easily, 3-4 minutes.

5. Drain noodles in a colander and rinse thoroughly with cold water. Set aside. 

5. Place another medium pot over medium heat and add sesame oil. Place half the garlic and the chopped onion in the pot and stir until slightly softened, 1-2 minutes. 

6. Stir in the diced chicken and stir every few minutes until chicken is slightly browned, 6-7 minutes. I always like to cover the pot so the chicken will cook a little faster but I accidentally threw away the top to this particular pot when I moved like an absolute idiot so it may have taken me a little longer.

7. Once chicken is cooked, add soy sauce, korean BBQ sauce, brown sugar, sriracha and the rest of the garlic to the same pot. Reduce heat to a low simmer. Stir frequently until sauce is slightly thickened and thoroughly mixed, 1-2 minutes. 

8. Add cooked noodles and chopped bacon, mixing very thoroughly. Keep mixing until noodles are heated, 2-3 minutes. 

9. Once plated, sprinkle chives and sesame seeds as desired. 

10. Eat and hope your boyfriend has a high spice tolerance and you didn’t accidentally put too much sriracha like I did.