Name: 30 Minute Caramelized Shallot Beef Ramen Noodles
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 30 min
Ingredients: 2 tablespoons sesame oil, or extra virgin olive oil; 4 shallots, thinly sliced; 1 pound ground beef, chicken, or pork; 4 cloves garlic, minced or grated ((or 2 teaspoons garlic powder)); 1 inch fresh ginger, grated ((or 2 teaspoons dried ginger)); 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon ((optional)); 1 teaspoon black pepper; 1/2 cup low sodium soy sauce or tamari; 2 tablespoons rice vinegar; 2 tablespoons fish sauce ((optional)); 3 tablespoons honey; 2-3 tablespoons chili paste ((sambal oelek)); 3 squares brown rice ramen noodles; 3 tablespoons salted butter; 1 cup fresh basil or cilantro, roughly torn; 1/4 cup toasted peanuts or sesame seeds; carrots, green onions, and limes, for serving

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Quick and simple 30 Minute Caramelized Shallot Beef Ramen Noodles. For those nights when you’re craving spicy Asian inspired noodles, but just can’t make it out to your favorite spot in town. Crispy caramelized beef, chicken, or pork, tossed in a sweet, spicy, and tangy honey soy sauce, mixed together with brown rice ramen noodles, shallots, garlic, and a little butter too. Not only are these noodles delicious, they’re also made easily, using pantry ingredients and frozen meet, and ready to eat in 30 minutes. Oh, and did I mention that these quick-cooking noodles can easily be made vegetarian? Yep, perfect weeknight cooking for all!

Ok, so I know these noodles have some color going on. And I know that produce is a little hard to come by these days, but please do hear me out. These ramen noodles are the pantry staple recipe we all are looking for right now.

For one, how many of you have at least a few bags of Ramen on hand (brown rice ramen is my favorite)? And if not ramen, how many of you have some kind of noodle on hand? All of you I hope!

And how many of you have either frozen ground beef, chicken, or pork in the freezer? Again, hopefully a good amount of you (assuming you eat meat).

And lastly, how many of you have a pantry full of spices and soy sauce? Please, say ALL of you.

If you have these items, you have everything you need to make some form of these noodles. So you see? This is our new “pantry recipe” and it’s truly so delicious. What’s not to love about a saucy buttery bowl of ramen noodles with caramelized shallots and crispy beef. It’s all good things in a bowl.

Here is the story.

This recipe was inspired by the 15-minute garlic butter ramen noodle recipe that I have in the HBH Super Simple cookbook. I recently shared a photo of these noodles on Instagram and it’s safe to say that it’s a well-loved recipe.

When I returned home from LA last week and things really started to escalate with the Coronavirus, I made these noodles. Not only was this a comforting recipe to make on a stressful day, but I had everything on hand. And, let’s be real, the dish just sounded so good.

Salty, buttery, tangy, and heavy on the noodles. Instead of thinking twice, I just created the recipe. It turned out just as good as I had imagined so I knew I needed to share the recipe. It’s (hopefully) going to be a go-to pantry staple recipe for you all.

Here are the details.

As you can guess, this recipe comes together fast and easy. Start with the beef.

First off, I want to say that you can use ground beef, chicken, or pork for this recipe. I just happened to have ground beef in the freezer. I also want to note that these noodles can easily be made vegetarian by using a mix of chopped vegetables, details on that below.

Moving along. Caramelize the shallots in a bit of oil. If you have sesame oil, use that, if not, just use a bit of olive oil. Now, toss in the meat, a little garlic, plenty of ginger, a pinch of cinnamon, and black pepper too. Cook this all together until the meat is browned. Add soy, plus chili paste, and a drizzle of honey to help balance the heat. Continue cooking this all together for a bit longer…

Meanwhile, cook the ramen. This literally takes five minutes tops.

Ok. Time to finish it up.

Toss the ramen in with that crispy caramelized meat. Add a touch of butter and a sprinkle of either fresh basil or cilantro. Toss and finish with some freshness by adding carrots, green onions, and a sprinkle of toasted peanuts or sesame seeds.

This is a fusion of Asian meets Italian. And while it’s a little bit odd, it’s also a little bit delicious. Sure, the greens on top are now a little harder to source, but just use what you have the easiest access to. As long as you’ve got the noodles and a little sauce, this is going to be great.

What kind of Ramen noodles?

Personally, I love using brown rice ramen, which is vegan and gluten-free. I know it might be hard to believe, but these really do taste just like the ramen noodles we loved as kids…just much healthier. You can find these noodles online either on Amazon or Thrive Market. Or you can purchase them at Whole Foods, Costco, and in many grocery stores as well.

Of course, you can also use whatever your favorite brand of ramen is. Or whatever you’ve got on hand in the pantry. You won’t need any seasoning packet for this recipe.

Alternatively, you can just use noodles. Meaning regular pasta. Any kind of long cut noodle/pasta will work well here. So again, make the recipe work for you, and use what you got!

Want to make this vegetarian?

I totally understand. Making these noodles vegetarian is SO easy to do. Just replace the meat with a mix of mushrooms and chopped cauliflower. Directions are listed in the notes section of the recipe.

Me personally? I prefer this vegetarian version, but either option is truly great.

And feel free to be creative here. I’m sure a mix of mushrooms plus zucchini, or mushrooms plus eggplant, would all be great! I will say that I do think you should use mushroom within the vegetable mix, as they add a really nice “meaty” flavor and heartiness.

So, what do we all think? Easy enough for tonight? Do you have most of the ingredients on hand? Can you make it work?

Fingers crossed!! Hoping to see lots of Instagram stories with these noodles tonight. Yes, I’m that excited over this recipe. It’s comforting, easy, and just what we all need these days.

Hoping you guys all enjoy this!!

Looking for other ramen ideas…try these.

If you make these 30 minute caramelized shallot beef ramen noodles, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!