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Better For You Chicken and Spinach Ramen. Make this on nights when you want something cozy like ramen, but need something healthier too. This homemade ramen is simple and delicious. All made in the instant pot – with crockpot and stove top directions too. Made using wholesome ingredients and the simplest process. This dish is filled with veggies, chicken, and yummy brown rice ramen noodles. Wonderful on cold chilly nights.
I think I make a new ramen recipe every year, it’s my favorite dinner to make at home. Especially once the weather turns cold and the days begin to become shorter.
It’s so warming and comforting!
But the funny thing? There are a handful of recipes I turn to time after time because they’ve become staples in my kitchen. And this ramen is one of those staples! I created this recipe back in 2017 and I still make it to this day!
We just love it. It’s simple and super quick, wholesome, and most important of all, delicious. My mom and I actually crave the soup once the weather turns chilly enough for the first frost.
Originally when I created the recipe, using the Instant pot was all the rage. Do you remember when it was really having its moment?
I don’t use the instant pot as often these days, but I will say it does work nicely for this ramen. That said, I have provided the stove top and crockpot variations as well. As always, I want to make sure we can all enjoy a yummy, healthy, ramen dish like this!
Here the details
Nothing has changed about this recipe except that I’ll now often add honey-roasted squash to each steaming bowl.
Start out by cooking the bacon. Get it all crisped up. The bacon is used for flavor and nothing else. You’ll only need 2 strips, but of course, if you prefer to not use bacon, you can easily omit it.
From here, basically everything goes into the pot. I like to toss in the mushrooms, then fresh ginger and garlic. I then add red curry paste for heat and flavor.
For the liquids – broth, tamari (gluten-free sauce), and rice vinegar. Then mix in the chicken, dried mushrooms (they’ll add so much flavor to the broth), and acorn squash.
The acorn squash is “extra” and totally optional, but ramen is really so much about the toppings, I love them all! And this squash just makes the soup extra special.
The squash cooks in the broth, then pull it out and drizzle each wedge with honey, and place it under the broiler to crisp up. The roasted squash is such a great, sweet addition to a spicy ramen broth.
To finish, shred the chicken, then add the spinach and submerge the noodles into the broth to allow them to cook. It’s so nice not having to boil water for the noodles. For the noodles, I love using Brown Rice and Millet Ramen noodles. You can find them at Whole Foods and in many other grocery stores.
Ladle the soup into bowls, then top with all of your favorite ramen toppings, soft-boiled eggs, green onions, carrots, plus chili crisp sauce. Yum!
This dish is so flavorful and so simple. Thankful for easy dinners like this!
Looking for other soup recipes? Here are a few ideas:
Brie and Cheddar Apple Beer Soup
Slow Cooker Creamy White Bean Noodle Soup
Lighter Creamy Broccoli Cheddar Soup
30 Minute Spicy Miso Chicken Katsu Ramen
Lastly, if you make this Better For You Chicken and Spinach Ramen, 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!
Instant Pot Chicken and Spinach Ramen
Servings: 4
Calories Per Serving: 548 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 2 strips thick cut bacon, chopped
- 2 cups sliced wild or cremini mushrooms
- 1 tablespoon chopped ginger
- 2 cloves garlic, chopped
- 2-4 tablespoons red curry paste
- 4 cups low sodium chicken broth
- 1/4 cup tamari or soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1 ounce dried porcini mushrooms
- 2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
- 4 squares brown rice ramen noodles
- 3 cups fresh baby spinach
- soft boiled eggs, chili crisp sauce, shredded carrots, and green onions, for serving
Quick Honey Roasted Squash (optional)
- 1 small acorn squash, cut into 6-8 wedges
- 1 tablespoon honey
Instructions
Instant Pot
- 1. Set Instant pot to sauté. Add the bacon and cook until crisp, about 5 minutes. Stir in the mushrooms, let cook 2 minutes. Add the ginger, garlic, and curry paste. Cook another minute, until fragrant.2. Pour in the broth, 2 cups of water, the tamari, rice vinegar, chicken, dried porcini mushrooms, and sesame oil. If using, add the squash on top. Cover and cook on high pressure for 8 minutes.3. Once done cooking, release the steam. Set the Instant pot to sauté. Remove the squash from the soup and place on a baking sheet. Set aside. Shred the chicken. Stir in the noodles and spinach. Let sit 5 minutes or until the noodles are soft. 4. To finish the squash, heat the broiler to high. Rub the squash with honey and season with salt, pepper, and chili flakes. Broil 2-3 minutes, until crisp. 5. To serve, ladle the soup into bowls and top with roasted squash and any other desired toppings. Enjoy!
Crockpot
- 1. Cook the bacon in a skillet oven set over medium heat until crisp, about 5 minutes. Transfer to the bowl of the crockpot. Stir in the mushrooms, ginger, garlic, and curry paste. 2. Pour in the broth, 2 cups of water, the tamari, rice vinegar, chicken, dried porcini mushrooms, and sesame oil. If using, add the squash on top. Cover and cook 4-6 hours on low or 2-3 hours high.3. Remove the squash from the soup and place on a baking sheet. Set aside. Shred the chicken. Stir in the noodles and spinach. Let sit 5 minutes or until the noodles are soft. 4. Finish as directed about through step 4.
Stove
- 1. Cook the bacon in a large dutch oven set over medium heat until crisp, about 5 minutes. Stir in the mushrooms, let cook 2 minutes. Add the ginger, garlic, and curry paste. Cook another minute, until fragrant.2. Pour in the broth, 2 cups of water, the tamari, rice vinegar, chicken, dried porcini mushrooms, and sesame oil. If using, add the squash on top. Cover and cook 15-20 minutes, until the chicken has cooked. 3. When tender, remove the squash from the soup and place on a baking sheet. Set aside. Shred the chicken. Stir in the noodles and spinach. Let sit 5 minutes or until the noodles are soft. 4. Finish as directed about through step 4.
The flavor is great but I didn’t realize that if you’re not eating it immediately the noodles soak up all the soup and turn soggy. If you’re making it for meal prep, don’t add the noodles. But the recipe is perfect for the Instapot.
Thank you so much Rebecca!
Is there a way I could make this in a crockpot if I don’t have an instant pot on hand? It looks amazing and I’d love to try it!
Of course! Crisp the bacon and then just add everything to the slow cooker and cook on low for 6-7 hours. Add the noodles and spinach during the last 15 minutes of cooking. Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe. Thanks so much! xTieghan
Where do you buy ramen noodles? Do you just use the cheap 15cent packs and dump the packet and just use the noodles? Or is there a better noodle option sold in stores like any other kind of pasta?
Hi Kristin! You can definitely use the 15 cent packs and just not use the packet, or there are some options for ramen noodles in the section for Japanese food in most grocery/ health food stores! I hope this helps, but please let me know if you have any other questions!
I did not like this at all….I was really looking forward to it because I loooove ramen. It has way too much ginger and vinegar in the recipe.I will try to tweak it some, but I think I may just stick to what I know and keep cooking it that way.
Hi Beth! I am so sorry to hear that you did not enjoy this. I have some other ramen recipes on my blog if you would like to try those! I hope this does not stop you from trying and enjoying other recipes of mine!
This is a lovely meal to prepare for dinner,I like it.
Thank you Dannie!
Winner winner chicken dinner! This recipe is fabulous. I do like to have leftover chicken so i used a 3.5lb whole chicken in the instant pot. I added a bit more water and spices and woweee! I could eat this every night!
I am so glad you loved this! Thank you Meg!
This was a great recipe! I added edeame and corn to the broth at the end and substituted bok chuy instead of spinach. Also added some chilli Oil to spice it up! Turned out great.
Thank you! I am so glad you loved this!
Great recipe!
To prep the eggs I boiled them for 7 minutes and they were just a little runny.
Great! Thank you Michael!
I just got my IP and had a bit of a failure the first thing I tried but this turned out perfectly! I cooked the mixture for 30 mins instead of 20 because I used frozen chicken breasts. I added a bit of honey to the broth and added zucchini ribbons with the greens/noodles. Gobbled it down, loved it!!
I am so glad you loved this Rachael! Thank you!
Hey! My wife and I loved the flavors, but we were left with almost no broth! Any thoughts? Maybe our ramen squares were too big and soaked up all the liquid? Any ideas? We only had broth for about one bowl of soup.
HI! Sounds like you just had too many noodles and they soaked up all the broth. Try using less noodles or just simply add more broth. Please let me know if you have other questions. Glad you love this recipe! Thanks! 🙂
Seriously the best thing I’ve made yet in my Instant Pot. Thank you!
I am so glad to hear that! Thank you Sara!
I’ve never made Ramen before but this looks wonderful. My question is the recipe says 1 pack Ramen? I’m not sure exactly what that is. Your video shows 2 packs? This recipe is for a family of 4 including two hungry teenagers. Speaking of the teenagers, any suggestions for alternatives to the mushrooms (they aren’t big mushroom fans). Thanks for your help.
HI!! You want to use 4 squares of ramen noodles. So sorry if that was confusing. You can just omit the mushrooms, but note that they do add to the flavor of the soup. Please let me know if you have other questions. Hope you love this recipe! Thanks! 🙂
New to making ramen and novice with the Instant Pot. How large is a pack of Ramen? I ordered the listed millet brown rice ramen which contains 12 “Packs”, but considering the volume of liquid (4 cups) thought that one square or pack was on the low side. Saw in the comments that someone else reduced the amount of ramen. So in general does the recipe call for just 1 of these small packs? Thanks. Looking forward to trying this soon.
Hi! I use 1 square of ramen per person, so for this soup that means 4 squares of ramen noodles. So sorry if that is confusing. Please let me know if you have other questions. Hope you love this recipe! Thanks! 🙂
Made this tonight and it is PHENOMENAL. I have enough to feed me for the next 4 days which is even better! I didn’t make the eggs to go on top because I forgot and I didn’t want to wait any longer to eat it!
I am so happy you loved this! Thank you!
So I made this and substituted a half of rack of ribs instead. I also used a mix of mushrooms because I love them so much. It was off the charts!!!