Korean Chicken + Ramen

Diet
[x] Flexitarian + Omnivore
[x] Vegan: Replace chicken
[x] Vegetarian: Replace chicken
[x] Pescatarian: Replace chicken
[x] Gluten free: Choose GF noodles
[O] Weight Maint: Portion size, reduce amt of noodles and up veggies.
[O] Keto Diet
[O] Mediterranean
[O] Lectin Avoidance: peppers
[x] Oxalate Avoidance
[x] Purine Avoidance

Korean-ish Chicken + Ramen

Chicken, ramen noodles, and Koren spices cooking en papillote

Cooking Sauce

  • 3 T Gochujang
  • 3 T gluten free Tamari
  • 1/3 C water
  • 2 T sesame oil
  • 1½ t Brown sugar
  • Salt and Pepper

Noodles

  • 12 oz Ramen Noodles (Once cook break into 6 servings)
  • Water (Per box instructions, cook el dente remove 2 minutes before done)

Protein

  • 18 oz boneless skinless chicken breast (Cut into six 3oz portions)
  • Salt and lemon pepper (Seasoning for chicken)

Prep Veggies

  • 6 Scallions (1” green + white diagonal cut, use one full scallion per serving)
  • 6 C Napa Cabbage (Thinly sliced)
  • 3 C Oyster mushrooms (Chopped Into matchsticks)
  • 1 Zucchini (Medium sized, chopped half-mooned)

Topping

  • 2 C Kimchi
  • 6 t Sesame seeds (White)

Mise en Place

  1. First, preheat the oven to 425F.

  2. Gather and wash all the veggies, set up a veggie work station.

  3. Set up a meat work station for the chicken.

Prep the Sauce

  1. Make the sauce by mixing all the ingredients (chili paste, tamari, water, oil, sugar) in a bowl until the sugar is well combined and set aside.

Prepare the protein

  1. Thinly slice a chicken breast, measure out six 3oz portions (depending upon the size of the breast). Salt and pepper both sides and set aside on a plate. Clean up the meat station.

Prep Veggies

  1. Chop scallions (white and green parts) Into 1” sections on the diagonal., cabbage, mushrooms and zucchini. Put in the bowl with the Gochujang and mix well.

  2. Slice the cabbage thinly

  3. Chop the musrooms into matchstiks, and half-moon the zuchinni

Partially Cook the Ramen

  1. Cook the ramen noodles per the instructions on the box, but cook them 2-4 minutes shy of the final cooking. You want them still a bit uncooked, since they are going into the oven, but cooked enough the noodles are flexible to be mixed.

  2. Drain the noodles, but do not worry if they are a bit wet, and dump into the bowl with the sauce.Any water carried by noodles will help steam the food.

Bake with Parchment

  1. Break off six pieces of parchment, and line them up on the counter.

  2. Put the veggies in the center of each one.

  3. Top with the sauced noodles, equally distibuting any remaining sauce not absorbed.

  4. Then add the portion of sliced and seasoned chicken.

  5. If you are concerned that there is not enough liquid, add 1-2t water to each pouch.

  6. Fold the parchment round the food. Sometimes I just fold and twist the top so it looks a bit like a Tagine cooking vessel and place on a parchment lined baking sheet or two. 1/6th ramen noodle + veggie mixture into the center of the foil. Top with protein. Bake ~25 minutes.

Serving

  1. After baking, check to make sure the chicken is done. Then put one pouch in a bowl, open and top with 1/C of kimchi and a sprinkle of sesame seeds.

This cooking technique is not Korean, in France it is called en papillote. In English, this is called “parchment cooking“. But it works well for this dish and once setup you can be with your dinner guests instead of cooking.

This is a dish that steams the chicken and cooks the noodles and veggies. It is fun to do and eat directly from the wrapping. I have cooked and eaten it with both chicken and tempe, and must admit I like the chicken best.

Note the noodles will have 730 mg of sodium per 2oz dry serving.