Diet: Dairy Free, Gluten Free, Nut Free
Serves: 3
Total Time: 45 minutes

Description

A Japanese delicacy, ramen is something I am very new to but have since become a fan of.

Ramen traditionally consists of noodles in a hot broth with veggie toppings and spices. Its an uber healthy go-to and super comforting in the cold winter months.

Its easy to make, too!

Now let’s talk nutrition…

Eggs – eating eggs was once controversial due to their cholesterol content. People believed that if you ate dietary cholesterol, it would raise cholesterol in the blood and contribute to heart disease. It turns out that this isn’t actually true. In fact, the more cholesterol you eat, the less cholesterol your liver produces as a result (Jones et al. 1996) (Shimomura et al. 1997) (Fernandez, 2012). Try not to let cholesterol seem like a negative word. It is much more complicated than the headlines make out.

Ginger – loaded with nutrients and bioactive compounds that can benefit your health, ginger is one of the healthiest spices you can cook with. Gingerol is touted as the substance in ginger containing medicinal properties, such as anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antiemetic and anticancer effects (Wang et al. 2014). Whilst dosing is important when you consider using herbs for therapeutic effect, adding ginger into your dishes is a fantastic way to eat healthy and holds a cumulative effect on health, when combined with a healthy lifestyle.

Soy sauce alternatives – the typical Asian soy sauce tends to contain a high number of preservatives, salt and (sometimes) MSG. Standard soy sauce also has a high wheat content, which doesn’t suit those who have digestive concerns, coeliac disease or food sensitivities.

Tamari is a gluten-free soy sauce (it contains little or no wheat) and has Japanese origins (it is the liquid byproduct that forms when making miso paste, which gives it a darker colour and richer flavour). Other benefits include tamari’s lower salt content compared with soy sauce. It’s also rich in vitamin B3, plant protein and manganese. A little tip – I always advise that when buying soy products, opt for organic and fermented forms wherever possible. So always try and buy organic tamari if you can (note that tamari is naturally fermented).

If for whatever reason you are avoiding soy (perhaps you are on a paleo or soy-free diet), then an alternative option is to use coconut aminos. What are they? Coconut aminos are made from coconut tree sap and sea salt in a process of tapping the sap from coconut blossoms (this is the flowering part of the tree before the coconuts grow) and blending with mineral-rich sea salt. Coconut aminos naturally contain amino acids and are also a source of B vitamins, like tamari. Sometimes it is hard to ensure if tamari is 100% wheat free (always check the label), but coconut aminos is, so I would advise trying this if you are coeliac.

Chicken – most people know that chicken is an excellent source of animal protein, which delivers a broad spectrum of all essential amino acids. Chicken is also a great source of B vitamins, choline, phosphorus, iron and selenium. It adds to the satiety factor of this deeply nourishing dish.

Bean sprouts – sprouts that typically come from mung beans and are full of fibre, fat-free and high in vitamin K.

I could go on forever about the nutrient profile of each ingredient but I think its time to see how this delicacy is made, don’t you?

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp coconut oil
• 3 garlic cloves, diced
• 1/2 tbsp freshly grated ginger
• 150g button mushrooms, chopped
• 800ml bone broth or chicken stock
• 1 red chilli, chopped
• 1.5 tbsp tamari or liquid aminos
• 3 chicken fillets, chopped into pieces
• 150g rice noodles
• 3 carrots, julienned
• 3 eggs (for boiling)
• 1 pak choi, trimmed
• Juice of 1/2 lime
• Small handful bean sprouts (to serve)
• 1.5 tbsp black sesame seeds (to serve)
• 3 spring onions, chopped (to serve)
• A handful of fresh coriander (to serve)

Method

1. Heat 1 tbsp coconut oil in a large pan, adding in the garlic and ginger and cooking for 30 seconds.
2. Add in the mushrooms, chilli, tamari, chicken strips and cover with the stock. Bring to the boil and then simmer for 25 minutes.
3. Whilst the broth is cooking, boil the rice noodles in a saucepan for 10 minutes (or as per the packet instructions).
4. Drain the noodles in a sieve and place aside to cool.
5. Boil the eggs for 4 and a half minutes (this should leave you with a runny yolk) with soft whites. Once cooled, peel the shell.
6. Add the noodles and carrots into the broth and cook for another 5 minutes on a high heat.
7. Serve into bowls with the eggs (each sliced into halves).
8. Top with the pak choi leaves, bean sprouts, spring onions, sesame seeds and coriander, with a squeeze of lime juice.

 

References:

Fernandez, M.L. (2012). ‘Rethinking Dietary Cholersterol’, Current Opinion in Clinical Nutrition and Metabolic Care, 15 (2), pp. 117-121, NCBI [Online]. Available at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22037012 (Accessed: 6 June 2018).

Jones, P.J.H. Pappu, A.S. Hatcher, L. et al. (1996). ‘Dietary Cholesterol Feeding Suppresses Human Cholesterol Synthesis Measured by Deuterium Incorporation and Urinary Mevalonic Acid Levels’, Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis and Vascular Biology, 16, pp. 1222-1228 ATVB [Online]. Available at: http://atvb.ahajournals.org/content/16/10/1222.long (Accessed: 6 June 2018).

Shimomura, I. Bashmakov, Y. Shimano, H. et al. (1997). ‘Cholesterol Feeding Reduces Nuclear Forms of Sterol Regulatory Element Binding Proteins in Hamster Liver’, PNAS, 94 (23), pp. 12354-12359 NCBI [Online]. Available at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC24942/ (Accessed: 6 June 2018).

Wang, S. Zhang, C. Yang, G. et al. (2014). ‘Biological Properties of 6-Gingerol: A Brief Review’, Natural Product Communications, 9 (7), pp. 1027-1030 NCBI [Online]. Available at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25230520 (Accessed: 6 June 2018).