In This ArticleView AllIn This ArticleWhat Are Ramen Noodles?Nutrition FactsAre They Healthy?Who Should LimitAdding NutritionFAQs
In This ArticleView All
View All
In This Article
What Are Ramen Noodles?
Nutrition Facts
Are They Healthy?
Who Should Limit
Adding Nutrition
FAQs
For many of us, ramen is the quintessential convenience food—easily accessible, budget-friendly and ready with minimal preparation (at least the instant kind!). Maybe warm, soupy ramen is your ultimate comfort food enjoyed at home, or perhaps it brings back memories of college days of late nights, salty cravings and limited budgets. Or maybe when you think of ramen, you conjure thoughts of exquisite, savory broth simmered for hours and chewy, fresh noodles served at your local Japanese eatery. Yet, if you’re wondering if ramen is healthy for you, keep reading.
5 Easy Ideas to Turn Instant Ramen Noodles into a Healthy Dinner
Photographer: Fred Hardy, Food Stylist: Jennifer Wendorf, Prop Stylist: Shell Royster. EatingWell design.
According to theRamen Museum New York, ramen is a Japanese noodle soup dish that originated from China as an import to Japan in the late 1900s. In post-war Japan, the worst rice harvest combined with food shortages helped popularize ramen, a wheat-flour-based food. Ramen food stalls started to spring up across cities and towns, with each region having its own take on the popular street food. In 1958, Momofuku Ando, the Taiwanese-Japanese founder of Nissin Foods, invented instant ramen and catapulted ramen into global popularity and fame.
What Are They Made Of?
At its most basic, ramen is a noodle soup dish that consists of Chinese-style wheat noodles, broth and toppings. Instant ramen may consist of a flash-fried or air-dried block of noodles, a flavor packet, and dried toppings, which get rehydrated and cooked with boiling water.
Ramen Noodles
Ramen noodles are wheat-based noodles made of wheat flour, water, salt and kansui—an alkaline water that gives ramen its characteristic springy and elastic texture. Noodles can come in a variety of shapes and textures, from thin to thick and straight to wavy. Instant ramen noodles are typically flash-fried, making them shelf-stable food that cooks more quickly.
Broth
There are several main categories for ramen noodle broths:
Toppings
Ramen toppings vary widely but typically come with some type of protein (such as marbled, fatty pork slices, ground meat, fish cake or a soy-marinated boiled egg) and vegetables (such as seaweed, bamboo shoots, bean sprouts, bok choy or scallions). Instant ramen noodles may come with a packet of dried vegetables or seaweed.
Ramen Noodles Nutrition Facts
Here are the nutrition facts for a few popular instant ramen packages. Note that restaurant ramen may offer significantly different nutrition due to its preparation and toppings.
Are Ramen Noodles Healthy?
Pros
Instant ramen noodles provide many benefits. They are widely available, budget-friendly, quick and easy to prepare, with limited kitchen equipment needed. Harbstreet says, “They are a carbohydrate-rich option that can be an easy and affordable energy source. You can buy them anywhere from a full-service grocery store to a convenience store or gas station, and often at a much lower cost than other packaged foods. It’s also important to note the cultural significance of ramen. Traditional recipes from East Asian cuisines can be time-consuming to prepare at home, so offering a convenient way to enjoy similar flavors is important to many people who buy and eat them.”
Cons
“Packaged instant noodles, including most ramen varieties, rely heavily on sodium for flavor,” says Harbstreet. The flavor packets that come with packaged ramen are often very high in sodium (up to 90% of the Daily Value), which most Americans already consume too much of. According to theFood and Drug Administration, the DV for sodium is less than 2,300 milligrams per day, while Americans typically consume 3,400 mg per day. High sodium intakeis associated with high blood pressure, a leading cause of stroke and heart disease.
Should You Avoid Eating Ramen Noodles?
There’s no real reason to avoid eating ramen noodles unless you have a medical condition, such as celiac disease, which would prevent you from consuming any wheat products. You may also want to avoid consuming the whole flavor packet in packaged ramen or broth if you need tomonitor your sodium intakedue to sodium sensitivity or high blood pressure. However, when in doubt, consult your primary health care provider.
How to Make Yours More Nutritious
Add Vegetables
“One of my favorite strategies to add nutrition is to add vegetables! Anything from mushrooms to carrots to boy choy or cabbage can instantly add flavor, volume and nutrition to your bowl,” says Harbstreet. Fresh and frozen vegetables typically work equally well since they will be cooked in the soup. Try ourSesame Instant Ramen Noodles with Broccoli & Soft-Boiled Eggmade with frozen broccoli.
Include Some Protein
“Adding a poached or fried egg can add protein, as can edamame or tofu,” says Harbstreet. Other types of protein can include fish or seafood, chicken, beef or pork. Our deliciousChicken Ramen with Bok Choy & Soy Eggswill become one of your favorite recipes.
Reduce Sodium
“To reduce the amount of sodium, you can use less of the flavor packet (I usually start with about half and adjust as needed). You could also strain the cooked noodles or serve with less broth to further reduce the amount of sodium in that meal,” says Harbstreet.
Make Your Own Broth and Seasoning
Making your own ramen bowl from scratch at home may be more time-consuming, but the flavor and nutritional profile may be worth it. If you’re looking for inspiration, check out ourHealthy Ramen Soup Recipes.
The Bottom Line
Ramen noodles are a carbohydrate-rich, comforting, budget-friendly and widely available dish that can be enjoyed quickly whenever you’d like. While instant ramen is not bad for you, it isn’t recommended as a single food daily or multiple times per day on its own due to its high-sodium flavoring packet or broth. Adding additional toppings, such as protein and vegetables, to the wheat noodle and broth base can increase its nutrition profile.
Frequently Asked Questions
“With as popular as ramen is, there are likely people around the world who eat it daily (or close to it). The idea that you have to limit how often you enjoy food like this is rooted in diet culture, and often the version of diet culture that deems processed foods or cultural foods inferior,” says Harbstreet. “To be clear, I don’t recommend that anyone sticks to a single food for the majority of their meals, but ramen is a broad category of food, and there is plenty of variety, satisfaction and nourishment to be found in any bowl,” she adds.
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