Vegetarian Ramen
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It’s easy to make delicious Vegetarian Ramen with this 15 minute recipe, featuring mushrooms, spinach, noodles and a flavorful broth! This recipe can easily be made vegan by omitting the optional soft boiled eggs on top. Ditch the take-out and make this one pot soup recipe at home for dinner tonight!
Table of contents
When making ramen at home, it’s all about the broth. If you can create a flavorful ramen broth, you’ll have a delicious bowl of soup to dig into. Luckily for you, I’ve perfected this vegetarian broth, so you can make the best vegetarian ramen at home, every time!
The broth has just a tiny bit of spice, but if you’d like to make a spicy vegetarian ramen, I’ll show you how! This recipe is easy and versatile. You can make tons of different variations of this recipe, all with the same delicious base, so you can keep things fresh and make it over and over again!
It only takes 15 minutes to make this recipe, and you only need one pot, so both cooking and clean-up are a breeze! This has become one of our go-to meals to make during the week when we need something quick, easy and comforting. It’s so flavorful and even better than picking up take-out!
Ingredients
- Shiitake mushrooms – these mushrooms are native to Japan, and therefore the type of mushroom most commonly found in ramen. I’ve purchased fresh shiitake mushrooms at Costco, Sprouts, Asian markets and traditional grocery stores in San Diego. They’re usually easy to find in the produce section of most major grocery stores, but if you can’t find shiitake mushrooms, I recommend using sliced baby bella mushrooms instead.
- Sesame oil – for this recipe, you’ll want toasted sesame oil, as it’s there to both cook the mushrooms and add flavor to the broth. Sesame oil that has not been toasted, will not add the same level of flavor to the broth.
- Soy sauce – for this recipe, I used a truffle soy sauce from Trader Joe’s. I love the additional umami flavor it adds to the dish, but traditional or low-sodium soy sauce will also work just fine. I’ve made this recipe with all three, so I can testify that they all work great!
- Garlic cloves – I recommend fresh minced garlic for the best flavor.
- Chili garlic sauce – this sauce will be found in the Asian section of major grocery stores. It combines dried chilis with garlic, salt and vinegar, and adds spice to this ramen recipe. You can also use chili paste if you want a stronger chili spice flavor and lighter garlic flavor.
- Vegetable broth – feel free to make your own at home with vegetable bouillon, or purchase a box of premade vegetable broth at the grocery store. A 32 ounce box is exactly 4 cups, which is what you’ll need for this recipe.
- Ramen noodles – for this recipe, I used two packages of ramen, which are each 3 ounces in size. Since we’ll be discarding the seasoning packets, it doesn’t matter if they’re chicken flavor, or another flavor. The noodles themselves are all that we’ll be using and they are vegetarian.
- Spinach – to add some greens, and finish the dish, I added a heaping handful of spinach leaves. You could also use the leaves from baby bok choy, if you prefer.
Instructions
I’ve included step by step photos below to make this recipe super easy to follow at home. For the full detailed recipe instructions and ingredient quantities, scroll to the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
- Prepare the mushrooms. Wash the mushrooms by wiping them down with a damp paper towel. Slice the mushrooms into thick slices.
- Cook the mushrooms. Add sesame oil to a large pot, or wok, on the stove over medium-high heat. Once the oil is hot, add the mushrooms and soy sauce to the skillet. Stir to combine, then cook for 5 minutes without stirring. Leaving the mushrooms alone without stirring them allows them to develop a golden color, delicious taste and texture.
- Add the broth and seasoning. Add minced garlic to the wok with the mushrooms. Stir and cook for 1 minute. Add chili garlic sauce and vegetable broth to the pot and bring to a boil by turning the heat on the stove up to high.
- Add the ramen and spinach. Once the broth is boiling, add dried ramen noodles and make sure they’re completely submerged in the broth. Allow them to cook for 3 minutes. Add the spinach and stir to combine all of the ingredients. Turn the heat on the stove off and serve the ramen soup in bowls with your choice of toppings.
Optional toppings
One of the beautiful things about ordering a big bowl of ramen is enjoying all of the toppings that come with it! A soft boiled egg is one of our favorite things to add to this vegetarian ramen, along with fresh green onions. Follow the list below for tons of topping ideas for your next bowl of homemade ramen!
- Soft boiled egg, or medium boiled egg – follow this recipe for perfect hard boiled eggs, but only cook the eggs for 6 minutes for runny soft boiled eggs, or 8 minutes for medium boiled eggs.
- Green onions (or scallions)
- Fresh cilantro leaves
- Sriracha – a great addition to make spicy ramen!
- Chili onion crunch – from Trader Joe’s, one of our favorite ramen toppings for flavor and texture!
- Sesame seeds – black or white, or both!
- Chili oil
- Bean sprouts
- Seaweed strips – also called nori strips.
- Corn kernels
- Gochujang
- Sesame oil
Additions and variations
- Make a miso broth – add 1 1/2 tablespoons white miso paste to the broth with the chili garlic sauce to make vegetarian miso ramen.
- Make it spicy – add 4-5 minced Thai chilies in at the same time with the minced garlic. You can also add an additional teaspoon of chili garlic sauce or a teaspoon or sriracha.
- Make it with dried shiitake mushrooms instead of fresh, just be sure to soak the mushrooms in hot water for at least 10 minutes before starting the recipe. Drain and rinse the mushrooms, pat dry, then use them in the recipe, just as you would use fresh mushrooms.
- Make a creamy broth – substitute one cup of the vegetable broth with a cup of soy milk.
Diet variations
Vegan: omit the egg on top to make this recipe vegan. Optionally, add tofu scrambled eggs on top instead.
Gluten free: use gluten-free ramen noodles, and gluten-free soy sauce, also known as tamari. The other ingredients pictured above are gluten free. Always make sure to check the labels on sauces and broths to verify that they’re gluten free.
Storage options
- To store: leftover ramen soup can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 7 days.
- To reheat: reheat the ramen in a pot on the stove over medium-high heat for 5-8 minutes. Or reheat the ramen in a microwave-safe bowl in the microwave for 2 minutes.
- To freeze: I do not recommend freezing this ramen recipe, as the noodles will loose their texture once frozen, defrosted and reheated. You can, however, make and freeze the broth, to thaw, reheat and add noodles to, at a later time.
More noodle recipes
Try some of my other favorite Asian-inspired noodle dishes for dinner this week!
Made this Vegetarian Ramen recipe and loved it? Be sure to rate it 5 stars below!
Vegetarian Ramen
Ingredients
- ½ pound shiitake mushrooms
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic cloves
- 2 teaspoons chili garlic sauce
- 4 cups vegetable broth
- 6 ounces ramen noodles, 2 three ounce packages – discard the seasoning packet
- 1 cup fresh spinach leaves
Optional toppings
- 2 tablespoons green onions, diced
- 2 soft boiled eggs, sliced in half lengthwise
- ½ teaspoon sesame seeds
Instructions
- Wash the mushrooms by wiping them down with a damp paper towel. Slice the mushrooms into thick slices.
- Add the sesame oil to a large pot, or wok, on the stove over medium-high heat.
- Once the oil is hot, add the mushrooms and soy sauce to the skillet, stir to combine, then cook for 5 minutes without stirring.
- Add the minced garlic to the skillet and cook for 1 minute. Stir the garlic and mushrooms together.
- Add the chili garlic sauce and broth to the pot, and bring to a boil by turning the heat on the stove up to high.
- Once the broth is boiling, add the ramen noodles and make sure they’re completely submerged in the broth. Cook for 3 minutes.
- Add the spinach and stir to combine all ingredients.
- Remove from the heat and serve in bowls, top with green onions and additional toppings, like soft boiled eggs, sesame seeds, sriracha, gochujang, sesame oil, chili oil or bean sprouts.
Notes
- The nutritional information provided above does not include the optional toppings.
- To make this ramen spicy, add 4-5 minced Thai chilies in at the same time with the minced garlic. You can also add an additional teaspoon of chili garlic sauce or a teaspoon or sriracha.
- To make it vegan, omit the optional egg on top.
- To make it gluten free, use gluten-free ramen noodles, and gluten-free soy sauce, also known as tamari. The other ingredients pictured above are gluten free. Always make sure to check the labels on sauces and broths to verify that they’re gluten free.
- Store leftover ramen soup in the refrigerator for up to 7 days.
- Reheat the ramen in a pot on the stove over medium-high heat for 5-8 minutes. Or reheat in a bowl in the microwave for 2 minutes.
Nutrition Facts
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