By Allison Askins
Knight Ridder Newspapers
(KRT)
COLUMBIA, S.C. - For the struggling artist, the broke student or the cooking-challenged bachelor, how about a few easy-to-prepare twists on an old favorite - ramen?
In his cookbook "Everybody Loves Ramen," Eric Hites walks his readers through simple ways to improve this college-dorm staple.
Among Hites' several dozen recipes: "Chili Cheese Dip a la Ramen," "Stroganoff Ramen-Style" and "Vegetarian's Power Dish."
Hites, an Indiana bachelor who can now afford a nice set of pans, admits not all of the recipes are, well, appetizing. But even the less-than-appetizing are sure to generate conversation.
They always do at his dinner parties, he said.
After all, recipes named "Orange Pez Chicken Soup" or "Hog `n' Cheese Mix and Melt" just beg for comments.
We admit we didn't dare approach either.
Especially when Hites confessed that there's little nutritional value in ramen beyond "the stuff you add to it."
But for comfort food, ah, yes.
For Hites' generation, Ramen staved off hunger on many a cold college night.
"I first came upon it when Mom would buy it for us," said Hites, now 29. "It was a common snack - quick, easy, `Bam,' it's done and we could do it on our own without making a lot of noise."
Hites' experimentation originated with care packages of foods that Hite and his college pals didn't know what to do with.
Stuff like canned beans.
"We started mixing it in with ramen," Hites said.
"If you have ramen, you won't starve," Hites points out. "You might get bored, but you can always make spaghetti the easy way - a can of Manwich and ramen."
A more upscale favorite of Hites' is ramen pancakes. No, you don't eat these with syrup; instead, a dollop of sour cream makes the flavor, he said.
To assemble, grate one carrot and a cup of cheddar cheese.
Cook a package of ramen noodles with the seasoning packet removed. Mix noodles with carrot and cheese and form into pancake-like patties.
Sautee in a little butter until lightly browned on each side. The trick is in getting the heat just right so the pancakes fry up nice and crispy, almost like hashbrowns, Hites said.
This recipe points to one of ramen's interesting additions to a dish - texture.
Uncooked ramen noodles can be sauteed and tossed into a cabbage slaw, for example, to add great crunch.
And the crunch appeals to those beyond the poor student set.
The Columbia Junior League and the women of The Episcopal Church of the Cross in Bluffton, S.C., both feature salad recipes in their cookbooks that count ramen among the ingredients.
Ramen, it appears, has also hit the high life.
"Oriental Coleslaw," a recipe from the Bluffton church's cookbook, "Great Cooks Rise with the May River Tide," is a fine example.
"My daughter-in-law does this one all the time," said Becky Owens of Bluffton, who oversees sales of the cookbook.
"It's just a different version from your traditional cole slaw and the ramen noodles give it that wonderful crunch."
RAMEN RECIPES
Ramen is among the ingredients in recipes from:
-"Everybody Loves Ramen" by Eric Hites (Andrews McMeel Publishing, Kansas City; 2003). Hites notes that some bookstores place the book in the humor section, others in the cooking section. It also can be ordered from amazon.com.
-"Great Cooks Rise With the May River Tide" by the Episcopal Church Women of The Church of the Cross, Bluffton. To order, call Becky Owens at (843) 757-6270.
-"Down by the Water: A Collection of Recipes From the Junior League of Columbia," 1997. Available from the Junior League office, (803) 252-4552.
Karen's Chinese Noodle Salad
6-8 servings
For salad:
2 packages chicken-flavored ramen
¼ cup butter
1 package slivered almonds
2 tablespoons sesame seeds
1 medium head cabbage, cut fine
2 green onions, cut fine
For dressing:
¼ cup vinegar
¼ cup sugar
¾ cup vegetable oil
2 tablespoons soy sauce
Mix dressing ingredients and set aside.
Brown noodles, almonds, sesame seeds in butter. Let cool.
Mix cabbage, onion and noodle mix. Add dressing and toss until well mixed.
Note: For a variation on dressing, substitute vinegar with ¼ cup rice vinegar and vegetable oil with ½ cup peanut oil.
From Karen Askins, Mount Pleasant, S.C., and "Great Cooks Rise With the May River Tide" by The Episcopal Church of the Cross in Bluffton, S.C.
NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION PER SERVING: Calories, 458.3; protein, 7.4 grams; carbohydrates, 28.3 grams; total fat, 37.1 grams; cholesterol, 16.4 milligrams; saturated fat, 7.3 grams; dietary fiber, 5.3 grams; sodium, 716.9 milligrams; sugar, 12.3 grams; vitamin A, 97 retinol equivalents; vitamin C, 36.9 milligrams; calcium, 116.4 milligrams; iron, 1.9 milligrams; alcohol, 0 grams
© 2003, The State (Columbia, S.C.).
Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Information Services.
