Easiest, Cheapest Ramen Noodle Vegetable Soup

This ramen noodle vegetable soup comes in handy when you need a hot, comforting soup, and you need it right away. The bonus is that the ingredients are so very inexpensive, yielding six generous servings for less than the cost of a quart of take-out soup.

No chopping! It’s a satisfying soup that requires no chopping other than a couple of scallions. The clever hack here is using a bag of frozen mixed Asian vegetables. They taste surprisingly fresh and stay nice and crisp in the soup if you’re careful not to overcook.

A quick warm-up: If you have a cold or are generally under the weather, this is a perfect way to get a good few servings of a soothing soup. Normally, there are few things I love to make more than creative plant-based soups — even ones that call for lots of chopping! But there are times, like when I had a massive head cold recently — that I thanked my lucky stars for this soup.

Ramen noodles are readily available: You can buy them without the ready-made soup mix, in the Asian foods section of well-stocked supermarkets (sometimes labeled chuka soba). They’re an appealing addition to simple soups. To make this a more substantial soup, do add the optional tofu.

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Yield: 6

Easiest, Cheapest Ramen Noodle Vegetable Soup Ever

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This colorful ramen noodle vegetable soup comes in handy when you don't feel like chopping and need a comforting hot soup ASAP!

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes

Total Time 15 minutes

Ingredients

• 6 cups water
• 1 large or 2 regular-size vegetable bouillon cubes
• 5-ounce package curly ramen noodles (chuka soba)
• 16-ounce bag frozen mixed Asian vegetables
• 2 teaspoons grated fresh or squeeze-bottle ginger
• 7 to 8 ounces firm or extra firm tofu (about a half of a tub), diced
• 2 scallions, thinly sliced
• 2 big handfuls baby spinach or other baby greens
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce, or to taste
• Freshly ground pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Combine the water and bouillon cubes in a small soup pot and bring to a slow boil.
2. Add the noodles, vegetables, and ginger and return to a slow boil. Turn the heat down and simmer until the noodles are al dente, about 5 minutes. The vegetables will be just done at this point as well.
3. Reach into the pot with a pair of kitchen shears and cut the noodles here and there — they’re very long! Add a little water if the soup has gotten too crowded.
4. If using tofu, add it at this point along with the scallions and greens; cook until the greens are just wilted. 
5. Stir in the scallions and greens; cook until the greens are just wilted. Season with soy sauce and pepper to taste, then serve at once.

If you like this fast Asian-flavored soup, you might also enjoy …

Quick Asian Noodle Bowls with Colorful Vegetables

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