S is for...Summer Ramen

Any toddler mama knows that getting your kid to eat something can require skills that combine Game of Thrones levels of scheming and bribery.

So when I discovered this summer ramen recipe which was, for one, easy, and two, cheap, and three, very toddler friendly, I realized I had hit the mommy trifecta. Archer loved the tomatoes, loved pretending the cucumbers were his eyes (who taught him that?!) and he was all about slurping up the noodles. Plus, it wasn't spicy and he LOVED the corn. We did have to coaxe him into eating some chicken.

This is an adaptation from a Blue Apron recipe, which can be found here.

Summer Ramen

Ingredients:

2 packages of top ramen

2 skinless, boneless chicken breasts

2 ears of corn

4 oz (or more) cherry tomatoes

1-2 cucumbers

2 tbsps ginger

1 tbsp soy sauce

1 tbsp sesame oil

1/4 cup rice vinegar

1 tbsp miso paste (if you can't find the miso, use the sauce packet from ramen¯\_(ツ)_/¯)

2+ sheets of seaweed (optional)

Directions:

1. Season chicken with salt and pepper and cook thoroughly (pan fry with olive oil for 7 minutes) and set aside to cool. Leave pan unwashed with oil to be used for corn.

2. Wash tomatoes and cucumbers.

3. Slice cherry tomatoes in half and thinly slice cucumbers.

4. Place tomatoes and cucumbers in a bowl with salt and pepper to taste and half the rice vinegar, half the ginger, and a dash of sesame oil. Set aside and allow to marinate for at least 10 minutes.

5. Boil water and prepare ramen as directed on the package, without using the sauce packet (literally just throw the ramen in boiling water for three minutes). Drain and toss with soy sauce and most of the seaweed, crushed. Set aside to cool.

6. Take the ear of fresh corn and slice the kernels off into the pan. Toss with remaining ginger, dash of sesame oil and salt and pepper. Add olive oil if needed and cook, stirring occasionally, for 2-3 minutes.

7. Take cooled chichen breasts and shred into small, toddler friendly chunks. Use two forks to shred neatly, or your (clean) fingers if you are an animal like me.

8. In a small bowl, add 1/2 cup of water, the other half of the rice vinegar, and miso paste. Whisk, then add to larger bowl of shredded chicken.

9. Divide the ramen noodles into bowls. Top with sautéed corn, the tomato and cucumbers, and the chicken. Sprinkle remaining seaweed as garnish.

#dinner #toddlerfriendly #vegetables #easy