What’s the best way to make 10 cent ramen taste like 20 cent ramen?

Add another block of 10 cent ramen to the bowl.

Add an egg, hot sauce, green onion, or any combo of those

Throw a dime in the water while its boiling. Stir well

Here are some frugal additions (you don’t need to do all of these, mix and match 1-3 at a time.)

EGGS:

• add a poached egg to the final ramen
• add an egg scrambled with a bit of soy sauce into the broth when it’s simmering
• add a quartered soft-boiled egg
• make an egg-and-scallion omelette in a separate pan – roll it up, slice super-thin, and add the scallion egg “noodles” to the final ramen bowl

VEGGIES:

• add some sliced scallions/green onions (I grow in a pot of soil from seed, so VERY frugal to add)
• add some bok choi leaves (again, i grow in a pot from seed, very frugal
• add thinly sliced radish and radish tops (again from my garden)
• make carrot “ribbons” with a vegetable peeler, add to cook alongside the noodles
• thinly slice a celery rib, add to cook alongside the noodles
• fry a small amount of julienne onion in a small amount of sesame oil, then add the water to the pot and make the noodles
• same as above, but with ginger and garlic
• same as above, but with ginger and garlic 1-2 mushrooms.
• add a small handful of spinach leaves to the ramen bowl
• add a few sliced snow peas to the ramen bowl
• add some bean sprouts to the ramen bowl

BROTH AMENDMENTS:

• soy sauce (watch that your final broth isn’t too salty)
• red pepper flakes
• sesame oil
• chinese 5-spice powder
• sri racha or sambal olek
• peanut butter
• part of a can of coconut milk (I like to reserve some when i make thai or indian food, then use the reserved part in a ramen later)
• splash of citrus (lemon, lime, orange – segments or juice)
• small amount of brown sugar, palm sugar, or any other sweetener (especially nice with spice, coconut, or peanut flavors)
• oyster sauce (salty)
• hoisin sauce (salty sweet)
• mirin
• homemade stock instead of water (i don’t add much salt to my stock so it’s not overly salty, but again – watch it doesn’t get too salty)

PROTEIN

• see eggs, above
• tofu (I like silken in soups, but you can use any)
• tofu skin (it has a different texture and is tougher/holds up almost like fried egg)
• soy beans (shelled edamame)
• literally any leftover meat (chicken, beef, pork, deli meat, hot dogs, bacon, etc. one of my favorites is leftover puerto rican pork shoulder (pernil) sliced very thin, plus a piece crispy pork skin (chicharrón) on top.)

If you cook a lot at home, you likely have access to many of these right now. If not, you probably still have a few. a person who NEVER cooks might still have red pepper flakes (leftover packet from pizza takeout), an egg, and soy sauce (again, you might have a packet available).

E: thanks for the appreciation, guys!

Mix some soy sauce and peanut butter in another bowl. Add a garlic clove, vegetable bullion, and other spices to the water. Top with sesame seeds.