Pro Chefs Upgrade Instant Ramen (6 Ways) | Test Kitchen Talks | Bon Appétit

Join professional chefs Harold Villarosa, Susan Kim, Rachel Gurjar, Chrissy Tracey, Jessie YuChen, and Chris Morocco in the Bon Appétit Test Kitchen as they demonstrate 6 expert upgrades to run-of-the-mill instant ramen.
Director: Amanda Veitia
Director of Photography: Ben Dewey
Editor: Morgan Dopp
Producer: Parisa Kosari
Associate Producer: Halie Aaron
Camera Operator: Colton Huynh
Audio: Chris Bianrosa
Culinary Producer: Mallary Santucci
Culinary Assistant: Danielle Brooks
Culinary Assistant: Leslie Raney
Line Producer: Jennifer McGinity
Production Manager: Janine Dispensa
Production Coordinator: Elizabeth Hymes
Production Assistant: Oadhan Lynch
Post Production Supervisor: Stephanie Cardone
Post Production Coordinator: Scout Alter
Supervising Editor: Eduardo Araujo
Assistant Editor: Justin Symonds
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0:00 Introduction
0:38 Harold’s Nissin Top Ramen with Soy-Marinated Egg
4:13 Susan’s Shin Ramyun with Poached Egg
7:19 Chris’ Maruchan Cacio e Pepe
10:42 Rachel’s Sun Noodle Ramen with Ground Pork
15:04 Chrissy’s Nissin Raoh Ramen with Yuba
19:27 Jessie’s Wei Lish Jah Jan & Soup
24:42 Susan’s Quick Snack
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ABOUT BON APPÉTIT
Bon Appétit is a highly opinionated food brand that wants everyone to love cooking and eating as much as we do. We believe in seasonal produce, properly salted pasta water, and developing recipes that anyone can make at home.

[@bonappetit]

Looking for more cooking inspiration? Gain unlimited access to over 50,000 recipes across Bon Appétit and Epicurious bit.ly/35YkK73

[@timbest3868]

The new subscription model for the website is not nice. Increased traffic is what should generate income, better advertising and sponsored products would be a better idea. Hopefully it returns to something usable.

[@savvy6261]

😊

[@denisesudell2538]

@@timbest3868 Completely agree. I relied on the Epicurious app for years. I’m really upset that suddenly the site has merged with Bon Appetit and moved to a pay model.

[@michaelstopher1471]

Always nice to see that I am not a lone maniac for having a ten ingredient recipe for instant ramen.

[@marshweber702]

Same, lol

[@DavidGonzalez-zl3dz]

It's seriously one of the best dried noodles you can buy

[@naumanjaved5088]

Together We Rice!

[@keyboardkath]

When Susan said “Nostalgia is incredibly provocative and powerful for taste”, I felt that.

[@tanukii1937]

So true. I could smell the Shin Ramyun through the screen hahah

[@oopsthathappened3168]

Jessie is so relatable, sneaking in veggies when having something unhealthy haha love her chilled personality too!

[@MrXiaoqiao]

I am curious, has Jessie shared their gender pronouns offically? I notice you said "she" and I was wondering if that's been confirmed? I also agree I love their "chill best friend who's showing you some cool kitchen tricks" vibe!

[@metalicrobot66]

@@MrXiaoqiao Jessie's pronouns, according to Insta, are she/they so yes you can use she.

[@MrXiaoqiao]

@@metalicrobot66 thank you!!!

[@madisonyans]

i’ve been a vegetarian my whole life but still always watching these videos im SOOO HYPE about the addition of Chrissy!

[@elaineyang1941]

Seeing Wei Lih shown here is giving me ALL the feels. Awesome to see 🇹🇼 representation!

[@Jessie.YuChen]

🇹🇼🇹🇼🇹🇼🇹🇼🇹🇼

[@modernaddict1278]

I like Chris but I knew he couldn’t be trusted in this episode.

[@seouleatr]

"Not exactly street legal" 🤣

[@ariannagasparotto9721]

EXACTLY AHAH

[@Ph8lan]

Dude needs to be in prison for this

[@janl.]

Thank you! Exactly what I thought!!!

[@jennathomas1354]

i often use ramen as pasta, because honestly as noodles go, they’re pretty hard to mess up. but that definitely was not a ramen recipe

[@arieldanielle23]

Susan knows what's up. We used to eat dry instant ramen all the time when we were kids. My mom was more than happy to let it happen because it meant she didn't have to cook lol

[@void.reality]

Mamee, a Malaysian company, makes flavoured snack noodles that are supposed to be eaten dry. They've been popular here in Australia for over 40 years.

[@June_Hee]

i’m korean and i can confirm that it is a totally legitimate way to eat instant ramen

[@maddiek3352]

When I was a little girl I used to slightly soften the noodles with hot tap water but kept them mostly crunchy. I was afraid of the stove lmao

[@Josh-hk1uh]

yes! my fam would call them ramen chips lol i used to eat it all the time especially at school, my non asian friends always thought it was the weirdest thing until they tried it haha

[@jasminebrooks8674]

@@Josh-hk1uh try it fried with a little butter and lemon pepper seasoning

[@nosambawhcs3664]

I have that same ramen that Susan Kim used in my pantry right now. Its Amazing. I also have Kimchi in my fridge. Guess I know what Im having for lunch.

[@prgx52]

The Black version is also delish, I think the main difference is that it has a mushroom packet as well, there isnt much upgrading needed haha, so good!

[@Toidal]

@@prgx52 The Black has a little packet of beef fat/tallow too

[@emmaeclectic13]

It's too spicy for my weak mouth, but I really wish it wasn't because the flavor is amazing.

[@allistar34]

shin black is better! doesn't need upgrading tbh

[@gagamba9198]

Shin ramyun, cooked bulgogi, kimchi, and sliced yellow cheese (2 slices) or Cheez Whiz. All put in the bowl, allow cheese to melt atop it, then eat. Another good Shin ramyun is with canned tuna, kimchi, and bok choy.

[@TheMusicman1945]

How pro chefs upgrade instant ramen: Use a bunch of different decent ingredients. How I upgrade my instant ramen: Use the 'nice bowl' because I can't afford anything else.

[@winterfairy4545]

hehehe I feel you ... for a lot of people the point of instant ramen is that they are super affordable, yet here they come and use ingredients that are worth more than my daily food budget kind of missing the point imo ... but it's mostly about being creative w/ your food i suppose

[@xmine08]

Try, if at hand, adding an egg. Either uncooked and just mix it up in your bowl or half boiled like shown. Those will really elevate almost any noodles dish! Or do you like onions? Chop them into slices, put into a bowl with hot water (nothing else) for 3 mins, add to your noodles.

[@theouthousepoet]

For the love of god. If you cannot afford to buy soy sauce, fish sauce, and eggs, why do you even bothering watching cooking videos. I see this all the time! People say how chefs are using crazy expensive ingredients when most of the are dirt cheap. I am currently on employment insurance and can manage to buy salt, pepper, kombu, and chili crisp. I can even splurge and buy some bean sprouts.

[@TheMusicman1945]

@@theouthousepoet Instant ramen is typically salty enough without the salt of those who can't take a joke.

[@winterfairy4545]

@@theouthousepoet not sure how this viewpoint bothers you so much ... but i am a student working part time and in my world fish sauce, kombu, pickled kimchi or even (morally acceptable) eggs are expensive and cost way more than the ramen package itself ... and i am watching this because i like to get creative ideas ... I just expected this to be even more low budget oriented and not full of 'exotic'/imported goods ... dirt cheap is none of it 'If you cannot afford to buy soy sauce, fish sauce, and eggs, why do you even bothering watching cooking videos.' - what kind of ignorant sentence is that btw?! good for you that you never had those problems I guess...but maybe it would make you a nicer person

[@coenkoppen]

Shin ramen is my favorite brand so far. Big ups for this video for the level up ideas. My most used level up is to pull a basic ramen flavour to more of a satay one. Add a big spoon of peanut butter, some ketjap manis, some chili powder or flakes or sambal and fried unions.

[@tarapawils6876]

that sounds so good! im gonna try it

[@coenkoppen]

@@tarapawils6876 Enjoy. You can of course add whatever you want to that but this is quick taste punch to warm ramen and soups. In Mexico they use a cashew paste to enrich some soups and since i know this i almost always add some nut butter to my soups and some ramens.

[@colin_g]

Yes! Peanut butter in Shin Ramen is sooo good

[@olep.4156]

Susan is speaking my language here. Elevate, but keep it intant, simple.

[@OkellaWood]

Chris tasting the pan sauce was the most animated I have ever seen him!

[@albuseisenhorn3385]

The new crew is growing on me haha, sad to see the old go but starting to dig these guys

[@toploungecontent431]

Interesting. I was just browsing and wondering how BA was doing. I miss the old groups tightness and just effortless banter.

[@crashlikewaves]

Chris’s recipe is a crime 😭

[@briandurkee1842]

Protect Vincenzo's eyes!

[@cthulu2121]

Agreed

[@characterblub]

Call it what you will, but it's peak white people

[@nataliabatti1779]

He's overrated

[@lydiad3575]

I didn't know what you were referring to... as soon as I got to that point in the video the only conclusion. yes this is a crime

[@rexgullett3980]

So nice to see a gourmet plant based chef. Thanks Chrissy 🥰

[@kirstennielsen5832]

Agreed! I watch these for her take!

[@lafan023]

Shin Spicy Ramen is really perfect, I'm going to try a poached egg and add some grilled steak or chicken to it with some nori.

[@allistar34]

my go-to is shin black with a soft boiled egg!

[@lafan023]

That's the one I have and it's so good and spicy.

[@MrThedalaillamaknows]

A few clumps of Enoki mushrooms go insanely well in shin

[@GrrRachel]

More Harold please! I love him.

[@TheBestRoseinTexas]

The plant based chef was amazing and made me want to risk the spice level! 🔥

[@qiqin6253]

When Rachel brought out the iconic Lao Gan Ma chili oil, I know it would be fire! You just got another fan!

[@nataliabatti1779]

Umami is the new gourmet ... I can't hear the word anymore without getting annoyed 😄😄

[@nickgagnon1132]

I probably have a dozen vastly different recipes for instant ramen in my repertoire that I use on a weekly basis, so I totally love adding to those.

[@christinek3747]

chris is my kinda crazy, i just made his recipe but with udon noodle and it hits

[@Angelaachan]

Oh my gosh, I've had Wei Lih noodles so many times and I NEVER knew that the noodles and the soup WERE SUPPOSED TO BE SEPERATE THINGS. I can't wait to make them properly next time I get it.

[@Jessie.YuChen]

Honestly, I did not know that until college! It's good either ways:)

[@chuckduzzie8529]

Beautiful explanations … beautiful delivery. 😋

[@Hellboy700]

Everyone's Ramen upgrade looks delicious. Jessie Yuchen's Ramen upgrade is simple, and very attractive to eat.

[@laurenelexis5226]

I love Chrissy! Please do more with her!

[@sallieannwestbrook9769]

The crazy thing is, I’ve always made my ramen with butter. When I was in high school I didn’t know different, and it’s wonderful this way.

[@mattfleming86]

Considering how important butter is to having proper fried rice, I'm going to bet its tasty.

[@namelesscrow2069]

I literally bought instant ramen yesterday. I bought Harold's, Susan's, and Rachel's ramens. Cheap ramens for whatever I'm in the mood for/what I have time for. Rachel's is closer to what I make when I have more time and I feel like I wanna cheer myself up with some nice ramen

[@Alex-zi1nb]

wow never crossed my mind to poach in egg IN the broth. thank you susan!!!!!

[@webster695]

I started doing it about a year ago, because I was too lazy to pre-boil the egg. Turns out, I much prefer it poached in the soup! Laziness FTW

[@adamgoodman3958]

Susan is an absolute gem. We must protect her at all costs.

[@ShannellHalliwell]

What I’ve learned is I should also start having rice with my ramen 🧐

[@1995yuda]

Harold Villarosa is the man! He loves great food, he loves people, and he loves making great food for people. Gotta love that dude.

[@Dave....]

I always got to watch these episodes with a nice meal. Or else I'll get super hungry lol!

[@ffabarbie-9002]

I love love Chris’s recipe.

[@djbluu]

Cooking instant ramen in a Le Creuset is such a flex

[@dragonthief6199]

OMG Rachel i already had lunch u gonna make me eat again! That was phenomenal

[@eileenoreilly1979]

Thank you for your plant based ideas ! I fast forward to you in these videos!!😊

[@morganbrasee5639]

I love instant noodles and all these look delicious

[@caitlinstone596]

The Nissan Raoh ramen is AMAZING. The tonkatsu flavor is seriously the best instant ramen I’ve ever had! If you want a super flavorful ramen but find Shin Black too spicy, try this one!

[@sykoelf]

HARD second, I have 5 sitting in my cupboard right now

[@caitlinstone596]

@@sykoelf Same! I always have at least a few at all times!

[@sJonah1]

I like making some neoguri with a fried egg and some scallions over top. So tasty!

[@baileyc8785]

Yes my girl Susan showcasing the shin with kimchi! Doing it up right

[@kaylasalcedo5533]

I need Harold to have his own show ❤

[@ic3l0s]

Ramen is versatile. Great to see all these different takes on a classic.

[@jgodwin717]

Love all of these!!!

[@akeylastubblefield3936]

I am a huge Ramen fan myself and love these recipes but am dying to try Susans recipe with the Sun noodles. Plus I love the tip of using stock to cook ramen as it makes everything much more flavorful.

[@BoyAditya]

5:10 Susan is right. I always eat my Shin Ramyun with kimchi 🤣 and her recipe pretty much what I make everytim I eat Shin Ramyun

[@natlenan6743]

These are all awesome

[@aznbbygrl]

eating it crushed and shaken!! she GETS IT

[@nikitawheasdey2393]

“If you can’t handle the heat, get out of kitchen”. This is my type of woman.

[@leticiamichelleaguilar7268]

I love Jessie's! It looks actually very simple and reminded me to super nice anime food

[@anneeewho]

literally watching this while eating my 維力炸醬麵. it's seriously so good.

[@Jessie.YuChen]

A classic!

[@bchantharath]

susan’s version definitely has nostalgic feels & still eat it like that to this day

[@keribirmingham]

I love Chrissy’s look here! The fit and hair are so cuteeee. Also her ramen slaps! That was the one

[@jjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjj000]

I can't believe no one used mama ramen! Or Indomie! This looked great--I'm very hungry, now :)

[@necromancer196]

Indomie is already great by itself. Better to leave it alone than have a bad experience

[@laxplanet6046]

@@necromancer196 I serve Indomie with chicken curry, it's amazing

[@kdcridlpaw4852]

This video made me love Harold

[@sophiahamade3876]

Love Harold hes super chill

[@jessicachungisreal]

Yeah shin ramyun has been a comfort food of mine since I was a little girl. I’m half Korean, so kimchi was pretty prominent too. Nothing beats a hot bowl of shin ramyun.

[@Yael450]

I see harold I click

[@hotspringroll]

wow jessie turned that into a whole meal! so resourceful

[@colinallcars5239]

"Cause I'm a G like that". LOL. Great line.

[@lovemochi86]

honestly just go to your nearest HMART or Asian grocery story and buy Korean, Japanese, or Chinese ramen. Cook it with an egg and top with green onions and that's already perfect! :) or cook the shin ramean with milk instead of water for a creamy version :)

[@2igotmoney]

Rachel's jewelry is always on point! Beautiful

[@VSM101]

its always indian like a queen should have

[@studentism]

everything about Chrissy's sounds perfect, i gotta make some scotch bonnet oil.

[@mattmays9063]

Chrissy Tracey you strong queen! Love your style and attitude. Big fan.

[@rubikclub]

Proud to see Wei Li Ja Jian Mian in the video, but Sun Noodle is the best! Some “ramen” place in the US is not even as good as Sun Noodle, their tuskemen is amazing. Not sure what happened to the raw enoki in the video though.

[@pattygonzalez6829]

Exactly my thought, they are dangerous raw

[@pipisheaven]

I have been watching so many vids on this channel either to learn or as background neutral entertainment for years. In other aspect of my life, things are political (as it should be, cuz it affects your personal life). I really appreciate that this is my oasis where all walks of life shows their passion about how they deal with the most universal topic (food). Everyone is welcomed, every method is “eye opening” if it doesn’t match your norm. There will always be ppl in the comment hating whatever nuisance , but overall , most comments I see are filled with wonder if not unity in their love for the same taste.

[@sonatak304]

Bon Appétit these are super fun videos! Can you show them trying each other's versions?

[@emk3]

sapporo ichiban is my favourite!! it has suuuuper deep flavour for instant ramen

[@ryangorgoni7602]

I CAN'T DECIDE! AHHH. ill be eating ramen for a month moving forward. Nice to see the Kombu!

[@shasha-png]

Chris literally cooked the same cacio e Pepe recipe David Chang did with instant noodles on The Mind of a Chef

[@emilymcglynn]

I. Love. Harold.

[@pistolen87]

I'm surprised nobody did a fried ramen dish, that's my go to!

[@taylorbutler5392]

Okay I need to know more about this liquid gold garlic condiment!! I googled it and I can’t find it!

[@keianao6369]

I think it's just confit minced garlic /chili flakes!

[@tristenmacklin2743]

S&B Chili oil w crunchy garlic is probably a similar paste :)

[@kght222]

4:23 shin is the best, but that same company makes a vegan tomato chili cup of noodles that is awesome. but shin noodles have the best off the shelf stock hands down.

[@jesswoody1935]

More Jessie please!

[@jonah64]

Chris adding "pasta water" to his sauce before he's actually dropped his noodles in. Probably not much starch in there.

[@michaelcornwell7404]

Yeah all the bon apetit employees are pretty mediocre chefs. But they’re so pompous and obsessed with themselves that they come off as talented chefs.

[@Westerlywick]

@@michaelcornwell7404 Do you mind if I ask why you're watching the video then? It sounds like you don't enjoy them.

[@michaelcornwell7404]

@@Ten-zH120fu old crew was much better but even still, none of them were THAT talented.

[@michaelcornwell7404]

@@Westerlywick cuz I live in a free country

[@Westerlywick]

@@michaelcornwell7404 for sure, I just wonder why you choose to do things you know you're not going to enjoy. Sounds miserable, but you do you!

[@arishasajid6430]

chris is chaos embodied and im here for it

[@akira3940]

Miso stirred in the broth off the heat instead of boiling it would've made Chrissy's dish close to perfect 👍 Will try it myself

[@zuno700]

Chrissy snapped that texture look crazy 😩

[@sandyd2527]

This Puerto Rican girl loves Ramen. I have incorporated into my Puerto Rican dishes and my family loves it. There's so much you can do. I had it earlier with two fried eggs and it was delish.

[@meganwatrous4701]

Shin spicy ramen, add left over bulgogi, chopped kimchi, chopped scallions, some sesame oil and an over easy egg on top….so good!

[@janl.]

Rachel's Ramen for me = 😍 Okay and Chrissy's my fav too!!!

[@sochuiwonpriscillakhapai7251]

Chrissy & Rachel’s version = premium ✨

[@saraatppkdotpt8140]

Letting you know I enjoyed watching this video😊

[@orangeorange2897]

Jessie’s soup and ramen is entirely new. And looks fabulous.

[@claraloughlin2881]

I’ll always miss the old chefs, but the new ones are G’s too 👊 hope they gettin paidddd

[@ohmbuoy1]

Susan provided the best belly laugh I've had in a while.... with her 'Dri Ramen Smash' Absolutely hilarious!!

[@NEWFURSUITMAKER]

My go to Ramen is creamy Chicken with a little butter splash of heavy whipping cream and Louisiana hotsauce

[@JoellePretty]

OMG Susah Shin you are a righteous shero!

[@changveronicas]

“what i love about this is how cheap, how little money”😂😂😂 yes!

[@taylornarder6331]

Literally woke up crying today due to the stress I'm going through. I thought, "man I don't wanna cook, I want some Instant Ramen." Holy sh**.

[@jennijawsz]

Love it. A+ content here

[@laurenalivia]

I'm not a vegan, but Chrissy's ramen looks top notch.

[@lilmonster90210]

very diverse ramen flavors !!!

[@attention_shopping]

so good

[@natfind4724]

More Harold!!!

[@CuteIcingPanda]

Are there any videos on boiling eggs? How to get the perfect egg plus variations on deviled eggs. I would LOVE a video like that!!! Please!

[@DillrodProductions]

just search for it on youtube.. “soft-boiled egg”. it’s extremely simple you just have to decide if you want a 6, 7, or 8 minute egg yolk

[@Arlari.c]

And then after the boiling you soak in ice cold water and peel

[@HarrisonMartin]

Rachel stepped this up so much - I am going to try that recipe for sure

[@schang5413]

I love the Nissan Roah ramen! Miso and soy are my favorite flavors. It’s so close to restaurant quality just by itself!

[@hannahcollins1816]

I LOVE the soy and the tonkatsu - just bought a few packs last Friday!

[@michaelcornwell7404]

“Close to restaurant quality” are you drunk?