Name: Garlic Butter Chicken Ramen
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 20 min
Yield: 2 servings
Cuisine: Asian
Ingredients: 2 Boneless skinless chicken thighs, sliced into bite-sized pieces; Salt and white pepper; 6 tbsp Unsalted butter; 8 cloves Garlic, thinly sliced; 4 stalks Green onions, thinly sliced (whites and greens, save some greens for topping); 4 cups Chicken stock; 1 Maruchan chicken flavor packet; 1 tbsp Soy sauce; 1 tsp Sesame oil; 1 tsp Sugar; Salt to taste; 2 packs Maruchan ramen, noodles only; Reserved green onion tops, thinly sliced; Toasted sesame seeds; Chili oil; Nori sheet

Garlic Butter Chicken Ramen | Chef Fatty

Some product links are Amazon affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you.

Cook: 20 minTotal: 20 min

The story

Maruchan ramen is the cheat code that unlocks any noodle soup. The seasoning packet is already a complete flavor bomb. The mistake is treating it like a final answer instead of a starting point.

Here is the move. Brown the butter, slow-cook garlic and green onions until they soften into the fat, brown the chicken in the same pot so all the fond stays put. Sprinkle the Maruchan packet over everything and let it bloom in the hot butter for 30 seconds. The seasoning toasts and turns deeper, less flat, more complex. Then pour in the stock and cook the noodles right in the broth so they soak up every drop. Twenty minutes, one pot, restaurant-grade upgrade on a 50-cent ramen pack.

Method

Brown the Butter and Aromatics

01
In a wide deep pot over medium heat, melt the butter. Let it cook until amber and nutty smelling, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the sliced garlic and most of the green onions (save some greens for topping) and cook slowly, stirring, until the garlic is deeply golden and the onions soften into the fat, 2 to 3 minutes.

Brown the Chicken

02
Season the chicken with salt and white pepper. Add it to the garlic butter and cook, stirring, until the chicken is browned on all sides, 3 to 4 minutes. Leave the fond and juices in the pot.

Bloom the Seasoning Packet

03
Sprinkle the Maruchan seasoning packet over the chicken and aromatics. Stir continuously for 30 seconds to let the spices bloom and toast in the hot butter. The smell will turn deeper and more complex.

Add the Broth

04
Pour in the chicken stock and bring to a simmer.
05
Add the soy sauce, sesame oil, and sugar. Stir and let everything come together. Taste before adding any extra salt, the packet is already salty.

Add Noodles and Serve

06
Break the Maruchan noodle blocks directly into the simmering broth. Cook 3 minutes, tossing in the broth as they loosen so they absorb the flavor. Divide between two deep bowls. Finish with the reserved green onion tops, toasted sesame seeds, a chili oil drizzle, and a sheet of nori if you have it.

Chef's note

One packet is enough for two servings. Two packets will make the broth too salty.
Cook the noodles in the broth, not in water. They absorb the garlic butter flavor and taste nothing like the package version.
Brown butter transforms the Maruchan packet from flat to genuinely complex. Do not skip the patience.
Browning the chicken in the same pot means every drop of fond and flavor stays in the soup.