A twist on Mac and Cheese, this cheese ramen recipe uses real cheddar cheese, a pack of instant noodles, and a super simple way to thicken up milk to create a creamy, indulgent cheese ramen. Perfect for days when you want a small portion of something creamy, comforting, and quick to make.
Mac and cheese is delicious comfort food to me that's warm, comforting, simple to make, cheesy, tastes great, and is usually made in a big batch which means lots to eat (or share) - but what if I only want 1 portion? This is where Ram' & Cheese comes in instead - a one bowl of creamy cheese ramen.
INGREDIENTS FOR CHEESE RAMEN
- Ramen/Noodles - When it comes to ramen, I like to use thicker noodles. I find it has a bit chewier (when not overcooked). The only ones I have ever found that were the thicker noodles were all Korean brand ones. I like to use the Shin Ramyun brand ramen noodles.
- Cheese - When it comes to mac and cheeses, I like to stick to the staple which is cheddar cheese. However, you can be quite creative and add different types of cheeses to this for different textures!
- Cheddar - smooth, creamy, and salty with a slight tang. This cheese melts very easily and I like to turn off the heat before adding this in to melt.
- Mozzarella - not much in terms of flavor but it gives that nice stretchy cheese pull and gives the cheese a bit of a chewiness. I generally don't like to add too much of this because when it cools, it turns hard and solidifies so you lose that creaminess. This takes a bit more heat to melt as well, so I usually have to leave the heat on for 30 seconds while trying to melt this into the sauce.
- Cream cheese - add a tablespoon or two for a slight more creaminess.
- Cotija - salty with a bit of gooeyness. I have used this in the past because I love the saltiness this cheese provides. It also gives the sauce a bit more of a gooeyness.
- Additional Garnishes - When I feel like adding extra garnishes I will usually mix and match these ingredients!
- Furikake (Try our Homemade one!)
- Green onions
- Seaweed
- Toasted sesame seeds
- Sriracha
- Crushed up potato chips
- Deep-fried garlic or shallot bits
- Garlic Oil
- Chilli Oil
TIPS ON HOW TO MAKE CHEESE RAMEN
- Use a corn starch slurry to thicken the sauce - I like to use a corn starch slurry to thicken my cheese ramen because I find it silkier and creamier than using flour roux. It's super important that you use cold water to mix the corn starch with, else it will make the corn starch slurry clumpy.
- Turn off the heat before adding in the cheese - Use the residual heat from the hot milk and noodles to melt the cheese. This will prevent the cheese from sticking to the bottom of the pan when the pan gets very hot. Just make sure the thickened milk is bubbling and very hot before turning off the heat and adding in the grated cheese.
- Do not overcook the noodles - I find this tastes best when the noodles are not overcooked. You get a bit more of a chewy texture and less of a mushy texture. To prevent your noodles from being overcooked, you can subtract 1 to 1 and a half minutes from the cooking time given to you on the instructions.
- Can you make this cheese ramen soupier? - Yes! you most definitely can. To make this thinner and soupier ramen noodle recipe, just omit the corn starch slurry thickener steps.
LOOKING FOR MORE EASY RECIPES?
- Tuna Mayo Deopbap (Korean Tuna Rice Bowl)
- Korean Glass Noodles (Japchae / Chapchae)
- Beef and Onion Soy Sauce Noodles
- Beef Chow Fun (Beef Ho Fun)
- Crispy Cheung Fun (Rice Noodle Rolls) + Spicy Hoisin & Maple Sesame Sauce
- Kimchi Fried Rice (Kimchi Bokkeumbap)
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Cheese Ramen (Ram N' Cheese)
Recipe Notes
- I like to use instant noodles with a thicker noodle. I find it has a chewier texture and it's a bit harder to overcook. When shopping for them, they are usually the instant noodles made in Korea.
- If you like a runnier sauce, reserve 1-2 tablespoons of the instant noodle water when you are draining the noodles. Only add the reserved hot water, after you have mixed the noodles into the cheese sauce and you feel the sauce is too thick.
- Do not use the soup packet for this recipe. It will make the noodles super salty. Save the soup packet for something else (like popcorn or meat marinade!)
Ingredients
Corn Starch Slurry (Thickener)
- 2 teaspoon corn starch
- 2 teaspoon water (cold)
Cheese Sauce
- ½ cup milk
- 1 teaspoon soy sauce
- ½ tablespoon butter (salted)
- ½ cup cheddar cheese (grated and packed into ½ cup)
Noodles
- 1 package instant noodles (soup packets removed)
Spices (Optional)
- ¾ teaspoon garlic powder (not garlic salt)
- ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper (to make it spicy)
Instructions
Preparation
- Combine the corn starch with cold water in a small bowl and set aside for later.
- Grate the cheese and set aside for later.
Making the Cheese Sauce
- Add milk, butter, soy sauce and spices (optional) into a pot, and give it a quick stir and set the stove to medium low heat.
- Once the butter melts and the milk has come to a low rolling boil (approximately 3-5 minutes), stir the corn starch slurry you made earlier (the starch settles to the bottom of the bowl), add the corn starch slurry into the pot.
- Keep stirring until the milk has thickened.
- Once the milk has thickened and it starts to bubble, turn off the heat and add in the cheese and stir until the cheese has melted and combined well with the creamy milk.
- Pour the cheese, into your serving bowl and set aside.
Making the Noodles & Putting it Together
- Give the pot a quick rinse with hot water to remove the cheese sauce and refill it with water to cook the instant noodles. Cook the noodles for 1 minute less than what the instructions call for.
- Once the noodles are done, fully drain the water but reserve 1-2 tablespoons of the water and set aside for the end so you can tweak how creamy you want the cheese sauce
- Add the hot noodles on top of the cheese sauce in the serving bowl and mix well.
- If you prefer the cheese sauce is a little thinner, start by adding 1 tablespoon of the reserved water to thin it out a little. Add more water to thin it out even more. Tweak it until you get it to the right amount of creaminess you enjoy.
- Top with garnishes and toppings and enjoy it while it's hot! 🙂
Nutrition
*Nutritional information is calculated using online tools and is an estimate*
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Mikayla says
Umm lets just say i was lazy and did it all in ONE pot so i cooked the noodles and then added cheese and seasoning and i threw in milk and butter and lets just say I could hold in upside down over my head and not be worried....
Just J says
I have been doing this for years but two pac squares, one seasoning pack (save the other for emergencies) and 2 slices of kraft or velveeta.
I boil two square packs with one pack of seasoning
drain 95% of all the water (cuts fat starch)
pour wet noodles on two slice of cheese to get it to melt
stir thoroughly, a couple of drops of hot sauce and stir more.
Love this stuff!!!
Joyce says
Hi Just J!
Yum!! Your version sounds so creamy!! haha Isnt't this stuff awesome? I never thought of hot sauce! I should definitely try that next time! 😀
I love how you save your seasoning for emergencies haha I swear I have a whole drawer full of them! haha 😀
heather (delicious not gorgeous) says
WHOAAAAAAA. also, cheddar is life. american cheese is trash. (and not in a good trashy way like mcdonald's mcflurries lol).
Joyce says
Speaking of mcflurries...I think I'll go pick one up today! haha 🙂
romain says
Furikake in mac and cheese. Now that is a great idea. With the toothiness of the ramen noodles, the cheddar and the soy, this mac and cheese that I can really get into. Going to have to try your furikake recipe soon as well. Yum!
Joyce says
Ramen definitely tastes best with a bit of toothiness! When I was little, I used to think my dad was crazy when he only cooked my noodles for 30 seconds haha! The things we learn! 🙂
Marie says
Love this mac and cheese twist! Looks like total comfort food and so quick to make too. It such a great idea to add soy sauce in the cheese sauce for that extra umami flavour too. So much yum!
Joyce says
My fave is definitely that it's quick to make! 🙂 Comfort food 365 days a year! 😀