Fish,  Noodles,  One-dish Meals,  Under $1

Tuna Ramen with Mushrooms and Sliced Garlic

Oct 24- Tuna Ramen

When I don’t feel like cooking too many dishes (you know, 三菜一汤- 3 dishes and a soup- like in Chinese cooking), I take the easy way out by preparing a one-dish noodle, bee hoon, or rice meal. I try to cut down on stuff like that because there’s usually alot of simple carbs involved, but when I do cook them, I include ingredients like fish, meat, and lots of vegetables. When fixing lunch a few days ago, I chose to add in some Ayam Brand’s canned tuna CHUNKS. I used the Light version because it contains lower salt and fat as compared to regular tuna. Talking about “fixing lunch”, I was talking to Aegon about having to fix lunch before bringing him to the playground, and the cheeky boy said, “Fix lunch? You mean, with the tools?”

Aegon’s my nephew. He’s 7 this year and has a wider vocabulary than I ever will have. He also sings birthday songs in French and Spanish and draws in 3D. I know, he amazes us all the time. Now I just wish he will eat my cooking.

Makes 4 servings

What I used:

4 servings ramen or any noodles of your choice, soaked and drained (not too soft)
1 can chunky tuna in olive oil (I used Ayam Brand Tuna Chunks in Olive Oil- Light)
6 dried shitake mushrooms, soaked til plump, then sliced
A handful of sliced cabbage
6 cloves garlic (about 1 large garlic bulb), peeled and sliced
6 cloves shallots (about 2 shallot bulbs), peeled and sliced
1 small carrot, peeled and sliced into strips
Seasoning (Combine together):
2 tablespoon light soy sauce
2 tablespoon fish sauce
A dash of white pepper
300ml water

1. Drain the oil from tuna and heat up in a frying pan. Fry garlic and shallots til fragrant, then add carrots and mushrooms and fry for 3 minutes.
2. Add tuna chunks and cabbage and fry for 2 minutes. Don’t break up the chunks too much. Pour in the seasoning and bring to boil. Add the noodles and cover to simmer for 3-4 minutes.
3. Remove cover and stir fry til most of the liquid has dried up. Garnish with some red chillies and serve immediately.

How much I spent:

$1 for noodles
$0.20 for carrot
$2.45 for tuna
Everything else from my pantry!

Total cost per serving: $0.92

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I chose to use ramen because I was in the mood for some fat, savoury noodles that day. You can most definitely use bee hoon, but I thought some noodles with bite would go very well with the chunky tuna. Ah-mm said this was quite delicious, and I suspect the shallots and garlic had a lot to do with it. Whenever I stir-fry noodles, I’ll be sure to add lots and lots and lots and lots of shallots.. ok maybe just enough for me to overdose on. Don’t forget them the next time you do a noodle stir-fry!

Oct 24- Tuna Noodles