I’m all about quick stir fry dinners because they’re easy, you can work a LOT of vegetables into them, and they’re just plain delicious. My newest creation, Crunchy Chicken Ramen Stir Fry, is kind of a new twist on an old favorite Beef and Cabbage Stir fry. This time we’re using chicken instead of beef, using the same light and easy sauce, tons of shredded cabbage and carrots for inexpensive bulk, and some crushed up ramen noodles for crunch. Oh, and I added a drizzle of creamy sriracha mayo because I was feeling a bit #extra. ;)
Can I Skip the Ramen?
Sure! If you’re not the ramen type, this is still a really killer (although slightly less crunchy) stir fry recipe! No hard feelings. You do you.
Same goes for the sriracha mayo topping. While *I* love the contrast of the creamy spicy with the fresh crunch, you don’t have to add it to your stir fry if you’re not into it.
How to Store Your Stir Fry
If you plan to eat some of your stir fry as leftovers, make sure to keep the crunchy crushed ramen noodles separate from the stir fry and just stir them in after the stir fry has been reheated. Same goes for the sriracha mayo topping. Add that after reheating. The cabbage and carrots do get slightly softer after refrigeration and reheating, but I still find it to be quite delicious.
Other Vegetables You Can Add:
The other awesome thing about stir fries is that you can add just about any vegetable that you might have leftover in your fridge. Some other good options would be spinach, broccoli, bell pepper, mushrooms, snow peas. Keep in mind that if you increase the amount of vegetables, you may also want to increase the sauce.
Crunchy Chicken Ramen Stir Fry
Servings 4 About 1.25 cups eachIngredients
Stir Fry Sauce
- 2 Tbsp soy sauce ($0.12)
- 1 Tbsp toasted sesame oil ($0.30)
- 1/2 Tbsp brown sugar ($0.02)
Sriracha Mayo Drizzle (optional)
- 1 Tbsp mayonnaise ($0.09)
- 1 Tbsp sriracha ($0.11)
Stir Fry
- 1 boneless, skinless chicken breast (about 2/3 lb.) ($4.08)
- 2 Tbsp cooking oil ($0.08)
- 1 14oz. bag coleslaw mix (shredded cabbage and carrots) ($1.49)
- 2 cloves garlic ($0.16)
- 1 tsp grated fresh ginger ($0.10)
- 3 green onions ($0.30)
- 1 3oz. block ramen noodles (seasoning packet discarded) ($0.25)
Instructions
- Prepare the sauces first so they're ready to use when needed. In a small bowl stir together the ingredients for the stir fry sauce (soy sauce, sesame oil, and brown sugar). In a separate small bowl stir together the sriracha and mayonnaise.
- Mince 2 cloves of garlic, grate about one teaspoon of fresh ginger, and slice three green onions.
- Without opening the package of ramen, use a rolling pin or mallet to crush the noodles into small pieces. Once crushed, open the package and discard the seasoning packet.
- Chop the chicken into small 1/2-inch pieces.
- Place a large skillet over medium-high heat. Once hot, add the cooking oil and swirl to coat the surface of the skillet. Add the chicken pieces and sauté until they're cooked through (3-5 minutes). Add the garlic and ginger to the skillet about half way through cooking the chicken.
- Once the chicken is cooked through, add the coleslaw mix (shredded cabbage and carrots). Continue to sauté for about 2 minutes more, or just until the cabbage begins to soften slightly (do not overcook at this step).
- Add the stir fry sauce to the skillet and continue to sauté for 1-2 minutes more, or until the cabbage has softened to your liking (I prefer mine still slightly firm).
- Finally, turn off the heat, stir in the crushed ramen, and top with sliced green onions and a drizzle of sriracha mayo.
See how we calculate recipe costs here.
Nutrition
Scroll down for the step by step photos!
How to Make Crunchy Chicken Ramen Stir Fry – Step by Step Photos
This stir fry cooks SUPER fast, so it’s best to prepare all of the components before you begin cooking. Start with the stir fry sauce: stir together 2 Tbsp soy sauce, 1 Tbsp toasted sesame oil, and ½ Tbsp brown sugar. The brown sugar might not dissolve all the way, but that’s okay.
For the sriracha mayo, simply stir together 1 Tbsp sriracha and 1 Tbsp mayonnaise.
Mince two cloves of garlic, grate about 1 tsp fresh ginger (I keep mine in the freezer for easier grating and longer storage), and slice three green onions.
Without opening the package of ramen, use a rolling pin or a mallet to crush the noodles into small pieces. After crushing the noodles you can open it and discard the seasoning packet (or use it for something else).
Chop one boneless, skinless chicken breast (about ⅔ lb.) into small 1/2-inch pieces.
Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Once hot, add 2 Tbsp cooking oil and swirl to coat the skillet. Add the chicken and sauté until the chicken is cooked through, adding the garlic and ginger about half way through cooking. Because the chicken pieces are so small and the pan is so hot, it should only take a few minutes for the chicken to cook through.
Add one 14oz. bag of coleslaw mix (shredded cabbage and carrots) to the skillet. Continue to sauté for only 2 minutes, or just until the cabbage begins to soften.
Add the prepared stir fry sauce, making sure to scrape any sugar that has settled to the bottom into the skillet. Continue to sauté for a couple minutes more, or until the cabbage is to your desired softness. I like mine still a bit firm, so I only sauté for about 2 minutes more.
Pour the crushed ramen into the skillet. Turn the heat off, and stir the crunchy noodles into the stir fry.
Sprinkle the sliced green onions on top and then drizzle the sriracha mayo over everything.
So good. I added mushrooms to the stir fry and increased the sauce. The Sriracha Mayonnaise took the stir fry to a different level. Thank you so much for this awesome recipe, Beth!!! 😍😍
This was SO good, and SO easy! I used brown rice and millet ramen, since that’s what I had on hand. I’m just cooking for myself, so I transferred a portion to a smaller skillet before adding the ramen. The rest will go in the fridge, and I’ll get two more meals out of it.
I didn’t divide the green onions and Sriracha mayo, I just used it all. I’m sure that kicked the flavor up a notch, and it’s easy enough to make more. Someone in an earlier post mentioned doubling the stir fry sauce, and I think I’ll try that next time. In fact, maybe I’ll double the sesame oil and soy sauce, and leave the sugar alone.
Thanks, Beth! Awesome eats, as always!
I have leftover red cabbage (from making the cold peanut noodle salad last week!)… could I use that instead of the cole slaw mix? Or do the different cabbages have totally different flavors? I’m new to cabbage, haha!
You definitely could use that up, but I would suggest adding another cabbage too to balance out the flavor. Red cabbage can be a bit bitter sometimes.
This is so wonderful! I switched the ramen for crumbled tortilla chips, added more veggies and doubled the sauce. Delicious and will make again for sure!
I plan on making this and taking the leftovers to work – should I hold the ramen and only add when about to eat each serving? or does the crunch hold up in the fridge for a day or two?
Thanks!
I’d wait to add it if you want it really crunchy. It will hold somewhat but not like when it’s freshly crumbled.
Could use more sauce and flavor. We love cabbage and stir fry but will not be repeating this recipe.
You could have increased the sauce. Beth did mention that.
This was a great fast dinner. Thank you!! My husband hates mayo but he loved the orange sauce .
can you use those crispy chow mein (could be lo mein) noodles that come in a bag as opposed to ramen, or would it not taste as good? I just happen to have a bag of those in the cupboard but no ramen.
You can certainly give them a try!
Sounds awesome and like something my family would be willing to try. But…I would need twice that amount to feed 5 bottomless pits – would it work in a big hot stockpot instead of two batches in a skillet? And could I toss in chopped leftover chicken…maybe adding it with the stir fry sauce to the veggies? (P.S. We love!!! your Pork & Peanut Dragon Noodles…although I usually make it with chicken and almonds instead of pork and peanuts, and add a whole head of shredded cabbage with the noodles to up the veggie load).
Bottomless pits! HA! Yes you could give it a try in a stock pot but I would still cook the chicken in batches in the pot. Overcrowding the pan will make the chicken not as crispy on the edges and lead to uneven cooking. Let us know how it goes!
I made this tonight with tofu (easy swap to make it vegan) and it was so easy and delicious. I expected to have lots of leftovers for lunch, but ended up eating the whole thing. Oops!
This is so delicious and can be made gluten free with a soy sauce substitution. I am not a spicy fan, but loved the addition of the sriracha mayo. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you!!
Do you have a suggestion for a non-spicy sriracha substitute that I could mix with mayo to give the dish extra flavor but without the spiciness for my young kid? Hoisin, maybe, or something else…?
I’ve never tried mixing hoisin with mayo, but if you try, let me know how it goes! I can’t really think of anything else that I would mix with mayo to top this. Personally, I’d just leave the mayo topping off and eat the stir fry as is. The stir fry sauce is enough to give it plenty of flavor on its own. :)
I make a Yum Yum sauce and keep it in the fridge in a squeeze bottle. I used it on this recipe and it was delish! This is the one I made: https://www.mamalovesfood.com/yum-yum-sauce/
Can’t wait to try this with some tofu! Sounds delish!
Delicious recipe! The spicy mayo was perfect on top. We will definitely be making this one again soon. Thank you!
DON’T TOSS THE SEASONING PACKETS FROM RAMEN!!!!! They can be used to flavor all sorts of stuff like rice, etc. Also, I’ve found that the BEST way to break up the block of ramen is to bash it a bunch of times with my jar of PB. I never use anyrhing else, and it’s done in about 30 seconds.
Packaged cole slaw mix is genius. You can probably get whole cabbage cheaper per oz, but why? This meal is all about fast, and it’s delicious. I know Beth is an Aldi shopper, and they sell large packages of chicken breasts frequently for $1.69 a lb ( regular price $1.99), making this one of the cheapest proteins available. A package has 5-6 breasts–I keep 2 for meals days 1 and 3, freeze the rest in 1 breast portions–they usually weigh between 10-15 oz, and that’s plenty to feed 4 at a total cost of closer to $1.50 than the $4.08 in this break-down. They never live in my freezer more than 3 weeks, so very little quality loss. Freezing ginger is brilliant–I’ve peeled mine and dumped in a jar of sherry, but it ends up too soggy to grate (although the flavor is terrific and ginger flavored sherry has lots of uses).