after dinner sneeze

t says: The other day, a, v, g, and I were discussing childhood foods that we still enjoyed eating today … even if they are a little – shall we say – “unrefined”.  For instance, a has found himself eating Spaghettios once or twice a year; I find this to be revolting.  I, on the other hand, have been known to eat a Pop-Tart or two in my day (Cherry is the best); a finds this is ridiculous but not necessarily surprising (I believe his exact words might be: “you would … you would!”).  g has a secret crush on sugar doughnuts filled with strawberry jelly (she can resist a lot of sweets … but not that one).  This is when v reminded me of one of her food weaknesses: ramen.  Mmmmmm.  Ramen.  I, too, love ramen.  But not just any ramen – for me it has to be Sapporo Ichiban:

Sapporo Number One! ... Ichiban!

This is the brand that I grew up on – no “Cup-o-Noodles” or “Smack Ramen” (both of which are gross) or anything like that – this is the real deal.  And, if you haven’t had this brand before, I strongly advise you find your nearest Asian convenience store and buy it (don’t mess around with the “flavored” Sapporo ones, either, as the “original flavoring” is by far the best).

Back in the day, I’d drop an egg or two into the boiling water to add a little “something extra” to the noodles and MSG goodness.  Now, years later, I will cook the ramen using the full seasoning packet but avoid ingesting too much broth (that’s where the salt is).  And lately, I’ve been playing around with my ramen toppings by adding some leftovers:

ramen with leftover Chinese food (shrimp and broccoli), leftover kimchi jige, some sauteed spinach, and a hard-boiled egg

No, it’s no Momofuku ramen, but if I close my eyes, I can pretend that it’s a balanced lunch (it’s got three pieces of broccoli in there, right?).  One day, I do hope to master David Chang’s ramen, and maybe then I won’t need Sapporo Ichiban anymore … (but I’d still eat it anyways).