There’s a healthier way to eat trendy ramen noodles (recipe)

Yes, they can be high in fat and salt. And, sure, they’re the stuff most college students are sick of by the time they graduate.

But guess what? They’re in style.

The secret of ramen noodles is to buy the inexpensive packet, toss the seasoning packet and go it alone.

Think of ramen as slightly pre-cooked noodles with oil added, and you’re on your way to a delightful dish. Even pros suggest keeping the basic ingredient of many dishes based on those handy Ramen packets a secret.

Another secret to a great soup is serving it a fine bowl, so we suggest a few super soup bowls, plus a classic recipe for today’s hottest noodle. Slurp on!

Ooh la la!

Sure it says it’s for onion soup, but we say even a little ramen will add a touch of flavor to that dish. And we love the handles. La Creuset French Onion Soup bowl, $25.99 each, bedbathandbeyond.com

Stripe it rich

Brighten up your meal with these pretty bowls that feature stripes on the outside and a floral pattern on the inside. Turquoise stripe Holland Park bowls, set of four, $27.96, worldmarket.com

Petal power

Take your ramen to a new level of elegance in this decorative porcelain bowl. Forbury soup bowl, $20, anthropologie.com

Back in black

It doesn’t get much more chic than this black square swirled soup bowl. Mikasa bowl, $12.99 on sale, macys.com

Recipe, please

Now, to fill those bowls: We love this recipe from myrecipes.com for basic chicken noodle soup, made, naturally, with ramen noodles.

Basic Chicken Soup

Ingredients

• 8 cups water
• 2 tablespoons oil (sesame oil preferred)
• 2 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, cut into bite-size pieces
• 1 carrot, shredded
• 1 cup thinly slivered cabbage (like for coleslaw)
• 2 cloves garlic, minced or crushed
• 1 teaspoon peeled and grated fresh ginger (optional)
• 4 packages chicken- or oriental-flavor ramen noodles
• Soy sauce to taste

Directions

1. Bring water to a boil in a soup pot. While water comes to a boil, heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until hot. Sauté chicken until browned on all sides and cooked through.
2. Once water comes to a boil, add sautéed chicken, carrot, cabbage, garlic, and ginger to pot. Cook 2 minutes, then add ramen noodles along with only 2 of the flavor packets that come with the noodles.
3. Cook 3 minutes and not a second longer–ramen is best when not cooked to death. Taste, then add a slosh of soy sauce if you like.