Make This Late-Night Cold Ramen with What's in Your Fridge

Ramen needs no introduction at this point. Yes, we could geek out over the hundreds of variations on it that can be found in Japan and elsewhere—dishes that rely on long-cooked broths and succulent chashu and the deft hands of ramen masters.

But sometimes you just don't have time to make your own traditional ramen at home—especially after you've had a few drinks, which is when the siren song of ramen rings clearest.

You could resort to instant stuff with little packages of MSG—which, hey, is a totally legit pleasure all its own—or you could find a happy medium between the two.

Take a cue from ramen genius Richie Nakano, who gave us his recipe for cold ramen.

"Recipe" is a loose term here. As with most things, the secret's in the sauce: a vinaigrette of rice vinegar, soy sauce, sesame oil, ginger, garlic, and sugar. It'll take you about two minutes to make.

In the meantime, make some noodles. If you have access to a good brand like Sun Noodles, go for it. Otherwise, the instant stuff will do in a pinch.

Top your bowl off with whatever you have in your fridge: kimchi, scallions, corn, pea shoots, a poached egg—whatever. This is your ramen canvas, so get creative.

The key? Eat the noodles cold. It's not quite soba, and it's not quite your standard bowl of ramen. It's just a supreme mess of leftovers given a new life, and it'll be exactly what you want when you roll in at 2 AM.

This first appeared on MUNCHIES in May 2016.