Ramen Noddle Hacks : Make Gourmet Meals Out Ramen Noodle

As we are doing no spend month challenge, I am looking for ways to eat cheaply without losing quality of food and health. Many of the cheap food will include rice, beans, and also instant ramen noodles. Eating while saving money, does not have be dull and boring, otherwise we will not continue to save or eat healthy food. While, I have tried some ramen noodle hacks successfully and some not so successfully in kitchen, here are some of them that I have tried successfully by myself or learned from other creative cooks. Hope you enjoy it.

Ramen Noodles History:

Instant noodle were first marketed in Taiwan, which was under Japanese regime in late 1950s.In early 1970′s Japanese Company called Nissin introduced “cup Noodles”, which you can still buy at grocery store, which comes in waterproof Styrofoam cup, and all one has to add is boiled or warm water for noodles to be cooked and ready to eat in no time.
Instant noodle is one of the major inexpensive food, eaten in many countries, specially popular with not so rich, college students who can eat cheap and quickly make these noodles for their busy college life. There has been said, that about 95 billion people in world eat some type of instant noodles. Top Noodle consuming countries are China, Indonesia, Japan, and south Koreans along with many South Asian Countries such as India too.
Instant noodle have been criticized for low protein, vitamins and fiber while being rich in carbohydrates. One can add fibrous veggies with vitamins to make it much rich and healthy in nutrients.

Click here to read more of Upgrading inexpensive ramen noodle into Gourmet Meals

Are you a silent Vegetarian?

I am a vegetarian since birth, it is not strange as my parents are also vegetarian, they raise me and my siblings as vegetarians. When we got older, peer pressure (or so we thought) from high school friends made us feel we were different. My parents explained their strong religious, personal and ethical beliefs with us, and strongly suggested benefits of being vegetarian but never really forced us. In a way, it helped me remain vegetarian.

I really never missed not eating meat, although I have eaten it by mistake on a few occasions and my taste buds did not care much for it. As a lifelong vegetarian and aspiring vegan (I eat yogurt and cheese occasionally, no milk, honey, eggs) I have learned to ask ingredients before ordering in restaurant and seeing labels when buying things in a store.

When I got in college, there were fewer of my friends were vegetarian, somehow peer pressure happened to me again. No, I did not started to eat meat but I became silent vegetarian. Meaning, I just ate what I wanted and passed meat around hoping my friends thought I was picky eater instead.

When I was in college, I was invited to thanksgiving party at my friend's parents, when I could not visit my own family during the holidays. I went to my friend's house without telling them my being a vegetarian, hoping it will turn out fine. Unlike my childhood gathering, this gathering had huge selection of turkey and other meat dishes. As a silent vegetarian at the table, I passed everything and took and ate a few side dishes and dessert dish only. I was starving, host saw this and ask why I was not eating much and if food was not to my liking. Very quietly I told I am a vegetarian,

My friend's mom told me to wait and she made some quick vegetable dish for me, I was so thankful. No one there judged me or lectured me on being a vegetarian, even though I was the only vegetarian there. I felt normal and accepted. Since then I have changed and I tell people I am vegetarian and partial vegan before going to gathering and I bring a dish to share, even when gatherings are not potluck. It has two benefits, one I will always have something to eat and often time, my friends actually love eating tasty vegetarian dish.

Why I am telling this story now, after many years? One, if you are vegetarian or vegan or have any other special diet, speak up when you are invited to thanksgiving or any food gathering, or bring a vegetarian/vegan dish to share. If you are hosting thanksgiving party, make sure every one have something to eat. Most meat eaters/omnivores can eat vegetarian or vegan dish, but not the other way around.

When I host any gathering, I ask everyone about their diet choice by phone beforehand. In my circle, some are vegan, some are meat eater, some have diabetes, some have high blood pressure (meaning less salt food), some have nut allergies and some are just plain picky. How do I deal with it all? It is not hard, I make my meals all vegetarian. I use less salt, no nuts in anything, and I use pure molasses as a sugar or splenda for dessert so all of us can eat most of the things. If someone new is coming, I generally call to make sure about them too. My meat eater friends are fine with vegetarian meal for one evening, and some share their mock meat dishes, so this works.

Even though I am no longer silent vegetarian, I am not loud vegetarian. Meaning, I want to respect my own beliefs while maintaining respect for other's beliefs.

Do you have your story to share? I would love to hear if you have suggestions.

Zengirl

10 ways to simplify your health

Prevention is always better than cure. There are a few steps we can take to simplifying our health.

1. Drink 8-10 glasses of water every day.

2. Eat rainbow colors fruits and vegetables and whole grains to get vitamins and nutrients.

3. Get 20 minutes of sunshine everyday to get your vitamin D.

4, Limit processed food, fried food, sugary food, soda, alcohol drinks.

5. Always eat breakfast. Eat 5-6 short meals through out the day.

6. Eat before you are famished and stop before you are full. It takes 20 minutes for brain to register you are full.

7. Cook and make simple salad and other meals from scratch, you will save money as well your health.

8. Walk, bike, dance, climb, Jump, have fun exercising. For a good exercise you do not need quality gym equipment or sport outfit.

9.Get 8 hours of sleep. Nap in afternoon for 15 minutes, if you can, short rest does wonder to your body and mind.

10. Take deep breath, slow down and enjoy the roses, garden, children, people around you.

How do you stay healthy? What works for you?

Zengirl

Health and Wealth

What are similarities between health and wealth? Except, all of us want it, and worry about it when we lose it. I suppose, they also could be used in a rhyming poem :-). However, there is much in common between health and wealth than it meets the eye. How so? Let's explore.

For example, for wealth, we must earn more than we spend and for health, we must burn more calories than we eat. However, most of us are failing to do either and are suffering because of widely available cheap consumer goods and cheap unhealthy food, we tend to overspend and overeat. A lose-lose scenario for sure.

In addition to, if we have health problems, medicines, doctor's visits, hospital bills can cause drainage of our money in big way. Medical bills are number one reason , people in USA file for bankruptcies. And if we have lot of debts so collection agency and creditors are calling day and night causes us to lose a sleep, not only that but also, it can causes other health problems such as headaches, insomnia, indigestion and depression etc,.

In order to be free, we need to pay off debt, we will need to make a serious plan and follow through each steps. Paying minimum on card will not get us out of debt fast enough, we have to pay every extra pennies towards debt to be free of burden. Similarly, if we are planning to lose extra few (or a lot) of pounds, we will need a healthy eating and exercising plan. Starting small is good, however each extra steps will speed up the the final result. As every extra penny towards debt has same effect as walking extra steps to lose weight.

We can not really enjoy one without other. For example, a wealthy person who is very sick, can not make his/her disease go away, no matter how much money he/she willing to spend for it. However, A poor but healthy person has a possibility of being happy though. That is why, I will choose health over wealth anytime. As philosopher Virgil has said "Greatest wealth is health". But sure does not hurt for us to have both, and that should be the our goal.

How to you stay healthy and wealthy? What works for you?

Zengirl

Photo source: Comstock, Getty Image