How To Make Ramen Noodles From Scratch (The Easy Way)

Why You Can Trust This Ramen Recipe

My first introduction to authentic Japanese Ramen occurred when I moved to NYC, long before the world ramen craze had happened. It was during this time that ramen was just starting to take off as a global phenomenon.

Living in the East Village (right in the heart of Little Tokyo) meant I had incredible ramen shops (ramen-ya) literally steps from my apartment, including Momofuku and Ippudo, and plenty of smaller ramen shops that contribute to NYC's delicious ramen scene.

Why You'll Love This Recipe

• It's a 3-Ingredient Ramen Noodle Dough (Bread Flour, Baking Soda, Water + a little salt)
• The flavor and texture are far superior to dried ramen
• They're slurpy, slippery, springy, and delicious thanks to homemade baked baking soda
• Using baked baking soda + water creates a homemade lye water, which means you can skip buying specialty kansui/jian shui (a win-win)
• They hold up in hot soups and broths perfectly
• They have a distinctively delicious flavor that only real ramen noodles have
• These make great noodles for homemade dan dan mian, chicken noodle soup, and lots of other non-soup Asian noodle recipes
• They are just as good as any restaurant ramen at a fraction (sliver) of the price

Homemade Ramen Noodle Ingredients

You only need 3 ingredients + a little salt to make ramen soup noodles at home.

Don't be tempted to use all-purpose or Italian 00 flour, which doesn't have enough protein unless you specifically look for a higher protein 00 flour.

Instead, use bread flour (I use King Arthur bread flour when I'm back home in the States and farina Manitoba when I'm in Italy), which both have a higher percentage of protein than all-purpose and give ramen noodles their pleasant "chew"

HINT

I recommend using a digital scale when making these noodles, but I've provided cup measurements that also work very well.

Making Homemade Ramen Dough (At a Glance)

As mentioned above, making homemade ramen noodles is easy, but ramen dough is really stiff, so you'll need to allow for a little extra time for it to rest twice.

Allowing it to rest two (or even 3 times) helps the gluten structure relax and helps hydrate the dough, which makes it more pliable and easy to roll out.

Also, rolling the dough through the pasta machine (called sheeting), or using the "plastic bag kneading method" (see below), has a dual purpose -- it helps to build the gluten structure any good homemade noodles need, and it also allows us to easily roll out a very stiff (low hydration) dough to the desired thickness.

1st stage is mixing all of the ingredients together to form a shaggy "ball" of dough that holds together.

2nd stage is covering the dough and resting overnight in the refrigerator to hydrate and relax it, which makes it easier to roll and "knead" using the sheeted dough method.

3rd stage is sheeting the dough by folding it over itself and running it through the widest setting on the pasta machine until it becomes smooth and soft (3 to 4 times), which helps build a stronger gluten network.

4th stage is resting the sheeted dough (covered) again for 30 minutes to allow the gluten network to relax and reorient itself, which makes it easier to roll out thinly and cut.

5th stage is rolling the dough back through the pasta machine until you've reached the desired thickness, and then cutting the noodles using the smallest noodle cutter attachment.

6th stage is tossing the cut noodles with cornstarch and sealing them in an airtight bag or container and refrigerating them overnight, which gives you the best flavor. However, I've used them right away at this point, and they're delicious.

How to Make Homemade Ramen Noodles Step-by-Step

Making alkaline noodles at home is super easy, but requires a little patience because the ramen dough is very stiff, which requires a few resting periods to make it softer and more pliable. These are perfect for slurpy soups and Asian noodle recipes like Dan Dan Mian.

Step 1. Make the alkaline water. In a large measuring cup, add 1 cup of water, salt, and the baked baking soda and stir well to dissolve.

Step 2. Make the ramen dough. Add the sifted flour to a large mixing bowl and add about ¾ of the alkaline water and stir in a circular motion with your hands to combine, adding more water slowly until the dough comes together and you can form a shaggy ball out of it.

Once the dough ball is formed, try your best to knead it for 2 or 3 minutes by hand (or in a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook for 1 minute only).

Step 3. Rest the dough (1st time). Place the dough in a sealed bag and remove any air from it. Refrigerate the dough overnight.

Step 4. Portion the dough and dust it with flour. Remove the dough from the refrigerator and cut it into 4 equal pieces. FYI, the dough will be much softer and pliable at this point after resting overnight.

Working with one piece at a time, press the dough down with your hands to create a rectangle, and then use a rolling pin to get it just thin enough to fit into a pasta machine on the widest setting. Dust the dough with bread flour.

Step 5. Roll the dough. Run the dough through the pasta machine on the widest setting. Fold it in half and run it through the pasta machine again. Next, fold it like a business letter (into thirds) and run it back through the pasta machine again.

Do this two more times, repeating the "business letter folds" and running through the pasta machine until you have a smooth and much softer rectangular dough sheet.

Step 6. Rest the dough (2nd time). Place the dough in a sealed bag, remove any air, and allow it to rest for 30 minutes at room temperature.

Step 7. Roll out the dough sheets. Working with one dough sheet at a time, dust it with flour so it doesn't stick and run it through the pasta machine starting on the widest setting. Then roll into progressively thinner sheets until you reach the desired thickness (for me, this is setting #3 on a Atlas Marcato Pasta machine).

Step 8. Cut the noodles. Attach the thinnest pasta cutter attachment to the pasta machine (the same one used for making cappellini or spaghetti), dust the dough sheet with flour so it doesn't stick to the machine, and run the sheet through to cut it into ramen.

Dust the well with cornstarch to keep them from sticking. If you want curly ramen noodles, crinkle them with your hands by gently tossing them before letting them rest.

Step 9. Rest the noodles. Create nests, and rest the noodles in a sealed bag overnight in the refrigerator for the best flavor, or at least 1 hour before using them. Alternatively, you may place the noodles into a sealed bag and freeze them for up to 6 months or even longer if stored well.

Step 10. Cook the noodles. Bring a large pot of unsalted water to a boil over high heat, add the noodles, and cook stirring with chopsticks or a spoon to prevent them from sticking together, for 1 to 3 minutes depending on the thickness of the noodles. Strain them and use them as the recipe directs. Enjoy!

Helpful Hint

Don't skip the overnight rest periods - the dough transforms from impossibly stiff to workable and pliable after resting in the refrigerator, making it much easier to roll through your pasta machine without tearing.

Can You Make Ramen Noodles Without a Pasta Machine?

Yes, you can make homemade ramen noodles without a pasta machine, but it requires significantly more effort and time. The challenge is that ramen dough is extremely stiff due to its low hydration. It's much stiffer than typical Italian pasta dough, which makes it physically difficult to roll by hand.

If you don't have a pasta machine, here are two alternative methods that work:

The Rolling Pin Method: After resting the dough overnight, divide it into small portions and roll each piece as thin as possible using a heavy rolling pin. This requires considerable arm strength and patience.

Roll from the center outward, rotating the dough frequently, until you achieve approximately 1/16-inch thickness. Then fold the sheet loosely and cut into thin strips with a sharp knife.

The Plastic Bag Stomping Method: This technique, popular in Japan for home cooks. I've used it to make homemade spinach udon noodles (photographed above), and it works really well! It involves placing the rested dough in one or two thick, sealed plastic bags (in case one breaks) and stomping on it with your feet in a massaging kind of motion.

If the idea of this freaks you out, just put on some clean socks😉 and start foot massaging the ramen dough! This helps compress and flatten the stiff dough. After stomping, fold the dough (like a letter), and repeat the process several times until the dough becomes smooth and pliable enough to roll with a pin.

My honest recommendation: If you plan to make homemade ramen noodles more than just a few times, investing in a manual pasta machine (like the Atlas Marcato or Imperia) is absolutely worth it.

The pasta machine not only rolls the dough to a consistent thickness but also helps build the gluten structure through the repeated folding and rolling process, essentially doing the kneading work for you.

If you have an electric Marcato Pasta Drive (a motor that attaches to the manual pasta machine and does all the rolling for you), it is even more helpful.

How to Cook Homemade Ramen (Noodles)

Use plenty of boiling water to cook them in. Homemade ramen noodles need more water to cook in than homemade Italian egg pasta or chicken soup egg noodles (especially because they're coated in cornstarch before resting in order to keep them from sticking together). When this cornstarch hits the boiling water, it starts to thicken quickly, so having more water = less gooping and potential for noodles to clump together.  

Cook ramen for just 1 to 3 minutes. Depending on the thickness of the noodles and whether you enjoy them extra-firm, firm, or soft, ramen cooks in just 1 to 3 minutes. We like ours somewhere between extra-firm and firm when eating ramen soup because they continue to soften when you add the boiling tonkotsu (or other) broth to the bowl. For dan dan mian, we like them semi-firm or al dente.

Control the texture of ramen. The beauty of homemade ramen noodles is controlling the texture to your liking, just like in traditional Hakata and other types of ramen shops (including Ippudo), where customers choose between 'harigane' (extra firm) and 'futsu' (normal) doneness levels. Test your noodles frequently during cooking since fresh alkaline noodles can go from perfectly chewy to overcooked in just 30 seconds.

Do not add salt to the cooking water. Cook ramen noodles in plain boiling water because they already contain salt.

Stir the noodles with a pair of chopsticks as they cook. This will keep them from clumping together. 

If cooking homemade ramen noodles from frozen, do not thaw them first. Simply drop them into boiling water and cook them until you reach the desired doneness. They may take 30 seconds to 1 minute longer, depending on how firm or soft you like the ramen.

Substitutions

• Baked baking soda substitute: Use kansui (Japanese) or jian shui (Chinese) alkaline mineral water instead of homemade baked baking soda for making alkaline water in ramen noodles recipe.
• Bread flour substitute: Although technically possible, all-purpose flour can replace bread flour, though bread flour's higher protein content creates better chewy texture for homemade ramen noodles. I would never ever use all-purpose flour to make homemade ramen noodles, you shouldn't either, unless you are in a genuine pickle you cannot get yourself out of 😊.
• Cornstarch substitute: Potato starch can replace cornstarch for dusting homemade ramen noodles to prevent sticking during storage.

Options For Ramen Noodles When You Don't Want to Make Them From Scratch

• Fresh ramen noodle alternatives: Chinese egg noodles, udon noodles, or soba noodles work as substitutes for homemade ramen noodles in soups if you're not up for making homemade ramen.
• Regular baking soda alternative: If you can't make baked baking soda, regular baking soda dissolved in water creates an alkaline solution, though the texture will be slightly different

Variations

• Egg ramen noodles: (pictured directly above) Add eggs/yolks to the dough for an even richer color and slightly softer-textured homemade ramen noodle recipe*(recipe coming soon...they're delicious!)
• Thick chewy noodles: Use a lower hydration ratio and roll to pasta machine setting #2 on an Atlas Marcato pasta machine for extra thick, chewy ramen noodles
• Curly ramen noodles: After cutting, gently crinkle noodles with hands before resting to create a wavy, curly ramen noodle texture
• Different noodle widths: Use different pasta machine cutter attachments for varying noodle widths from thin to thick ramen styles

Equipment

• Pasta machine: Manual pasta roller with adjustable thickness settings essential for rolling stiff ramen dough - Marcato Atlas, Imperia, or similar brand recommended
• Rolling pin: Needed to initially flatten each dough portion into rectangles thin enough to fit through the pasta machine's widest setting before the first roll
• Digital kitchen scale: More accurate than cup measurements for weighing flour and water ratios in a homemade ramen noodles recipe
• Large mixing bowl: For combining alkaline water with flour and initial dough formation
• Stand mixer with dough hook: Optional but helpful for kneading very stiff ramen dough for 1 minute
• Sealed plastic bags: For resting dough overnight and storing finished ramen noodles
• Large cutting board or countertop: Ample workspace for handling pasta sheets and organizing cut noodles
• Large pot: For boiling plenty of unsalted water to cook fresh homemade ramen noodles
• Knife or Dough Cutter: For portioning the ramen dough into 4 equal pieces

How to Store Fresh Ramen Noodles

You can use homemade ramen after they're first made, but it benefits the flavor if you rest them in the refrigerator overnight after the noodles have been cut.

You can also freeze them so you can host a ramen party or just enjoy being able to eat a piping hot bowl of ramen any night of the week.

How to Serve (Use) Ramen Noodles

Homemade ramen noodles are incredibly versatile and can be served in countless ways. The most traditional presentation is in a steaming bowl of tonkotsu ramen broth with classic ramen toppings like soft-boiled ramen eggs, chashu pork, and scallions.

For miso ramen, pair your fresh noodles with rich miso broth and corn kernels. Chicken ramen lovers can enjoy these alkaline noodles in clear chicken broth with tender chicken pieces.

Beyond soup, these homemade ramen noodles work beautifully in stir-fried dishes, cold noodle salads, or as a base for dan dan mian. Serve immediately after cooking for the best texture, and always have your broth and toppings ready before cooking the noodles, since they only take 1-3 minutes to prepare.

For an authentic experience, serve in proper ramen bowls with chopsticks and a ceramic spoon for the broth. The springy, chewy texture of fresh alkaline noodles pairs perfectly with both light and heavy broths, making them suitable for any season or preference.

Top Tips For Making Homemade Ramen Noodles

• Use plenty of boiling water to cook them in. Homemade ramen noodles need more water to cook in than homemade Italian egg pasta or chicken soup egg noodles (especially because they're coated in cornstarch before resting in order to keep them from sticking together. When this cornstarch hits the boiling water, it starts to thicken quickly.
• Cook ramen for just 1 to 3 minutes. Depending on the thickness of the noodles and whether you enjoy them extra-firm, firm, or soft, ramen cooks in just 1 to 3 minutes. We like ours somewhere between extra-firm and firm when eating ramen soup because they continue to soften when you add the boiling tonkotsu (or other) broth to the bowl. For dan dan mian, we like them semi-firm or al dente.
• Do not add salt to the cooking water. Cook ramen noodles in plain boiling water because they already contain salt.
• Stir the noodles with a pair of chopsticks as they cook. This will keep them from clumping together.
• If cooking homemade ramen noodles from frozen, do not thaw them first. Simply drop them into boiling water and cook them until you reach the desired doneness. They may take 30 seconds to 1 minute longer depending on how firm or soft you like the ramen.

More Ramen Recipes to Make the Perfect Piping Hot Homemade Bowl

If you're just getting into making homemade ramen (and all the delicious components that go with it), you can start from the beginning with our favorite ramen recipes.

More Easy Noodle Recipes to Make

If you love easy noodle recipes as much as we do, here are a few of our favorites we think you might also enjoy.