Wondering how to cook noodles if you have no access to a stove or a microwave? This guide has you covered. I’ll take you through some ways to get your noodles ready without using the latter.
No doubt, instant noodles come in handy when you’re in a hurry and need something to fix your empty stomach real quick.
If you’re a university student or once were, you may know how important it is to have this food in your apartment! You can use an electric kettle, rice cooker, coffee pot, boiling water tap, etc. to cook noodles instead of using a stove or microwave.
When hit by power challenges and can’t power your microwave or stove, you’ll rush to the internet to find out how to do it. Luckily, this guide will salvage your situation, read on and explore the available options with step by step cooking process.
How To Cook Noodles Using Hot Water
Hot water is the simplest way to cook noodles without an oven or a microwave. In this case, you need super hot water for perfect results.
You can use the hot water dispenser to fix the situation when you’re busy and can’t leave your desk for lunch. Did you know that?
Noodles undergo a cooking process before they are packaged. Thus, you can boil it quickly before it is ready. Hot water can do the magic.
Now you may want to ask where to find hot water for cooking the noodles, right?
One of the ways to get hot water is by using your water kettle—boil water in your kettle, depending on the number of noodles you wish to prepare.
A coffee maker is another appliance you can use to boil your water. You can also use your hot water dispenser, instant hot water tap, or anything at your disposal that can boil water.
Step 1: Take an empty bowl, and fill it with hot water
As I mentioned above, you can get hot water from any available source, such as a coffee maker, water kettle, instant hot water tap, etc.
Step 2: Remove your noodles from the packaging material and place them in the bowl of hot water.
After filling your bowl with water, the next thing is to remove your noodles from their packaging materials and place them in the bowl with hot water.
At this point, you need to be careful with the water to avoid unappealing scenarios. Therefore, take your time and place it carefully without splashing the water on your hands.
Step 3: Cover the bowl and leave it for 2-5 minutes
Covering the bowl helps retain heat. Your noodles will take 2-5 minutes before they are ready. However, you can leave it until it attains your desired consistency.
Step 4: Open the bowl and drain the water
Your 5 minutes are over? Open the container and drain the water to dry your noodles. You can now sit back and enjoy your meal.
How to Cook Noodles Using a rice cooker
Rice cookers are versatile kitchen appliances that can be used to prepare a range of cuisines. It comes in handy during those busy weeknights when you have to get everything done all by yourself.
If you’ve ever wondered if you can make noodles using a rice cooker, here you go!
Step 1: Put water in a pot, place it in the rice cooker and bring it to boil
Fill a medium-sized pot with water and place it in your rice cooker. Turn it on by pressing any button that will bring the water to a boil. It can be simply the cook button, white rice button, or any other button that takes the time needed for water to boil.
Step 2: Open the rice cooker and add in your noodles
Once your water boils, open the rice cooker and add your noodles to the boiling water. Also, add all the seasonings in the noodle packet or any other of your choice and stir. Afterward, close the cooker’s lid and let the noodles cook for the time recommended on the package.
Using a rice cooker is one of the easiest ways to cook noodles. In other words, the cooker simply replaces the stove, a traditional and most common way of preparing noodles.
How to cook noodles using an oven
Have you ever wondered if you can cook noodles in an oven? The good news is, this is possible! Follow the steps below;
Step 1: Preheat your oven to 400⁰ F ( around 204⁰C)
Before starting the cooking process, preheat your oven to at least 400 degrees fahrenheit.
Step 2: Place your uncooked noodles in a baking pot
Once you’ve heated the oven, you can open the noodles package, remove the seasoning packet and place them (noodles) in a baking dish.
Step 3: Add water and place it in the oven
Season the instant ramen noodles and add cups of water. Ensure the water covers all the noodles before placing them in the oven. Set the temperature to 176⁰C) and cooking time for -10 minutes. You can cook it slightly longer if you don’t like it al dente.
Can Noodles Overcook in Hot Water?
When it comes to cooking noodles, time is sensitive. If you’re used to multitasking as I usually do, chances are, your noodles will overstay in the water.
Depending on how hot your water is, noodles are ready between 2-5 minutes. If they exceed this recommended time, chances are, they’ll overcook.
While you may like soft noodles, overcooked ones are mushy and appealing. Thus, you may need to keep an eye on your noodles while cooking them in hot water, just like when using a stove or a microwave. Keep tasting to ensure they attain the right texture.
What Happens if You Accidently Overcook Noodles?
Did you accidentally overcook your noodles? What do you have to do to reverse the situation? Overcooked noodles can be unpleasant. You should remove the mushy before enjoying it. The ways that can help salvage the situation include;
Rinse with chilled water
Take the soggy noodles and place them in a strainer to drain water. Pour some chilled water to rinse off the treacle. You can also place some ice on the noodles as you rinse them to make the water even colder. This stops the cooking process, as well as rinsing the starch coating the noodles to prevent them from sticking together.
Use it to make a noodle pancake.
If your noodles are too mushy, you can make some noodle pancakes! Yes, you heard me.
You need to fry some onions, garlic, and tomato sauce and mix it with the noodles. Pour a whisked egg and mix them properly. Using a flat griddle, fry them with butter or olive oil, and there you have your delicious noodle pancakes!
Pan fry them
The other way to enjoy your overcooked noodles is to saute them. Heat some butter on a pan with low heat and place the noodles. Doing this makes the noodles a little bit crispy. You can also add some ingredients and fry them to disguise the overcooked noodle’s taste.
Can You Cook Noodles in Cold Water?
You might be in transit or in an emergency, and finding hot water may be challenging. Can you starve when you have some noodles because of the lack of hot water? No.
As mentioned above, noodles undergo a cooking process before they are packaged. After all, they’re a dried product of wheat and water.
So, yes, you can prepare noodles using cold water. When you soak it, it will absorb water and become soft and easily edible. However, it will take quite a long time, making this method not versatile if you are starving. You can do this if you have no other options.
When cooking instant noodles in hot water, you only need to wait up to 5 minutes before they are ready, as opposed to using cold water, where you have to wait for more than 15 minutes, and still the noodles are crunchy.
If you’re uncomfortable with firm noodles, believe me, you’ll push your waiting time to 40 minutes or more.
If you can’t access a stove or a microwave, does that mean missing a delicious meal? No! With some noodles with you, you can use the tricks and instructions above and get them ready in minutes. I hope you found some insights through this piece.
