Keto Ramen / Spaghetti
4
servings15
minutes0
minutes30
kcal2
grams0
grams.5
grams4
gramsThis recipe relies on a couple of “modernist cuisine” ingredients and is, essentially, culinary magic. By combining two different hydrocolloids, sodium alginate and calcium lactate, you create a firm gel that has has a texture that is remarkably close to spaghetti or ramen noodles. I used to use this technique, pre-keto, to create fruit juice caviar, but got the idea to do noodles from Ann at Keto Asian flavors. I tweaked her recipe to use fewer ingredients and to cut the net carbs down to zero.
This recipe does take about an hour and 45 minutes in total, but 90 minutes are “inactive”.
Ingredients
10 cups water, divided
5 oz can of chicken breast, drained (90g drained)
1/2 tsp xanthan gum
1 TB sodium alginate (9g)
1 TB calcium lactate (10g)
Directions
- Add 3 cups (710mL) water and the drained chicken breast to a blender and blend with the lid on for 15-20 seconds, gradually ramping up the speed until the chicken has been liquified.
- With the blender at low speed, sprinkle in the xanthan gum through the center hole in the blender lid and blend for another 15-20 seconds.
- At this point, the “batter” should be thick enough that you can blend at low speed with the lid off. Add the sodium alginate, while blending at low speed, and continue to blend for 15-20 seconds.
- Transfer your batter to a bowl or 4 cup Pyrex measuring cup. Ideally you want something you can pour from. Optionally, you can run your batter through a mesh sieve to get rid of the larger bubbles in your batter.
- Allow the batter to rest for 30 minutes so that any air bubbles can rise to the top. Air bubbles will result in broken noodles later.
- Create a water bath in a large bowl with 7 cups (1.6L) of water and 1 TB of calcium lactate. Whisk until the calcium lactate has dissolved.
- Use a spoon to skim off any bubbles on the surface of you batter, then pour into a squeezable condiment bottle. You will two bottles worth from this recipe.
- Using a spatula, create a whirlpool in your water bath, then squeeze a steady stream of batter into the bath, stirring constantly. Take breaks from squeezing so that you don’t create one MASSIVE noodle.
- Once you have dispersed all of the batter into your water bath, allow it to sit for at least one hour so that the noodles will firm up. There is no risk to leaving it in the water bath longer – once the noodles are “set”, they won’t get overly firm.
- These noodles can be stored in the fridge for up to a week. If reheating for spaghetti, add to a pot of water over low heat. If using for ramen, simply add to your broth near the end of cooking.
Recipe Video
Notes
- Macros are based on a servings size of 1/4 of the recipe. Although calcium lactate has 6g of carbs per TB, the amount that actually gets into this recipe is negligible. I have had people tell me that they have used the calcium lactate bath 3 or more times with degradation in its ability to set the noodles. This means that AT MOST, there is .5g net carbs per serving.
- I strongly encourage you to watch the video to see the technique for this recipe.
Can the same technique be used to make flat noodles by changing the tip of the squeeze bottle? Or do they need to be round to set properly?
If you have a dispenser that will allow you to evenly stream flat noodles, it will work. I would probably do it in a large rectangular pan and just squeeze out strips.
Iām going to try my Wide Tip I use for cake icing. I plan on pouring the batter into a piping bag, then pipe through the wide tip, into the bath. Iām hoping this would give me the Lasagna Style Pasta. Itās just an experiment, because Iāll probably stick with using Chicken Deli Slices for my Lasagnaās. Iāll let you know how it comes out.
How’d it turn out??
Do you not have to rinse these like you do with Annās lupin floor noodles?
If you are using calcium chloride, some people find that bitter. Hence the rinsing. I don’t find that to be an issue with calcium lactate.
Thank you so much for this recipe. Could these be vacuum sealed and frozen?
Great question… I’d like to know as well. ThnQ
Question… I have a supply of pickling lime (calcium hydroxide). What do you think about substituting it for the calcium lactate in this recipe.
I don’t know. I had a YouTube viewer tell me she used a calcium chloride pickling salt.
Thanks. I’ll try the pickling lime and see what happens. It won’t hurt to try.
I don’t know yet…
Steve has just released a part 2 video and these can be frozen
Hi, can fresh chicken be used? If so, how? I only use a specific brand of chicken, not canned.
I’d used poached or steamed chicken breast.
Rather than use canned chicken breast, would boiled chicken breast cut into small chunks work as well?
Yes. Anything you can blend into a liquid should work.
Hi Steve first of all I’m a huge fan of your YouTube channel and blog – you’re amazing!
I just made these noodles using your exact specifications and they came out perfectly. I almost cried when I ate them. I keep thinking of new ways to use them – I can’t wait to try. Thank you so much!
Could you bake these noodles in a casserole?
Probably not. Based on my research, sodium alginate “melts” at 266F. So while these will work in soup, ramen, pho, spaghetti, etc., the might not hold up under baking temperatures.
I wonder if some tweeking by adding an egg or some gelatin would help with the sturdiness at higher temps. I appreciate the change using chicken rather than yet another specialty item–egg powder! The more common the ingredients, the more I am likely to try. Gotta get some chemicals now…
The other recipe advises soaking the noodles in warm
water with lemon or lime juice and baking soda for 4 -8
minutes to soften the noodles before heating, do you
think yours would benefit from this or do they have the
correct level of softness without it?
Other recipes I’ve seen use more than the recommended amount of sodium alginate. I think this results in noodles that require softening.
Hi Steve, great recipe! I just made these and they came out a little crunchy? Like they had a bit more of a bite than I expected and had an audible crunch. Any idea what would cause this?
That is odd. I really don’t know what would cause that…
It sounds like you used calcium chloride instead of calcium lactate.
How about using egg yolk powder or kelp powder instead of chicken?
That’s what Anne does at Keto Asian Flavours.
Made this twice. The second time I added 1/4 t salt and turmeric like the original recipe and cut the hole in my condiment bottle a little bigger. Perfectā¦my mom was very impressed! Canāt seems to post a pic but the turmeric made it look like regular spaghetti!
How did it taste
Steve I followed the recipe to the dot, including all the waiting times but the results were noodles that melt in the mouth. They tasted fine, but the texture was like super overcooked pasta without any snap and little pull. Do you know if it is possible to make the noodles more solid by increasing the concentration of the sodium alginate and calcium lactate? Also the condiment bottles you recommended squeeze a very thin stream. I had to cut the top of mine to widen the opening.
Two options, as I see it:
1) Boost the sodium alginate to two TB, or
2) Let the noodles sit in the water bath overnight.
It’s hard to say why they didn’t set up properly without witnessing it.
Can you make the “batter” one day and then make it into noodles the next day?
I have not tried that. Sorry.
I wonder if some tweeking by adding an egg or some gelatin would help with the sturdiness at higher temps. I appreciate the change using chicken rather than yet another specialty item–egg powder! The more common the ingredients, the more I am likely to try. Gotta get some chemicals now…
Steve, when you say, “Create a water bath in a large bowl with 7 cups (1.6L) of water and 1 TB of calcium lactate. Whisk until the calcium lactate has dissolved” Can you use a metal mixing bowl for this, or does it have to be a glass bowl? Hope you can provide an answer to this. My biggest mixing bowl is a metal one – so i’m hoping I don’t have to purchase a bigger glass bowl for this
I used the glass bowl for the visual aspect in the video. I see no reason why a metal bowl wouldn’t work.
Just tried it and it looks like success. I learned I hate the smell of canned chicken. But I assume that smell goes away when I use them in a soup or as spaghetti. Anyway it works. So cool.
I added some yellow food coloring to make them look more “noodely” but used a little too much. Less next time…. And I will cut the tip off those bottles since they are very thin.
Thanks for giving me a reason to use my blender. Have not touched it in 2 years.
Great recipe Steve!! I followed your directions and came out with some wonderful noodles. Would you consider a video talking a little bit more about how we can use this? For example, do we even need the chicken? Could noodles be made out of just chicken or beef broth for ramen? You spoke of using fruit juice to make the jellied caviar. Would love to know a little more about the reactions between the ingredients. Thank you for all you bring to us!!!
Without chicken (or some other firm ingredient), you’ll get gummy worms. So, if you want to make gummy worms, just add some sugar free fruit flavored powder or Mio to your liquid. I’m trying to think of a good keto application the caviar. Perhaps little pearls of Hollandaise sauce that pop in your mouth…
Thanks Steve!! That makes sense. š So, if I use chicken broth in place of the water and add the chicken, I should get a stronger chicken flavored noodle for ramen, right?
Correct. I’d make sure to go with low sodium broth, or it might be a little too salty.
Do these ramen noodles cause any gastric distress? Thanks!
Not for me and no one has said anything about it in the YouTube comments.
hey Steve….this was FASCINATING! Thanks for all you do & bring to us!!!
question is on volume that this recipe makes, I see it’s 4 servings….would
it be the equivalent to a pound of spaghetti? did you weigh it so we can
know how much it makes per 1 can of chicken? Many thanks
I didn’t weigh it. Sorry.
Hi Steve,
Can you use different proteins, like shrimp instead of chicken?
Yes. If your blender can liquify it, you can use it. And it doesn’t have to be protein. I’ve done it with spinach.
can you explain more about using spinach instead of chicken? Sounds delicious!
Instead of chicken I used a standard package of frozen chopped spinach that I thawed and then squeezed out. It wound up being right around 100g or the same weight as the chicken. I then prepared it the same way as the chicken recipe. I will say that the resulting “batter” was much thicker. The noodles also took longer to set. Still my wife and daughter loved them. I need to dial in the recipe a bit more…
Hello. In the video you described these noodles as zero carbs, yet in the written recipe the net carb count is 2 per serving. With this in mind, and assuming that we always want as few carbs as possible, how do these noodles compare to the truly zero carb Konjac noodles (ex. https://www.amazon.com/Better-Than-Certified-Gluten-Free-Noodles/dp/B01DAKN9SG/ref=sr_1_22?crid=2ATIAI9X8OSDX&dchild=1&keywords=konjac%2Bnoodle&qid=1635053709&qsid=135-6022599-2709801&sprefix=konjak%2Caps%2C841&sr=8-22&sres=B07SH5QF9X%2CB01N1425BQ%2CB07ZVCW4ZK%2CB07ZVDP46K%2CB08P3T79QD%2CB08NVKLRQ2%2CB086V7CN9S%2CB073SJQGTX%2CB07JFCR8TS%2CB07SH69Q1T%2CB079SZC29H%2CB01N14244G%2CB07SG481L7%2CB01HH9IN64%2CB08LP6FVNZ%2CB08NVKHNF1%2CB01DAKN9SG%2CB01HH9XE2C%2CB08KTCMS5N%2CB08LP5DTH4&srpt=NOODLE&th=1)?
Re-read the recipe. The net carb count is below .5g per serving. And you can probably buy rubber band cheaper than konjac noodles and still get the the same texture as konjac.
Hi. Three things: (1) Thank you for your time, it is appreciated; (2) I will blame this unforgivable oversight on the keto brain fog. I fell off of a keto wagon a while ago, and am just getting back on it; (3) I am going to assume that the rubber band comment was meant as a joke, and not an unnecessary dig at me. I was not criticising your noodles, and I do not own any stock in Konjac companies. I was simply asking a question, which I now know was based on my mistaken reading of the posted macros. Once again, thank you
Wow! Is that super cool or what! I made these noodles today following the recipe exactly and they turned out exactly as expected (howbeit not all of them were perfectā¦ first try, you know). There is time involved with waiting for bubbles to rise and noodles to set, but the fact that they stay good in the refrigerator for 5 to 7 days makes it so doable, just takes a little planning. Thank you. Spaghetti is on the menu again. š
I have the recommended squeeze bottles, and they work perfectly. However, if you discover that you like thicker spaghetti noodles, the smaller bottle of the OXO Good Grips Chefās Squeeze Bottle Set would do that. Furthermore, the larger of the two OXO bottles is perfect for making udon style noodles (I am making udon noodles as I type this. My wife LOVES udon noodles. They’re soaking. I suspect they will need more soaking than the much thinner spaghetti noodles.)
I wanted to find a way to make ribbon style noodles, but I was not successful at finding a empty squeeze bottle with a slotted/ribbon noodle sized opening. The next best thing, that I DID find, and haven’t tried yet, are the squeeze bottles that Kraft sells mayonnaise in. We checked every brand in our local Publix, and that was the only brand that had slotted squeeze bottles. The small and large bottles have exactly the same size slot, so I bought the larger bottle. Please note that the slot is a bit large. Check your container lid before buying! I haven’t tried using this bottle to make Steve’s recipe with yet, but I don’t see why it shouldn’t work.
I should probably mention that I make double batches, because my big box store cans of chicken are twice the size as the recipe. I use a Vitamix, and I pour directly into the squeeze bottle without the intermediary steps of de-foaming, or pouring from a measuring cup. (If foaming bothered me, I would probably try getting rid of the foam by way of my chamber vacuum sealer. But then, maybe that would make a horrific mess…)
Your mileage may vary. No warranties are implied. Live at your own risk.
In the end and for best results, the udon noodles needed to rest in solution overnight.
I wondered if anyone had done it by pouring directly into the squeeze bottle. If that were done and the bottle stored tip down, then any bubbles would rise to the bottom, and shouldn’t affect the pouring from the tip. My bottle has a tip cap so that’s what I did. and I just put it in a mug to settle. Also, good to point out the larger noodles will need longer soaking. they will have a nice shell, but then be gooey on the inside if not soaked enough for the calcium to get all the way throughout the noodle! Guess how I found out? eww! LOL
There’s a mayo squeeze bottle that has a flat profile I think it is Miracle Whip or Hellman’s, not exactly sure. But it would be something to test to see if it might work. Might be close to Biang Biang belt noodles. Maybe there are some cake decorating tips that would work too. I need to start experimenting too.
Steve you have saved the day with your take on Ann’s noodles. In Canada it’s quite difficult (and expensive!) to obtain egg yolk powder and Lupin flour. I’m so beyond thankful for your excellent recipe!!! I’ve been wanting a bowl of spaghetti for weeks and tonight I made your recipe. I am thrilled to announce these noodles came out wonderfully even though my calcium wouldn’t dissolve properly and I didn’t wait the reccomended time for bubbles to rise. I just said EFF it and jumped in head first and MY OH MY was I pleasantly surprised. You sir are a genius.
Hi Steve! Thanks for making the recipe so simple and straightforward. I have a quick question, is it possible to substitute chicken with vital wheat gluten, or oat fiber? Or could you suggest a different substitute without any strong flavor perhaps. Thanks again!
Hi
Maybe I’m missing it somehow, but your nutritional info seems to be lacking the very important “Sodium Content”. Along with carbs,I have to watch Sodium too.
Also, do you know if someone who is allergic to seafood/shellfish, can safely use that kelp(?) product? Thx!
This looks awesome BUT my noodles will not form. Iāve tried to make these noodles twice and the liquid chicken just dissolves in the calcium lactate bath. Iāve checked and Iām using the correct ingredients although not your specific brands. My batter never seems to be as thick as yours so the second time I added an extra 1/4 tsp xanthan gum. I also increased the sodium alginate by 1 Tbsp as you recommended to someone else whose noodles were too soft. At least she got noodles. I really want this to work and donāt know what is wrong. I followed along with your video to make sure I did it exactly as you and didnāt rely on my memory. If anyone can help I would greatly appreciate it. Thanks
It’s really hard to say without witnessing it. I’m sure it’s frustrating though. I can’t obviously speak to the ingredients that you’re using, but I’ve used the Modernist Pantry brand repeatedly with no issues. How long are you letting the batter rest before you dispense it? Also, how long do you let the calcium lactate sit in the water bath before adding the batter?
I pour the batter into a bowl, set it aside and make the water bath. After the batter has rested for 30 minutes, I remove the foam and pour into the dispenser. Stir the bath and start trying to make noodles.
If Iām doing all that right the only other thing is to try the MP brand. I already use their calcium lactate so maybe I try their other ingredients too. The one thing that I always notice in your video is the thickness of your batter. When I use a sieve it just pours right through, no spatulizing needed. I think this is the key.
Thanks for responding and Iāll give it another try this weekend.
Well due to my advanced age, I got yours and Keto Asian Flavors recipes mixed up. I used chicken and one tablespoon of nutritional yeast – and the noodles aren’t as firm as they were the first time I made them with just chicken. Hoping that the bath at the end helps rectify that. They still taste good though they’re just a little soft. Will update!
…and is there any reason to feel funny about consuming these “chemicals”?? A serious question, since I know NOTHING about Sodium Alginate & Calcium Lactate. š
If the “chemical” names bother you, call it seaweed salt and dairy fermentation.
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When I figured out that I could use calcium chloride…and use half as much…and that calcium chloride is just Pickle Crisp, which is already in my pantry…it was GAME ON! I used a full large (10 oz) can of chicken, including the juice, and reduced the water accordingly. Pureed the chicken first, before adding the water. Then the water at low speed. Then xanthan gum followed by sodium alginate as directed. Ended up with no bubbles to speak of. So my impatient self only waited around 15 minutes to let it thicken up a bit before loading my squeeze bottle and going for it. It has only been about half an hour and the noodles are already fully set up, even a bit of a crunch to them (but not unpleasantly so). This. Is. AWESOME! Thank you, Steve (and Anne from Keto Asian Flavours as well).
What would happen if I substituted whey protein for the chicken?
I’ve read that this process doesn’t work well with dairy (so whey protein would be out). I haven’t tried it myself.
What would happen if I substituted whey protein for the chicken?
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I made this three ways: canned chicken, egg yolk powder, and boiled eggs. All three methods worked great. I even added some seasonings like roasted garlic, and it still worked. My issue is delicate. Although this new recipe is a salvation for us keto pasta lovers, It does not agree with me. Every time I eat these noodles I experience considerable GI distress. Makes me so sad as I love them and they are fun to make. I wonder if I am the only one who has this problem?
I made this with 60g of Pork Rinds and it came out a little thicker than I would have liked but the noodles themselves came out fine. Going to make a Chocolate Noodles with a Cannoli Cream next.
So it wasnāt my plan to spend New Years Day laid up with a nasty cold or Omicron, canāt tell the difference, but Iām so glad I made a big batch of these noodles before this knocked me down. I had to coach my non-cooking hubby thru a quick chicken soup recipe, which he pulled off so well Iām really starting to doubt his kitchen virginity! With a half serving of these amazing wonderful versatile noodles and a sprinkling of grated Parmesan on top, Iām already feeling better. Once again, thank you bunches, Steve, for your creative recipe.
While I await the unveiling of the yet-unnamed masterpiece affectionately referred to as āThe Recipeā, Iām going to have the hubbs whip up some Feta Baked Pasta. Without actually baking the noodles, of course.
These are my favorite types of comment to read. Thanks for sharing and I hope you recover quickly.
I just made this recipe using steamed shrimp (90g). It worked PERFECTLY! So, I made spinach noodles as well.SO HAPPY!!! Wish I could post a photo. So easy!
So glad you like them. I need to do another batch soon. Maybe some cheese noodles.
Thanks for the recipe. I just ordered the ingredients. Do you know if the noodles can be stir fried?
Yes, they can.
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Just made up a batch with tuna fish. They have just a tiny tuna taste which will be overcome by the garlic alfredo sauce I’m going to use. I did have one tiny problem, I had to take a phone call just as I was going to start squishing into the calcium bath. The “batter” sat for about an hour and a half before I got to it. By that time little clumps had started to form making it almost impossible to squeeze through the bottle. When I pushed real hard the top came off the bottle and dumped a gob into the bath. I took the edge of the spatula and broke it up into smaller globs looking like rice or spƤtzle. I think the whole thing will have to set all night to completely firm up. Will try again with tuna and keep to regular timing. š
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Steve, any update on using frozen spinach instead of chicken? We eat vegan at times and would really like to try this recipe with spinach for our vegan days. We’re so glad we stumbled on your VLOG!
Just use 100g of spinach instead of the chicken. That’s basically one pack of frozen chopped spinach, after it’s been thawed and most of the liquid squeezed out of it.
I use total carbs. I put all the ingredients into Cronometer and came up with 4.1g carbs per serving. Should I remove the calcium lactate from the calculation, as it’s only in the water bath, not actually in the noodles? That would give me 2.5g, close to the 2g total carbs you state.
Yes, I’d subtract the calcium lactate.
Can the Calcium lactate bath be reused?
Yes. I’ve seen people state that they’ve used it up to 3 times.
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I made this today, following your instructions to the letter. It was a fantastic dinner of noodles and chicken piccata, and it was wonderful to eat noodles that felt and tasted like noodles. The rest of the batch is going into a homemade shoyu ramen tomorrow. Thank you for this excellent recipe!
I have tried this twice. Once with bolied chicken and once with hard boiled eggs. It didn’t work well at all. I am using the Gourmet Warhouse products. The result came out looking ike porridge. There wasn’t much integrity to the noodle texture. I’m afreaid to try it again.
Given that I use the Modernist Pantry brand, I can’t speak to the quality or performance of Gourmet Warehouse.
Steve, I am really enjoying your videos. Great idea using chicken for the pasta! I thought you might want to try the alternative recipe I came up with. Everything the same as yours, except use no xanthan gum and use Creamy Mash (Hearts of Palm) from Natural Heaven in place of the chicken. I don’t like this product as a substitute for mashed potatoes, but it really works well for pasta. Low carb with no after taste. There’s enough in 1 package for 2 recipes.
Interesting…
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Made these today, need work on my Squeezing technique, however they turned out pretty well, practice will only improve, and the texture, flavor, appearance are pretty darned spot on! Way better then any other replacement Iāve tried, except maybe butternut squash noodlesš¤£š¤£ Glad I found your video, thanksā¦
I made this with my 4yo grandson this past weekend. He said it was magic that made the noodles. My husband canāt wait for me to make it again and Iām looking forward to experimenting with different ingredients.
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Great Articel!
I finally made these today. They are fantastic and easy to make. I melted a small amount of butter in a pan and sautƩed a few noodles starting at medium high and then lowered it to medium. They crisped up just a bit. I have found my spaetzle substitute!
Thanks for all your experimenting, Steve!
do you think buckwheat will work instead of chickenbreast?
Hi there! Late to the game but just curious- I donāt have a blender that heats ingredients.. would I still be able to make these? I wondered if after blending I could hear the batter in a glass jar in boiling water? TIA!
The ingredients don’t really need to be heated, you just need a blender powerful enough to liquify the chicken (or whatever your chosen protein is). Very often, though, the friction of that will warm the liquid.
I know you can keep these for a week, but can they be frozen?
Yes. And in fact, I find the texture is more to my liking (more firm) after freezing.
I love these spaghetti. I just would like to know why so much water comes out of them, when I heat them up in the microwave. I always have to drain the spaghetti, so they don’t swim in water. Any technique to stop that?