A long time ago — or at least a decade ago — a very good friend of mine asked me to show her how to make ramen. Not the kind that you do on the stovetop with a seasoning packet but rather a ramen that was more in line with what you get in a restaurant. I told her, much like fried rice, ramen can contain anything. Whatever you have in the refrigerator is okay.

Now I get what she was asking because ramen can be very involved and time-consuming if you want something that is in three minutes on the stove with flavoring packet. But there are lots of layers of elevation between a cup of noodles you pour water into and something you get at a high-end ramen restaurant.

Food is a funny thing because if you grow up with something that is considered a street food or something you get at home, it’s perplexing that people will pay way too much money for way so little. You are definitely paying for ingredients and culinary skill at a good restaurant but that isn’t to say you can’t give yourself a better bowl of ramen at home for less than five bucks.

You can purchase better ramen noodles than a $.25 packet but honestly, it’s okay to use those noodles. Ramen is a comfort meal. A street food much like sushi. What you have on hand is good enough and let’s face it, isn’t going to cost you $20. I mean it could if you wanted to but how about just something for dinner?

Instant miso packets and a broth made with Better Than Bouillon can give you a very hearty base. This is to replace the seasoning packet that comes with the instant noodles but you could also hold onto that packet and use it to season chicken or pork later on. Or you can just use broth.

But what to put on top of the ramen? Pretty much anything you have in the fridge or freezer. Minced green onions are good. So are frozen peas and carrots that you run under hot water. You can add a hard-boiled egg cut in half or you can lightly beaten egg and fry it then chop it up into strips. Some people use corn. Some people toss in the leftover meat that they had the night before after they slice it up. Or even squares of tofu if you have that. The key is to make sure that they are small enough that you can pick it up with chopsticks and put it in your mouth as one bite.

Bean sprouts. Strips of seaweed. Hell, even fish sticks. Ground up Vienna sausage or hot dog sliced diagonally or even Spam. So long as whatever you’re adding is good for you.

Boil the noodles. Make your broth. Put the hot noodles in a bowl then pour your broth over the noodles. Garnish with whatever you pulled it together and then go have dinner. A bunch of little things goes a long way in making ramen. If you have wontons or any type of dumplings, cook those and toss them in. Add shoyu (soy sauce) to taste and if you have it, drizzle a little sesame seed oil on top or even chili crisps.

It doesn’t need to be elaborate if you don’t want it to be. It just has to warm your belly and give you a sense of home.

And yes, sometimes the best ramen can be found in the sketchiest places.