15-Minute Beef & Ramen Noodles (1-Pan!)
Developed and tested by Robyn Conley Downs
on Mar 31, 2025 (last updated Jan 5, 2026) 
This easy weeknight skillet recipe for beef and ramen noodles comes together in one-pan in 15 minutes, without any chopping. A true family favorite thanks to ramen, ground beef, and bagged coleslaw; it’s a simple, delicious meal bound for the regular rotation!
5 star review
“Words cannot describe how tasty this is! The flavors are perfect and it comes together so quickly. This one will be on repeat for me!”
– Kerry
My Favorite 15 Minute Dinner is This Easy Beef & Ramen Noodles!
For those nights when you need dinner on the table like 5 minutes ago, this super quick ground beef ramen noodle dish saves the day! There’s no prep time or chopping needed, so it’s literally done in 15 minutes flat. And just like my 15-minute ground beef & broccoli stir-fry, it’s perfect for when you’re craving a comforting ramen noodle dish, but you want a more balanced version.
It’s jam-packed with protein from ground beef along with hearty heaps of zero-prep veggies! Now you may already know this, but ramen is a true weeknight hero. I created this easy skillet recipe because I have a viral slow cooker beef ramen on the site that’s one of my all-time reader favorite recipes!
Readers love this recipe because it’s a lightened up way to enjoy a nostalgic dish when your family craves ramen noodles. And even though there’s a lot of veggies, kids love eating it!
Seriously, this one-pan weeknight meal couldn’t get any easier. Since I adapted it from the slow cooker version, here are some tips to make sure it comes out just right. First, cook the ground beef then add juuust enough broth to cook the noodles but not make a soup. Once the ramen is starting to break apart but is not quite fully cooked, the slaw and carrots go in. And trust me, they only need 2-3 minutes to cook. Hello, perfectly cooked noodles and veggies!
Best of all, this beef ramen noodle recipe is wildly versatile, so you can adapt it to your flavor preferences. I wanted to keep the ingredient list as streamlined as possible, but feel free to add more veggies, grated ginger, edamame, or hoisin sauce.
Welcome to My Kitchen – Let’s Whip Up Skillet Beef & Ramen Noodles!
Avoid Mushy Ramen or Vegetables
Cook the ramen in the broth just until it starts to break apart. And cook the slaw and carrots for no more than 2-3 minutes.
15-Minute Beef & Ramen Noodles (1-Pan!)
Ingredients
Skillet Beef and Ramen
- 2 teaspoons olive oil
- 1 pound lean ground beef
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- ¼ cup low-sodium tamari (or soy sauce)
- 1 ½ cup chicken stock
- 2 teaspoons brown sugar
- 2 (3-oz) packages ramen noodles, flavoring packets discarded or saved for another use
- 9- oz slaw mix (about 4 cups)
- 1 cup shredded carrots
Equipment
Instructions
- Heat a large, high-sided skillet or heavy-bottom pan such as a Dutch oven, over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil and ground beef, break apart the meat into small chunks, and cook for 3 minutes until beginning to brown. Add the salt and garlic, and cook until the meat is no longer pink, about 2-3 more minutes, stirring frequently.
- Add the tamari, stock, and sugar. Turn the heat to high and bring to a strong simmer. Add the ramen noodles and cook for 2-3 minutes, or until the noodles begin to soften but are not fully cooked, flipping the ramen several times to evenly coat the noodles in the broth.
- Add the slaw and the carrots, stirring to combine. Cook an additional 2-3 minutes for the noodles to cook completely and the vegetables to soften.
- Serve immediately with toppings, if desired.
Notes
- Spice it Up: If you’re looking for spicy beef ramen, I recommend dousing it with your favorite hot sauce (I love red chili paste or sriracha in my beef ramen.)
- Beef Ramen Soup: I created this to be a noodle dish, not a soup. So if you want to make slurpable beef and ramen noodle soup, add extra broth after the veggies cook.
- Top it Off: Sliced green onions, toasted sesame seeds, and a generous drizzle of hot sauce are my go-to toppings here.
- No-Chop: Keep this a true no-chop recipe by using jarred minced garlic and pre-shredded carrots.
- With Chicken: Want to make this one with chicken instead? I recommend my 1-pan chicken ramen, which is very similar to this recipe, but with a few important tweaks.
Robyn, this was SO good and easy! 10 year old daughter approved! I didn’t use ground beef I just went straight to sautéing garlic and used a high quality chicken bone broth. Next time will add egg or tofu for the protein. But it was excellent without anyway! I added a little toasted sesame oil at the end and added chili crisp. I will be eating cold leftovers for lunch tomorrow!
Sunny, great notes on making this without the meat and adding bone broth for added protein. I also love adding chili crisp at the end – so good. Thanks so much for your notes and for leaving a review!
To accommodate my dietary restrictions, I made this with vegan ground ‘beef,’ mushroom stock, and coconut aminos. It came out so well!
Robyn, thanks for sharing those swaps, and great to know this one worked will with coconut aminos. Thanks for sharing your tips and for leaving a review!
Fast, easy, and yummy! It was a little saltier than we normally enjoy so I will leave out the salt next time. I used rice ramen noodles to make it GF and it came out wonderfully! And was great as a leftover lunch!
Fast, easy, and delicious! It was a little more salt than we care for, so I will just omit the salt next time. I used rice ramen noodles to make it GF and they worked well. Also delicious as leftovers for lunch the next day!
Allison, yay, so happy to hear this one was a hit, and I agree, salt is such a personal preference, skipping salting the meat is a great option, as is using lowest sodium soy sauce. Thanks so much for sharing your thoughts and for leaving a review!
I have made a version of this without the noodles for several years. The addition of the noodles made the dish more hardy. It was a big hit with the whole family! So easy, yummy, and filling!
I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed this beef and vegetable recipe with the addition of the noodles! Thanks so much for sharing your thoughts and for leaving a review. 🙂
My family loves this recipe! I’ve already made it twice for my family that includes two hungry athletic teenagers. The second time I doubled it (hungry teens!). Delicious and so easy.
Thank you, Robyn. We love your recipes!
Amy, yay, so happy to know this one is hungry teen approved! Good idea to double it, too. Thanks so much for sharing your tips and for leaving a review!
It was so yummy, flavor was delicious and SO easy to make. But my husband wanted more noodles so I’ll probably add another package or 2 next time!
Becky, yay, happy to hear you enjoyed this quick ground beef recipe! It’s easy to customize, so definitely feel free to add more noodles and just up the other ingredients so you have enough liquid to cook them in. Thanks for sharing your thoughts and for leaving a review!
Easy, fast and good. Eighteen year old picky nephew said it was good!
Sandra, sounds like a winner on all accounts! Thanks so much for sharing your thoughts and for leaving a review!
This came together quickly and was deeeelicious! Seriously- this meal is a keeper. I’m putting this into rotation. Thank you for your hard work so o can feed my family.
Amy, I’m thrilled to hear this one made it into your rotation and your kind words are so appreciate – really! Thanks so much for taking the time to share your thoughts and for leaving a review!
This was super easy and delicious! It almost reminds me of chow mein! I added the whole bag of coleslaw mix as I didn’t have shredded carrots, and it worked great!
Wonderful to hear you enjoyed this easy beef and noodle recipe, Kathryn, and I agree, it’s bringing takeout vibes home! Thanks for sharing your thoughts and for leaving a reivew!
This is a recipe I keep coming back to! My toddlers (who otherwise won’t eat a cooked vegetable) gobble this down and my husband always comments on how good it is!! I use the Costco brown rice ramen noodles and MAN it’s good
Madilee, yay, I love this! So happy to hear this is a hit with everyone in the family – such a win! Thanks so much for sharing your thoughts and for leaving a review!
Words cannot describe how tasty this is! The flavors are perfect and it comes together so quickly. This one will be on repeat for me!
Kerry, yay, so happy to hear you enjoyed this easy 15-minute dinner! Thanks so much for taking the time to share your thoughts and leave a review!
Do you have any suggestions if ground beef was swapped with ground chicken or ground turkey? Definitely going to give this a try!
Sherry, I’ve made this one with both ground chicken and ground turkey, and both options turned out great! The sauce is flavorful enough even with white-meat options, so you should be good to go! If you give it a try let me know how it turns out!
I’ve made this several times with ground turkey and it’s great. I make no changes except to half the recipe for two.
Debbie, that’s fantastic, happy to hear you’re enjoying! I did just post a similar ramen recipe with ground chicken that you might like (works well with ground turkey, too). Thanks so much for sharing your thoughts and leaving a review!
Good hit way too salty. I added 3/4 cup water and extra slaw to make it less salty. Next time I’ll omit the salt and do half broth half water.
Jennifer, did you use low sodium soy sauce and kosher salt, because both will impact the final result? But yes, salt is a personal preference so skipping seasoning the beef and using low sodium chicken stock or just water can also reduce the saltiness!
Holy Moley! A quick, delicious, healthy meal – checks all the boxes! Thank you!
Theresa, yay, I’m so happy this easy dinner checked all the boxes for you. Thanks so much for sharing your thoughts and leaving a review!
This was great! Like an egg roll stew and my boys all devoured it. I added 3 packs of noodles from Costco, extra veggies and some doubled the liquids. Each added their own spices and
Erin, so glad you made this one your own, and that it was a family dinner favorite! Thanks for sharing your thoughts and for leaving a review!
This was so good and easy! Everyone ate it and no one complained, we all enjoyed dinner. As a “I hate to cook” mom this recipe wins.
Jessica, that is definitely a dinner win! Thanks for sharing your thoughts and for leaving a review!
I’ve made this twice now and doubled it the second time using rice ramen and coconut aminos to keep it gluten free. I’m curious if you’ve ever prepped and frozen individual servings? I’m afraid my doubled recipe won’t get eaten up and I certainly don’t want to waste it.
Christina, I haven’t tried freezing leftovers (we never have any when I make this!). I think it would be fine to do, but the noodles may end up getting mushy in the process of freezing and reheating. It should still taste good, but something to keep in mind. Alternatively you could just leave the noodles out and cook separately when you’re ready to serve.
Thank you very much! This was a BiG hit for my teenager. We didn’t have slaw so we just used carrots. It was perfect!!
Yay, I love when an easy dinner is also a hit with the teens! Thanks so much for sharing your notes and for leaving a review!
My whole family loved it and that’s a feat! Thank you so much!!
Heather, happy to hear this was a family favorite dinner! Thanks so much for sharing your kind words and for leaving a review!
Really liked the ease of prep, the extra veggies and quick cooking time. My kids loved it. But it needed more sauce, kind of bland.
Katie, happy to hear the kids liked it! Next time you can always add more garlic, some ginger, and a good amount of hot sauce (I like both sriracha and chili crips) to kick up the flavor without adding much more in terms of prep time.
Omg this was SO GOOD – it exceeded my expectations. Was ridiculously easy and fabulously delicious. I added some broccoli since I had it on hand, but otherwise exactly as written. This will definitely be on repeat in our household- thanks for such a great recipe ❤️
Jenny, yay, I love it when that happens! So happy to hear you enjoyed, thanks so much for sharing your thoughts and leaving a review!
Delicious, easy, nutritious! A hit with the whole family!
Wonderful to hear you enjoyed this 15-minute dinner recipe, Denise, thanks so much for sharing your thoughts and leaving a review!
We absolutely loved this! I made your beef ramen last week and it was so fantastic that I had to try your chicken ramen. It was equally delicious. Such an easy dinner, thank you so much!
Jenny, I’m so happy to hear you’re enjoying my recipes! Thanks so much for taking the time to share your notes and leave a review!
My family LOVES this recipe. We have already made it several times. I have a few suggestions: Omit the salt. DEFINITELY use low sodium soy sauce (more flavor, less salt). Use 5 cloves of garlic (not 3). Use 1 entire box of BONE BROTH (more protein and it stretches your meal a little bit more). Use 14oz bag of coleslaw. Shred 3 large carrots. Add 2-3 TBL of Siracha… gives more flavor and adds a little kick. Also add one bag of frozen shelled edamame to add protein and more veggies. YUM!
Tracey, so happy to hear you and your family are enjoying this easy dinner! Thanks so much for taking the time to share your notes and leave a review!
Absolutely love this recipe- quick easy and delicious- it has become a weekly staple in our house!
Erin, yay, I’m so happy to hear this beef & ramen recipe has become a repeat favorite for your family. Thanks so much for sharing your thoughts and leaving a review!