ChefSteps is a team of chefs, writers, and food lovers who develop recipes, techniques, and guides to help people cook better at home.

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Where does ramen get that famous chew and stretch from?You might think it’s some rare type of flour or some technique you could never master at home, but you’d be wrong. You probably have everything you need in your pantry to make these stretchy noodles right now. The thing that makes ramen noodles different than any other kind of noodle is that they are alkaline—this means they have a higher pH than seven. There are many ways to raise the pH. The easiest and fastest way is to use an ingredient called lye water—a mixture of potassium carbonate and sodium carbonate. But don’t worry, if you don&#39;t have lye water just sitting around, we’ve got some hacks for you. So here we go—let’s make some ramen noodles.