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Ramen

ラーメン

A bowl of ramen has separate parts, and the seasoning lives in the tare, the concentrated sauce that goes in the bowl before the broth. This is shoyu ramen, the clear, soy-seasoned style linked with Tokyo, and it is far more feasible at home than a long-boiled tonkotsu. The chashu braising liquid does double duty as marinade and tare, so one pot flavors the whole bowl. Start the day before if you can, because cold pork slices cleanly and the eggs need hours in the marinade.

Prep
4 hr 50 min
Cook
3 hr 10 min
Total
8 hr
Serves
4

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An illustration of Ramen
Ramen, illustrated for Tastybop

Ingredients

  • 2 lb (900 g) chicken wings or backs
  • 12 cups (2.8 L) cold water, plus 1 cup (240 ml) for the braise
  • 6 scallions, 3 left whole and 3 thinly sliced
  • 3-inch (8 cm) piece of ginger, sliced, divided
  • 6 garlic cloves, smashed, divided
  • 1 piece kombu, about 4 inches (10 cm)
  • 1 1/2 lb (680 g) skinless pork belly, in one slab
  • 1 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 3/4 cup (180 ml) soy sauce
  • 1/2 cup (120 ml) sake
  • 1/2 cup (120 ml) mirin
  • 1/4 cup (50 g) sugar
  • 4 large eggs
  • 4 portions fresh ramen noodles, about 5 oz (140 g) each
  • 1/2 cup (75 g) menma (seasoned bamboo shoots), optional
  • 4 sheets nori, cut into wide strips

Instructions

  1. Put the chicken in a large pot with the water and bring to a boil. Skim off the gray foam for 5 minutes. Add the whole scallions, half the ginger and half the garlic, then keep the broth at a bare simmer, uncovered, for 2 1/2 hours.
  2. Meanwhile, roll the pork belly into a log and tie it with kitchen twine every inch or so. Heat the oil in a heavy pot over medium-high and brown the pork on all sides, about 10 minutes.
  3. Add the soy sauce, sake, mirin, sugar, 1 cup (240 ml) of water and the remaining ginger and garlic to the pork. Simmer gently with the lid slightly ajar for 2 hours, turning the pork every 30 minutes and adding a splash of water if the liquid drops below a third of the way up, until a skewer slides in easily. Pork is safe at 145°F (63°C), but belly needs to reach about 190°F (88°C) to turn tender.
  4. Turn off the heat under the broth, add the kombu and let it steep for 15 minutes. Strain the broth and discard the solids. Cool it and refrigerate within 2 hours if you are not serving it soon.
  5. Boil a small pot of water and lower in the cold eggs. Cook for exactly 6 1/2 minutes, chill in ice water for 5 minutes, then peel.
  6. Take the pork out and strain the braising liquid. This is your tare. Let the pork and liquid cool for 30 minutes. Put the pork and peeled eggs in a zip-top bag or small container, pour in the liquid so it covers them and refrigerate for at least 4 hours.
  7. When you're ready to eat, remove the eggs and halve them. Remove the twine, slice the cold pork and sear the slices in a dry skillet for 1 minute per side. Bring the tare just to a simmer. Bring the broth to a boil and a separate large pot of water to a boil.
  8. Spoon 1/4 cup (60 ml) of tare into each warmed bowl and add 1 1/2 cups (360 ml) of hot broth. Taste one bowl and adjust with more tare or a little more broth. Boil the noodles according to the package, usually 1 to 2 minutes, drain them very well and divide among the bowls.
  9. Top with the pork, eggs, menma if using, sliced scallions and nori. Serve right away, while the noodles still have some bite.

Tips

  • These jammy yolks stay partly liquid, which isn't advisable during pregnancy, for young children, for older adults or with a weakened immune system. Boiling for 9 to 10 minutes sets them fully.
  • Keep the broth below a rolling boil. Hard boiling emulsifies the fat and clouds the broth, which suits tonkotsu but not a clear shoyu.
  • Use dry sherry if you can't get sake. If you can't find fresh ramen noodles, dried ones work, but discard any seasoning packet.

Did you know?

  • Japan has a whole museum all about ramen in Yokohama.
  • Ramen came to Japan from China and became a national favorite.
  • Instant noodles were invented in Japan by Momofuku Ando in 1958.

Questions

What's the difference between shoyu and tonkotsu ramen?

Shoyu ramen gets its seasoning from a soy sauce tare in a clear broth. Tonkotsu is defined by its broth, a cloudy, rich liquid made by boiling pork bones hard for many hours.

Can I use store-bought broth for ramen?

Yes. Low-sodium chicken broth simmered for 30 minutes with the ginger, garlic and scallion, then steeped off the heat with the kombu, is a fair shortcut, and it saves about 2 hours. The body will be thinner than homemade, since wings give a lot of gelatin.

What is tare in ramen?

Tare is the concentrated seasoning sauce added to each bowl before the broth. It gives ramen most of its salt and much of its character. Here it's the strained chashu braising liquid.

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