SPICY RAMEN

I don’t claim to be an expert in Ramen, but I do love adventures in the kitchen and learning a new cuisine. Ramen originated in China but is most often recognized as Japanese cuisine. A rich and flavourful broth with a balance of toppings - ramen caught on amongst blue-collar workers because it was a cheap and filling dish. Ramen achieves a harmony between five key elements: broth, sauce, noodles, toppings, and oil.

The broth is truly the foundation of a ramen dish, which is why I used a deep flavourful bone broth in my recipe, as mentioned before the key to a good broth is to extract all the flavours and nutrients from the ingredients.

The sauce (or Tare) is the seasoning that is used to provide the broth base with its signature umami taste. Some common ingredients in a ramen sauce are: soy sauce, sake, kombu (like in our dashi), miso, dried sardines or dried shiitakes mushrooms.

The ramen noodle is what differentiates a ramen dish from other noodle/broth based dishes. Although different styles of Ramen have specific noodles, the Tokyo style noodle is what we are probably the most familiar with (think Mr. Noodle mix) and what we are using in this recipe.

Ramen toppings can be compared to our Sunday best clothing - they can be flashy and eye catching to provide uniqueness, or simple and classic. The most common ingredients found in a typical Ramen dish are: green onions, bamboo shoots, seaweed, and the spectacular marinated, runny yolk egg. I personally use my toppings as an opportunity to load up on veggies (shocking); Bok choy, Broccoli, Mushrooms and Tofu, are some of my standard ramen go-to's.

I only became aware of the final element, oil, while researching for this recipe. When the noodles are added to the finished dish, they are coated by the flavour of the oil. He oil also acts as an insulator to prevent the temperature from dropping quickly. The oil is typically flavoured with garlic and other aromatics (onions, ginger, chilies).

Although there are aspects of this ramen dish that may be more advanced or time consuming, they can also be made ahead. Once you develop a good practice of making deeply, flavourful broths and storing them properly, it becomes easy to whip up a dish like this. Ramen noodles are very inexpensive so it’s easy to always have a couple on hand, and their lots of flexibility with the different vegetables you can add aka whatever is in the fridge. I don’t marinate the egg but I do like to make a soft boiled egg to go with, which just takes a little practice to master. I hope this dish inspires you to branch out and not be intimidated to go on a culinary adventure in your kitchen.

INGREDIENTS

Crispy Mushrooms:

1 pound mixed mushrooms (shiitake, oyster, cremini, white button) - trimmed to ½ inch pieces

1 tbsp grass-fed butter, melted

1 tbsp sesame oil

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp sesame seeds

Dashi:

4 - 2 inch squares of Kombu

4 Dried Shiitake Mushrooms

4 cups water

Ramen Broth:

4 cups bone broth, roasted chicken stock or roasted vegetable broth

3-4 whole dried chilies or 1 tsp red pepper flakes

5 garlic cloves, peeled and smashed

1 cup unflavored, organic soy milk

3 tbsp miso paste

1 tsp - 1 tbsp Sambal Oblek (Chili garlic Paste) to taste

1 cup Broccoli florets

4 pieces Bok Choy

1 medium Carrot, thinly sliced

8 ounces ramen noodles

Tofu:

14 ounces firm tofu, pressed dry and cut into ¾ inch cubes

1 tbsp soy sauce

1 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp chili flakes

1 tsp sesame oil

Spiced Oil:

1 tbsp sesame oil

1 tbsp canola oil

2 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed

1 small piece ginger, sliced into 1/4 inch pieces

1 tsp chili flakes

1 green onion

Soft Boiled Egg:

4 free-range eggs

Garnish:

1 cup microgreens

1 large sheet nori, thinly sliced

toasted sesame seeds

2 green onions, thinly sliced

METHOD

Crispy Mushrooms:

Preheat the oven to 425F convection

Divide the mushrooms between two baking sheets.

Drizzle with melted butter, sesame oil, garlic powder, and sesame seeds.

Toss mushrooms and make sure they are well coated.

Roast for 15-20 minutes, stirring periodically, until the mushrooms are tender but crispy around the edges.

Dashi:

Bring water to a boil.

In a heat safe container - add mushrooms and Kombu.

Add the water to the container and let sit for 30 minutes.

Discard the kombu.

Pick out the mushrooms, trim and discard the stems.

Save mushrooms and use for crispy mushrooms or another dish.

Ramen Broth:

Combine the Dashi, Broth/Stock, chilies, and garlic in a saucepan.

Bring to a simmer, then cover, remove from the heat, and let steep for 30 minutes.

Strain out and discard the solids and return the broth to the saucepan.

In a blender (or large glass with immersion blender) combine the miso and the soy milk, blend until smooth.

Pour mixture into the broth and bring to a bare simmer.

Season with 1 tsp soy sauce.

Add the broccoli, bok choy and thinly sliced carrots - simmer for 3-5 minutes.

Tofu:

In a small bowl toss the tofu in the soy sauce, with garlic powder and chili flakes.

Heat a heavy bottom skillet over high heat.

Heat the sesame oil and then carefully add the tofu in a single layer.

Sear each side for 1-2 minutes or until golden and crisped.

Soft Boiled Egg:

Bring a small sauce pan of water to a boil (large enough to fit the 4 eggs)

once it comes to a boil, add the eggs using a slotted spoon.

Boil for 7 minutes.

Remove eggs form the boiling water and rinse under cold running water and peel.

Seasoned Oil:

In a frying pan heat the sesame and canola oil.

Add the garlic, ginger, chili flakes and green onions.

Infuse over medium heat for 5-10 minutes, or until fragrant.

Noodles:

In a separate saucepan bring water to a boil and salt generously.

Add the noodles, in a strainer basket or pasta insert that often comes with a stockpot, cook noodles until tender (4 - 7 minutes, follow package directions)

Remove noodles and rinse under cold running water to remove excess starch.

Quickly dunk them back in the hot water to reheat them, and then divide between serving bowls.

Plating:

Divide the tofu, carrots, broccoli and bok choy over the noodles.

Ladle the hot broth over each serving.

Divide the seasoned oil between the serving bowls.

Top with crispy mushrooms, soft boiled egg, sliced nori, green onions, toasted sesame seeds, and microgreens.