The best way to make an authentic ramen
Tonkotsu ramen is a typical dish of Japanese cuisine, which is also present in the culture of other Asian countries, but with some variations. In addition, in all these the pork is present, as it is the base of this dish.
This can be perfect to share in a themed celebration of Japanese culture, or simply to surprise your guests with a different dish.
Therefore, below we will teach you how to make it from scratch, and we provide some additional recommendations.
Ramen ingredients
For the ramen broth
5 pounds of pig's feet, nails removed and well cleaned
2 pounds chicken wings (removed after cooking for an hour and a half)
3 chives
1 leek
Half a pound of pork belly
1 whole onion, quartered
1 whole garlic head
About 3 to 4 kombu leaves left in a couple of liters of water for at least 12 hours (better overnight)
For the chasu or pork belly
3 pounds of pork belly, try to get a long and wide cut
Half a cup of soy sauce
Half a cup of sake for cooking
Half a cup of mirin (Japanese rice wine)
4 to 5 chives, quartered
A quarter of a purple onion, cut into long pieces
1 piece of ginger about half of your hand, peeled and cut into large chunks
About 4 to 6 garlic, peeled and halved (you will also need string to bake or tie the pork belly, and it should be able to go into the oven)
For homework
1 cup of “dashi”, for which you need: a couple of kombu leaves in a cup of water, 1 cup of fish flakes (bonito), half a cup of anchovies / anchovies fried in a little oil
1 cup of soy sauce
Half a cup of mirin
Half a cup of sake for cooking
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 leek, coarsely chopped
1 piece of ginger about half of your hand, peeled and cut into large chunks
8 garlic cloves, peeled
For the marinated ramen egg
4 eggs at room temperature
One third cup of soy sauce
1 tablespoon sesame oil
Half cup water
One third cup of mirin
For the ramen noodles
Note: For this recipe we will use a package of ramen noodles, but if you prefer you can make them manually with the following ingredients:
A quarter cup of baking soda baked at 120 C for 1 hour
2 teaspoons of the above diluted in 1/2 cup of water
2 cups (240 grams) plain wheat flour
A little flour for bread
For the toppings
Enoki mushrooms
Bamboo shoots or menma (found in Asian stores)
1 cylinder of Naruto or kamaboko (fish cake)
Chopped chives
Nori sheets (seaweed)
Steps for making tonkotsu ramen
Note: We will divide the process into several parts.
Preparation of the broth
Let some kombu leaves soak in a bowl with enough water for 24 hours.
Place the pork and chicken wings in a pot and pour water into it until they are completely covered and place on the stove over high heat to bring to a boil.
Pour some vegetable oil into a skillet and place it on the stove over medium heat.
Cut the leek, onion, chives (reserving the green parts) and ginger into chunks. Place all these pieces in the pan, also adding the garlic cut in half. Let the dressing pieces brown.
Remove the remains of fat that remain on the surface of the pan from the pork while it boils, with the help of a steel strainer.
Once the water in the pot has boiled for 15 minutes, remove the pieces of pork and chicken from the pot and wash them thoroughly, cleaning each part.
Return the pieces of pork and chicken to the pot and cover them with the broth in which you have dipped the kombu leaves.
Add the sautéed components in the pan to the pot and stir a little.
Let it boil intensely and at this time lower the heat and let it boil for at least 12 hours, but over low heat. After an hour and a half, remove the chicken wings.
Check the pot every hour to add water if necessary or stir a little.
After 12 hours, remove all the solid from the pot and strain the liquid and let it cool. Do not forget to remove the layer of fat from the surface before covering the broth with transparent plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator.
Preparation of the pork belly
Quarter chives and place them in a container that you can take to the oven.
Also, add pieces of garlic, red onion, ginger, a little soy sauce, sake and a little mirin to taste.
Roll up the piece of pork belly and tie it with the thread at the ends and in the center.
Place it in the center of the container, cover it, and place the container in the oven at 300 degrees F for 3 to 4 hours.
Let it cool to room temperature, then reserve it in the refrigerator.
Preparation of marinated eggs
Place the warm eggs in boiling water for 6.5 minutes. When they're done, transfer them to a bowl of frozen water.
In a bowl add mirin, sesame oil, sake, and soy sauce. Stir to integrate.
Peel the eggs and place them in a bag. Add in it the previous mixture and let it rest for 6 hours.
Elaboration of the Dashi
Place a skillet over medium heat, add water to bring it to a boil, and add kombu. Wait for it to boil and remove the kombu.
Add the fish flakes to the pan with the water, and let it cook and infuse in the water and strain into a bowl. Reservation
Place another pan on the fire, pour in a little vegetable oil and fry some dried anchovies. Next, pour in the liquid reserved in the previous step. Strain the liquid again. Reservation
In a skillet over medium heat, pour the mirin and sake, stir and add brown sugar. Keep stirring and add the liquid reserved in the previous step and soy sauce. Reservation.
Cut up a couple of seasonings like leeks, garlic, and gingers. Add them to the pan and cook until they release their flavor.
Strain the liquid and reserve.
Assembling the ramen
Place a pot on the stove over medium heat and add the package of noodles, but remember that they should not be left for more than 40 seconds.
In a bowl we add a tablespoon of tare and two tablespoons of the broth.
Remove the noodles after 40 seconds and place them in the bowl with the broth and tare.
Cut three slices of the polk belly and place them on the side of the bowl with the noodles.
Cut half of one of the marinated eggs and add them to the side of the pork belly.
Place some branches of the enoki mushroom and a few strips of bamboo shoots.
Cut the green chives part and spread over the ramen bowl.
Place some parts of the seaweed and one of the Naruto.
Serve immediately while hot.
Conclusions of tonkotsu ramen
Tonkotsu ramen is a delicious and typical dish of Japanese cuisine. Therefore, despite the large number of ingredients it needs and the complexity of its preparation, it is ideal for a themed meal of Japanese gastronomy.
That is why we urge you to try to recreate this recipe at home and share it with your friends.