Anime: Naruto
Appearance: through out the show
Time: 12 hours minimum.
I happen to LOVE ramen so much so that I’ve figured out how to make it at home. The pork broth is also really great in a lot of different things. There are 4 parts to making ramen 1. the broth, 2. the tare, 3 the noodles, and 4. the toppings. This recipe is for the broth, one type of tare, and pork chasu which is one type of topping. Ramen noodles are irritating to make and require a specific salt. So with you making everything else I suggest you go to an asian grocery store and buy some ramen noodles. There are some great ones you can find and if you do not live near any asian stores you can buy the ramen packs (not cups those already have flavoring) and use those for your ramen. As for toppings you can make or buy anything that you like.
I usually start making my broth at like 5am this way it is ready by the time I want to eat dinner. I like to make sure I am not doing anything else that day so I can baby the broth.
Ingredients: Ramen Broth
4-5 lbs of meaty pork bones
A few slices of bacon
2-4 lbs of chicken backs
1 large onion cut in half
12 garlic cloves
3-5 inch ginger
2 cups dry mushrooms
2 large carrots
2 whole leeks
A bunch of scallions white parts only
1 3 by 6 piece of konbu
Ingredients Pork Chasu
¾ lb. pork belly block
1 tsp. salt
½ Tbsp. oil
2 inch ginger, sliced
1 Tokyo negi (or leaks/green onions)
4 garlic cloves
⅓ cup sake
⅓ cup soy sauce
1/3 cup of mirin
1/3 cup of water or stock
3 Tbsp. sugar
Ingredients
Ramen Noodles
Other Ramen toppings like scallions, corn, bamboo, ect.
Tare
Direction Ramen Broth
1. Rinse the konbu under running water and then add it with the water in a huge stockpot. Mine is very large I forget how many quarts. But use your largest pot and fill it up with water leaving some space because the bones will take up a lot of space. Bring the pot of water with the konbu to a simmer turn the heat off and let it steep for 10 minutes. Try not to do it any longer as the konbu will break down and be hard to remove
2. Remove the konbu add the dry mushrooms and bring to a boil. Bring it down to a simmer and simmer for about 15-20 minutes. You want the dry mushrooms to be plump and the water to have the flavor and color of the mushrooms.
3. Pre heat the oven to 400°F and put all the pork bones on a tray and cook for about one hour turning them half way.
4. After the mushrooms are done remove them from the pot and add the chicken. Cook and make sure you skim away any gross stuff.
5. Add the pork when the pork is done.
6. Then you cook for a good 4-5 hours adding water to make sure the bones are always covered with water. Keep the water a steady simmer. Stop adding water after about the 5th hour. Now I add the veggies to the pot and a very VERY little bit of salt and pepper. You can also char the veggies in a cast iron before adding them to help with the flavor but you don’t have to. I don’t usually. I cook for another 4-5 hours
7. During the whole cook time I make sure to go back here and there to stir it/remove guck on the top/ just make sure it is cooking properly. I like to cook it for a total of 10+ hours because it does make a difference. Cooking for only 6 will not get all of the pork bone goodness there is a great article on serious eats about how long to cook pork bones. Sometimes I will cook it for 12 hours.
8. After 10-12 hours the broth is done. Remove all the bones, and vegetables. I don’t add a lot of salt and pepper so this way I can season the broth as I see fit when I serve it and so I can actually use the broth in other recipes as well. Plus you will want to season each individual bowl with tare
9. If you are not using the broth right away or you have left overs, you can put in mason jars, the broth will last 3 days in the fridge and 3-5 months in the freezer.
Directions Pork Chasu:
1. Cut negi into 2 inch lengths and separate the green parts and white parts. Keep the white for the pork Chasu and you can save the green parts for the final ramen later Peel and slice ginger.
2. Sprinkle and rub the salt on the pork belly. If your pork belly block is big, you have two options. Cut into smaller pieces or roll it into a log with butcher’s twine, keeping the thick fat on the outside. Start tying from the center of the log toward left and right. Heat the oil in a cast iron skillet (or regular frying pan) over high heat and brown the fat side first, then flip over to brown the other side. It’ll take about 10 minutes.
3. When the pork is done browning, put all the ingredients into a large pot and bring it to a boil.
4. Place a drop lid, also called otoshibuta, on top of the meat. If you don’t have one, make one out of aluminum foil. Do not use a regular lid. Here is how to make one. Lower the heat to medium low and simmer, occasionally turning the pork, for about one hour or until there is ¼ inch liquid left in the pot. Be careful not to burn the pork
5. Remove the top and reduce the sauce until you can see the bottom of the pot when you scrape the sauce. Again watch the pork it’s very easy to burn at this stage. Turn off the heat when you see the bottom of the pot when you slide the meat around. The sauce is now thickened and meat is shiny.
6. Take out the meat and cut into thin slices.
7. If you don’t use the chashu right away, pack the chashu and the sauce in an air-tight plastic bag to give it more flavor all around. You can store it in the refrigerator up to 5 days and 3 weeks in the freezer.
Directions Putting it all together:
1. After the broth is done and the pork is done you can start to assemble. First I will start to make the noodles. You want to save this for the end because once the noodles are made you want to eat the ramen right away.
2. Then I make my tare. There are so many different recipes for tare out there depending if you want soy sauce base or miso. I usually use the soy sauce mixture from my chasu pork, and mix it with some fish sauce and cook it just a little bit to help the flavors meld.
3. I then mix the seasoning (tare) with each bowl of ramen in the bowl. This way each person can make the broth to their liking.
4. When the noodles are done I put them right into the broth and tare mixture.
5. After that I add the chasu pork, and any other toppings I may be in the mood for. And that is it! home made ramen!
