Tokyo Style Ramen Broth

Ramen broth simmering with aromatics!

The foundation of every bowl of ramen is the soup or broth. The final bowl of ramen is created by adding seasonings (such as a tare), noodles, and toppings, but regardless of how much other stuff is added nothing can mask a low-quality broth. There are a wide variety of different ramen broths, ranging from chicken or pork bone based ones to seafood ones. Different regions of Japan, and even different ramen shops within the same locale, specialize in the various styles of broths from clear chicken broth to the much loved Tonkotsu (pork bone broth). As an eater, one of my favorite things about ramen is the vast number of broth and seasoning styles - there is always a favorite and always one more combination to try!

For the home chef, long-simmered bone broths are often considered out of reach due to their time commitment and the difficulty of sourcing quality animal bones required to make many broths. The "project" nature of the broth was certainly something that kept us from making ramen at home for a number of years. However, as we learned from Chef Shinya, it is possible to make a respectable ramen broth at home that will more than satisfy your ramen craving.

Chef Shinya's recipe relies on chicken and vegetable base to replace the long-simmering of bones, dashi powder for a kick of umami, and aromatics, sake, and soy sauce to round out the flavor profile. This approach yields a broth with nicely developed bone broth flavors and a medium-light body. The green onion, ginger, and garlic offer pleasing aromatic notes that add to the complexity of the broth without being overpowering.

Recipe from: Chef Shinya Asami (Cozymeal, Facebook)

Total time: 30 minutes

Servings: 4

Ingredients

• 1800 ml water
• 3 ½ tsp chicken base
• 2 tsp vegetable base
• 2 tsp dashi powder
• 4 tsp soy sauce
• 4 Tbsp Sake
• 4 to 8 green onions, cut into 2" pieces
• 2 Tbsp Ginger, sliced
• 2 to 4 cloves garlic

Directions

Aromatics - ginger, garlic, green onion

1. Wash green onion and ginger and peel the garlic. Cut green onion into 2 inch pieces and ginger into rounds.
   
   

   

   Finished ramen broth

   
   
2. In a medium pot, bring water to a boil, add everything at once. Return to a boil and simmer for 10 minutes. Strain solids and discard.

Notes

• We tend to use 3 cloves of garlic and 6 to 8 green onions
• The ginger does not need to be peeled, but give it a rinse to wash off any dirt. Likewise, after washing the green onion there is no need to trim off the roots as all of the aromatics will be strained out before serving.