Ramen

I have been into trying different types of Ramen at home for a while now, this is one of them that I have been able to replicate multiple times and I think is perfected enough and ready to be shared with you 🙂

My first bowl of Ramen that I fell in live with was at this small rustic joint in a small town in the suburbs of LA, 8 years ago. First things first – that one was made with Pork broth (as should be at most authentic ramen joints) and it was extremely delicious and Ramen lovers will argue that pork broth is the ONLY way to go for Ramen – and I would have to agree.

In recent years, I have conciously moved to being as vegetarian/ vegan as I can. I have always rpeferred meat-free food, but I have never restricted myself, especially as a Food Scientist, I am always curious to taste and try as many ingredients as I can. But today, I cannot have a full meal that is meat-y. So unfortunately, recently I have not been able to enjoy Ramen the way I used to before :/

Which is why I started experimenting at home a couple years ago and have come up with a few different recipes. This is one of the simplest and tastiest recipes! It literally gets made in 5-10 minutes total.

this makes 4 bowls of Ramen

you will need:

4 portions of ramen noodles – wheat or gluten free noodles of your choice. I like to use fresh noodles from a local ramen shop – they sell is for 4$ a portion and 2 portions almost feed 4 people, hoenstly. So checkw ith your local ramen place – this will be the best option. If you cant find fresh noodles, use any died packaged noodles of your choice
2 tsp better than buillion – seasoned vegetable base (vegan soup base/ stock concentrate)
2 tablespoons of white miso – I typically use the fresh organic one from whole foods (365 brand)
1 packet of maggiee masala-e-magic – if you dont have this you can also use 1 tsp of kitchen king masala. magiee masala definitely tatses better. Also – this goes in 8-10 cups of water – so it does not make the ramen taste like Maggii AT ALL – it just gives a nice spicy, pepper-y flavor in the background
green onions – 4 stalks – cut into thin slices
mushrooms – use a mix of wild and enoki mushrooms. In the photos below I ahve used portobella mushrooms as I could not find enoki or wild one that day. cut into slices/ pieces as needed
14 oz extra firm tofu – I usually get the organic one from whole foods (365 brand) – you will need to press this head of time and get as much water out as possible. After removing water cut the tofu into small rectangular pieces
Chilli oil – I make my own but you can use any chilli pil, preferably one that has other spices and not just crushed red chillies. I will post my chilli oil recipe soon
black and white sesame seeds or a everything but the bagel seasoning

Procedure:

Chop the mushrooms, green onions and tofu and keep it ready
Boil 8-10 cups of water and cook the noodles as per the directions.
Once cooked, transfer the noodles into 4 large bowls with a pair of tongs and reserve the water i the pot

Add the white miso, maggiee masala and better than buillion to the water and continue cooking

Add the sliced mushrooms and cook for a minute or so after the mixture strats simmering -this does not take long at all becaue the water is already boiled with the noodles
This will work with most type of noodles. If you are using specialty noodles – millet, gluten-free, etc that may have made the water muddy, bitter etc, its best to discard the water and start with fresh water to make the broth with