A Big Bowl of Ramen

This dish was inspired by the fabulous Momofuku noodle bar in New York. I love the idea of taking something pretty every day like a noodle soup and dressing it up for company. The secret here is to use instant dashi flakes to flavour the broth and then add smoked speck or bacon for an extra umami flavour kick.

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A Big Bowl of Ramen

Total Time 15 minutes minutes

Servings 2 people

Ingredients

for the soup:

• 200 g smoked speck or bacon
• 200 g fresh egg noodles such as singapore noodles or ramen
• 1 tablespoon instant dashi powder
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• handful snowpeas mangetout

to serve:

• 2 green onions scallions, finely sliced
• 1 large sheet of nori cut into quarters, optional

Metric - US Customary

Instructions

• Soup: Heat a little oil in a medium saucepan. Slice speck thinly and brown in the oil for a few minutes.
• Meanwhile soak noodles in a bowl of hot water from the tap.
• Add to the soup 3 cups water, dashi granules and soy sauce and bring back to a simmer.
• Trim snow peas and add to the soup. Simmer for 2 minutes.
• Drain noodles and divide between two deep bowls. Top with soup and finish with green onion and nori sheets (if using) tucked into the side.

Prepare Ahead?

The bacon broth could be made up to a week in advance. But best to combine the noodles and finishing touches at the last minute.

Leftover Potential

Will keep in the fridge for a week or so. The noodles will soak up the broth so you may need to add in some more water.

Variations

carnivore – true carnivores may like to follow the momofuku lead and slow roast a pork shoulder to use some of the meat in the soup.

vegetarian – use vegetable stock instead of the water, dashi and bacon. Serve with a very soft poached egg on top.

vegan – use 3 cups of best quality vegetable broth instead of the dashi and bacon. And make sure your noodles don’t contain egg.

seasonal veg – snow peas tend to be pretty good all year round. But in Summer you might like to substitute in fresh sweet corn and in Winter wilted greens such as chard (silverbeet) or collard greens would add a warmer vibe.

fish-free – substitute vegetable or chicken stock for the dashi

gluten-free – use rice or mung bean noodles instead of the ramen. OR use zucchini shredded into noodle strips and simmer the zucchini ‘noodles’ in the broth for a few minutes before serving.

can’t find nori? – it’s a dried seaweed used to wrap sushi so you might need to go to an Asian or Japanese grocery store. Large supermarkets in Australia stock it in the Asian section. It’s fine to skip it though.

carb lovers / more substantial – add extra noodles.

paleo (grain, legume & dairy-free) – replace noodles with spiralized carrot or zucchini.

Waste Avoidance Strategy

speck or bacon – freeze it.

fresh egg noodles – generally keep for a few weeks in the fridge or freeze them.

dashi powder, soy sauce – pantry.

snowpeas (mangetout) – best to use for another meal. Can be frozen but will have a soggy texture when defrosted.

green onions (scallions) – keep in the fridge in a plastic bag for a few weeks or can be frozen.

nori – pantry.

Problem Solving Guide

can’t find fresh ramen noodles – dried will do at a pinch (cook according to the packet directions before using). Spaghetti (also cooked as per the packet will be OK too) Fresh egg pasta noodles would be a better choice if it comes to that.

ramen too hard – if you find the ramen haven’t softened up sufficiently after their hot water soak, simmer them in the broth for a minute or so, being careful not to over cook.

too salty – with the bacon, soy and dashi, it can be easy for the broth to get too salty. Either dilute with a little hot water or add a pinch of sugar to balance the salt.

can’t find instant dashi? – just skip it and use chicken or vegetable stock instead of the water.

Serving Suggestions

Best with a pair of chopsticks and a soup spoon and plenty of serviettes.

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