Ramen would be one of the soup dishes that pops into your mind when thinking about Japanese food. With its affordable cost and easy accessibility, ramen has become one of the most enjoyed soup dishes in Japan. Shio (Salt), Shoyu (Soy Sauce), Miso (Fermented soybean paste), and Tonkotsu (Pork Bone) are the four basic ramen flavors/broth enjoyed by Japanese.
Today, let’s try making Shoyu ramen 醤油ラーメン!
Ingredients (材料) – 1 serving
- Chinese noodles (raw/fresh)
- Hot water (For boiling)
Soup:
- Boiling water 熱湯 500ml
- Soy sauce しょうゆ 1 tablespoon
- Chicken soup stock 鶏ガラスープの素 1/2 teaspoon
- Granulated Japanese soup stock 顆粒和風だし 1/2 teaspoon
- Grated ginger すりおろし生姜 1/2 teaspoon
- Sesame oil ごま油 1/2 tablespoon
- Coarsely ground black pepper 粗挽き黒こしょう 1/3 teaspoon
Toppings:
- Sliced Spring onions 長ねぎ 5 cm
- Grilled pork 焼き豚 30g
- Bamboo shoots メンマ 30g
- Soft Boiled egg 煮卵 1/2 piece
- Nori (5 x 10cm) 2 sheets
Step by Step Procedure
- Mix chicken soup stock and granulated Japanese soup stock in medium saucepan and keep it low heated.
- For shoyu tare, heat the sesame oil until shimmering in a small skillet over medium-high heat.
- Add grated ginger for 30 seconds and add soy sauce and grounded black pepper. Then remove the shoyu tare from the heat.
- Mix the shoyu tare to the low-heated soup stock.
- Boil the water over high heat and add the Chinese noodles in boiling water.
- Drain the water when the noodles are well-cooked.
- Place the noodles into the bowl and ladle the low-heated soup base over the noodles.
- Put the prepared toppings- sliced spring onions, grilled pork, soft boiled egg, bamboo shoots, and nori- over the noodles
- Serve and enjoy!
【Vocabulary List】
| Kanji | Hiragana | English |
| 中華麺 | ちゅうかめん | Chinese noodles |
| 醬油 | しょうゆ | Soy sauce |
| 塩 | しお | Salt |
| 胡椒 | こしょう | Black pepper |
| 顆粒和風だし | かりゅうわふうだし | Granulated Japanese soup stock |
| 鶏ガラスープの素 | とりがらすーぷのもと | Chicken soup stock |
| ごま油 | ごまあぶら | Sesame oil |
| 生姜 | しょうが | Ginger |
| 長ねぎ | ながねぎ | Spring onions |
| メンマ | めんま | Bamboo shoot |
| 煮卵 | にたまご | Boiled egg |
| 焼き豚 | やきぶた | Grilled pork |
| 海苔 | のり | Dried seaweed |
Where to buy the ingredients?
Although Japanese convenience stores have variety of items available, to buy fresh and wider variety of products, visiting grocery stores is a must. Japan offers a variety of grocery store chains where you can easily do most of your grocery shopping. AEON, Seiyu, Ito-Yokado, Life, and Inageya are among them.
- Aeon Supermarket
This supermarket is widely available around Japan and world, having about 19,200 stores. One of the big AEON supermarkets in Tokyo are in Shinjuku, Yokohama, and Shinonome near Odaiba. Here is a link to search for nearby AEON stores: https://www.welcome-aeon.com/storesearch/
2. Seiyu
Seiyu is a very popular and well-known supermarket in Japan, having more than 300 stores around. Perhaps, you can imagine that there is Seiyu supermarket nearby almost all major train stations in Tokyo. Seiyu offers wide range of products and known for affordable meat availability. Here is a link to search for nearby Seiyu supermarkets: https://www.seiyu.co.jp/searchshop/
3. Ito-Yokado
At Ito-Yakado, you can buy everything including foods and drinks, cosmetics and drugs, living goods, fashion items, and other high-quality products that are only available in Japan. Ito Yokado stores in Tokyo are located in the family-friendly areas on the outskirts of the city. Here is a link to where you can find Ito-Yokado supermarkets in Tokyo. https://www.itoyokado.co.jp/special/global/en/shops/tokyo/
4. Life
Life is also one of the largest supermarkets in Japan with easy accessibility. It has variety of both fresh and manufactured goods, so if you are looking for home cook materials, Life supermarket would have most of them available! Here is a link to list of Life supermarkets in Tokyo: https://www.lifecorp.jp/store/syuto/index.html
5. Inageya
Inageya is a prominent grocery brand in Tokyo. They primarily sell groceries, but they also sell some kitchen supplies and daily essentials. They are well known for its freshness of vegetable, fruits, and also bread. Inageya also sells a few kitchens basic tools, such as pans or cooking utensils. So, if you need to buy both kitchen tools and groceries, Inageya would be right for you! Here is a link to a list of Inageya supermarkets in Tokyo: https://stores.inageya.co.jp/#PREF13000
You can check out more details in this blog! Check it out!
No time to cook your own ramen? Check out this blog on how to customize your favorite ramen in ramen shops!