Char-siu Ramen

My first successful attempt of making an authentic Ramen bowl (June 2022)

Credit to Jun's Kitchen & Chef's LABO

A. INGREDIENTS:

1. Ingredients for toppings:
- Pork belly: 1kg
- Eggs: 4
- Bamboo (preferably sliced): 100-150g
- Chicken skins: 2-3
- Seaweed

2. Ingredients for broth:
- Chicken bones: 1 tray
- Chicken wings: 3-5
- Miso paste (preferably Dashi flavor)
- Shitake Mushroom: 4-6
- (Optional) Japanese anchovy: 30-50g
- (Optional) Clam: 30-50g

3. Other ingredients:
- Egg noodles or Ramen noodles.
- Garlic: 1-2 bulks
- Ginger: 1
- Green onion: 6-7
- Onion: 1
- Kombu: 30g
- Mirin
- Soy sauce
- Salt
- Sugar
- Vinegar
- Kitchen twine (to tie pork)
- (Optional) Sake
- (Optional) Bonito flakes

B. PREPARATION (The day before):

1. Char-siu Pork:
- Roll the pork (like swiss roll) using twine.
- Put the pork into a pot, skin side down. Make sure that the top of pot is 3-4cm higher than the pork. Add 1.5-2L water, 2 half of an onion, 2 spring onion, 10g kombu, 15g coarse-grain crushed garlic, 15g sliced skin-on ginger, 45ml sake, and 30ml mirin.
- Bring the soup to boil, then lower the heat to medium. Take off as much scum as possible, but no need to be perfect.
- Simmer with lid closed. 1.5hrs for meaty texture, 2hrs for melt-in-your-mouth experience (for me I chose the 2hrs option). Turn the pork every 30 minutes.
- Once simmered, leave the pork to chill for 10 minutes. In the meantime, pan on medium heat and add some oil. Once chilled, sear the pork until the skin layer is golden brown.
- Take off the pork, and strain the soup. Add 300ml soup, 2tbs sugar, 10ml mirin, 200ml soy sauce, 3-4 cloves of garlic, 3-4 slice of ginger, 3-4 white part of spring onion. Bring the mixture just close to boil (tiny bubbles rising).
- Take one zip-lock bag and put the pork inside. Then pour in the mixture. Use any method (straw, water, etc.) to vacuum the bag.
- Add hot/warm water in to a rice cooker, then add the bag. Choose "Keep warm" and leave it for 3-4 hrs (slow cooking). If no rice cooker, use pot and check the correct temperature. Once finished, put the pork into fridge overnight.

2. Half-boiled Eggs:
- Prepare one big bowl of cold water. The more ice the better.
- Bring water to boil, then gently add the eggs.
- This step is crucial: After exactly 6:45 minutes, take off all the eggs and immediately put in the cold water. The eggs must not be in the boiling water for more than 15 second late.
- Chill the egg for 10-15 minutes. Peel off the shell and add into a bowl. Add water and soy sauce (ratio 1:1) until all the eggs are covered. If needed, use paper towel to press the eggs to the bottom.
- Leave the eggs in the fridge overnight.

3. Bamboo (Menma):
- In a pan, add 100ml soy sauce, 20g mirin, 1-2 tbs vinegar, 1-2 cloves of garlic, 1-2 slices of ginger. Bring the mixture to boil, then add the bamboo.
- Stir the bamboo for 5-10 minutes and put in a jar. Put into the fridge overnight.

C. RAMEN DAY:

1. Broth (Many medium bowls will be needed, so prepare ahead):
a. Chicken broth:
- Bring 1.5L of water to boil. Add a few slices of ginger and 1-2 spring onions, then add all the chicken bones into it. Strain the bones after 5 minutes then put it aside.
- Sear the chicken wings until golden brown then put it aside.
- In a pot, add 1.5L of water, 20g mirin, 30g sake and bring it to boil. Then add the chicken bone and wings into the pot, simmer for 45-60 minutes.
b. Mushroom broth:
- Add 4-6 shiitake mushroom into a bowl of 100g of warm water while boiling the chicken broth.
c. Kombu broth:
- Add 10g kelp into a bowl of 100g of warm water while boiling the chicken broth.
d. Kombu soy sauce:
- Add 5g kelp and 5g bonito flakes into 50ml soy sauce while boiling the chicken broth.
e. (Optional) Clam broth:
- Boil 30-50g of clam in 500ml of water and 50ml of sake. Take of the clam, strain the broth and leave it cool.
f. (Optional) Anchovy broth:
- Add 30g of anchovy and 10g of bonito flakes into 1 cups of hot water while boiling the chicken broth.
g. Final broth assemble:
- Add fish broth, clam broth, Kombu broth, mushroom broth (exclude the kombu soy sauce) into the chicken pot.
- Add 2-4 tbs of Miso paste into the pot. Stir the broth well.

2. Toppings:
- Put a pan on medium, then fry the chicken skins until golden brown. Wrap the fried skins in paper towel, then pour all of the chicken oil into a small cup. Once the skins are cool, slice the skins.
- Take the pork out. Slice very thinly (<1cm). Put a pan on medium-hot, no oil. Sear the sliced pork for 1.5-2 mins each side.
- Take the eggs out. Slice at will.
- Slice the spring onions.

3. Noodles:
- Boil the noodles and strain it through cold water.

4. Assemble (follow it step by step):
- Add 1tsp of kombu soy sauce.
- Add 1tsp of char-siu pork marinated sauce.
- Add a few drops of chicken oil
- Add the broth.
- Add noodle. If possible, roll it in shape for plating.
- Then place the toppings carefully. For 1 serving, put 2-3 slices of pork, 1 egg, bamboo (menma), chicken skins, onion, and seaweed.