Easy Ramen

Ingredients:

For the base broth (miso):

·      4 cups chicken, beef or vegetable broth or stock*

·      1 tablespoon white miso paste

·      6 drops sesame oil

For the soup (all ingredients are optional and are ideas to get you thinking of the possibilities, except of course the noodles:

·      1 package ramen noodles (get the frozen kind, not the dried, if you can.  They have a richer flavor and texture, whereas the dried noodles are reminiscent of the $.49 pack you’d get in college)

·      2 eggs

·      Sliced scallions

·      Shredded carrots, cooked

·      Lightly steamed spinach, swiss chard or kale

·      Cubed tofu

·      Cooked corn

·      Sliced taro root, which is best deep fried

·      Nori flakes or seaweed slices

·      Toasted sliced shallots

·      Toasted sesame seeds

·      Optional extras to serve alongside the ramen: soy sauce, chili paste,

Instructions

Heat the broth on the stove in a medium pot until simmering.  Stir in the miso paste and continue stirring until it is completely dissolved.  Add the sesame oil (optional) and give it a taste.  If it needs more flavor, you can add a little dash of soy or more miso but your broth alone should be full of flavor.

In a separate pot, heat water until boiling and cook the noodles, following the package instructions.  Drain when ready.

Meanwhile, soft boil the eggs, which should take about 5 minutes.  Now it’s time to assemble the ramen.  Add the noodles to the broth and bring to a quick boil just to make sure everything is piping hot.  With tongs, add noodles to two bowls.  Ladle in broth to cover the noodles.  Shell the eggs and slice in half. Nestle the ingredients you choose on top of the noodles, each in their own section so they can be savored individually.  Sprinkle the top of the bowl with the nori, the toasted shallots and sesame seeds (optional)

*As for the base broth, here is where it is fun to experiment and is a matter of preference.  I recently picked up Marco Canora’s Bone Broth cook book and have been obsessed with making various bone broths which I keep handy as the basis for many new soups and stews.  They are perfect for ramen.  To make a bone broth, you can either buy soup bones or use the ones left from roasting a chicken or other meat.  Simply simmer with carrots, onions, garlic, bay leaf, thyme, salt and pepper on low for as many hours as you can, but at least 5.  My friend leaves hers overnight in the slow cooker.  Once cooled, strain and refrigerate.  Once cold, the fat will solidify on the top, making it easy to scoop off.  If you are trying to stay vegetarian, adding the miso paste to a vegetable stock will be delicious as well.