Go to the Recipe: Super Umami Ramen Broth in Less Than 20 Minutes
I don't have a pressure cooker. Can I make this broth on the stovetop? What is the recommended cooking time?
Bring the pot to a low simmer and cover. cook for 90 min. You might have some more reduction in the liquid because it isn't as sealed.
Would you recommend roasting the meat until golden in the oven first?
Thanks bro!
That choice is all yours, it really just depends on your preference. Obviously roasting will give you a deeper roasted flavor. We chose not to out of simplicity and to keep the other ingredients shining.
"Want a silky tonkatsu? Add pork bones." Tonkatsu is something entirely different from tonkotsu.
good catch...thanks
good catch. thanks.
Love this. I've done the all day ramen broths, but I've always wanted a fast one that still has a punch when I don't have the time. For the miso ramen, what would you suggest for heat? Just togarashi? I'm also curious if you've tried ways to get that creamy cloudy noodle-clinging mouthfeel. What if you pressure cooked chicken skin with it and then blended it up with some of the skin?
I'm glad chefsteps followed some of the directions suggested in my post about toasted broth from 7 months ago. The addition of baking soda, as suggested in the writing, could speed up the maillard reaction, although I still think it may add some unwanted flavors. Since the note was posted here 7 months ago I regret that it was not cited as a background.
I am so glad ChefSteps is doing this. I have been exploring ramen noodle recipes. Perfect synchronicity! What if you wanted to add dried bonito flakes to the broth? I was thinking that after straining the broth, add the bonito, let it soak for five minutes, and then strain again.
Very nice! Thank you. Instead of fresh shiitake, can we used dried during the pressure cook or better to add at the same step? And i'm guessing we would be looking at half or even 1/3 of in weight if using dried?
Plssss do ramen pork belly in sous vide! Thanks
Silly question, while admittedly, it would add time, but (and I may be wrong), my understanding is the ideal extraction temp for kombu is 60C ? Would it be better (though less time-efficient) to perform that step (Kombu+liquid only) prior to putting in PC?
I have the same question!
I agree. How does using PC affect the flavors?
I have the same question too. I have heaps of dried shiitakes to get through, and this recipe looks perfect for the task :-)
You state that you are adding baking soda to raise the PH. I would like to measure the PH to get it spot on as I have the tools for that, and PH in water differs between different water sources, so what's the PH number that you are trying to raise it to?
watch?v=nscTA7QxryM Check around 12 minutes, he discusses the ideal way to make dashi. If you want to be really particular about it, you could reserve the kombu and make the dashi separately, and add it separately after PC
Wow. I added pork neck bones to the broth (along with both miso and mirin) and it came out GREAT. Good job, Chefsteps! This was delicious!
Of course you can.
This is a very good recipe. Used chicken legs (no wings available) and a couple small pieces of pork shoulder because no pork on the bone available - if you can believe that - with miso and mirin. (These trying times.) Came out very well regardless. Made the noodles as instructed (very good). Made the eggs as well. Cooked the noodles portions individually, dumped into their respective bowls and topped with half-cooked sliced "country style pork ribs, fish corn off the cob, halved eggs, and sliced scallion with the boiling broth ladled over. Very tasty.
Spot on is utterly unnecessary.
Not in a way one would notice. It makes the process much quicker though.
I made the recipe tonight and it came out really weird tasting. I halved it and besides the green onion which I did't have enough of, everything else was measured out to the gram. It came out smelling really funky. I think it has to do with the baking soda. The flavor was predominantly ginger. Honestly, for tomorrow's ramen lunch I am going to have to do a lot of tweaks to salvage this. Honestly, the best "quick" ramen broth I have seen just uses a combination of water, hon dashi powder, and chicken bouillon. Then you mix in sugar, salt, soy, etc to taste. I thought making this pressure cooker hack would be super umami-filled but it was just this really unusual smell and flavor.
If you're the kind of person to read Studio Pass recipes, I am confident you would get your money's worth out of a pressure cooker.
I've made this twice now, once with a leftover roasted chicken carcass, once with raw pork femur and neck bones. Each time the broth had a slight bitter note. It was still quite good, but... would have been better without it. What might be the cause of bitterness?
Normally I prefer pork to chicken but in this case the batch with the roasted chicken carcass was much tastier. I might try roasting the pork bones for next time.
I would say it could be the kombu, next time try just steeping it with the mushrooms at the end.
try cutting the amount of baking soda in half and see if it is more to your liking
Why would you add the mushrooms at a later stage and not in the initial pressure cook?
my soup hae a very strong ginger taste like abit spicy and bitter why? Ginger taste quite strong
Simple question: what’s the best way to peel boiled eggs (particularly rather squishy 7 min eggs)? I often get pitted and pock-marked ones. I do crack the bottom end of each egg and put them back in ice-water before peeling.... anyone with a simple trick?
I take mine right from the stove to the sink, run just enough cold water over them so I can handle them. Crack all around the egg and peel under warm running water, trying to get the water between the membrane and the egg whites. After I have peeled them all rapidly I ice them down.
Yup, came out quite bitter. Did a veggie version, so no meat added. And I only had about 2/3 of the Kombu required. Must have been the ginger, I guess... And maybe the garlic. Funky taste, but not entirely my favorite, sadly.
I am making this right now (without a pressure cooker) and can definitely taste what people describe as off. In my experience there are two types of gingers: The floral sweet kind which comes in large tubers (which is what it seems they've used here) and the smaller, much stronger ones. In my experience in terms of ratio I'd say they're about 3:1 for same effect. I used a little over half the amount of ginger the recipe calls (of the small kind) for and it's really prickly and gingery. Too much for my taste. There's also a taste I can only describe as off, which I assume is the baking soda. I still have about half way to go and will post again when done. I'm really hoping this isn't a bust as I doubled the recipe...
Close to done; Wife and I have decided, independently, to throw all 4 liters of it out. All it tastes of is ginger and baking soda. For reference I've traveled to Japan many times and made my own broth in the past. If I had added the amount of ginger the recipe calls for it would literally be inedible. Considering the amount of commenters with issues I'd like the Chefsteps team to revise this recipe.
PS: I made it without meat, added hon mirin and simmered it on stovetop for about 60 minutes before deciding to toss it (tasted it many times during this period). I did not have a problem with bitterness, but I also painstakingly peeled all the ginger.
Hi Eirinn, we are sorry to hear that you had those results. I personally developed this recipe and have cooked it dozens of times. But I wanted to run a little experiment for you today. I cooked the broth with 100% of the ginger and one with 50% of the ginger, but neither of them yielded anything that would be even close to being bitter. I do think that most of the issues people have with this one is the variance in the bitterness and spice level of fresh ginger. The ginger we get here and developed this recipe around is pretty mild, enough so that chewing on a raw chunk of it is very pleasant. The only two ingredients in this that could cause a bitterness would be the Kombu and the ginger. We will add a note to the activity about the variables in the spice level of ginger and to make a personal preference call around it. Give it a taste, if it is bitter to begin with I would recommend reducing it to 25% of our weight, and adding fresh after the cook if you would like more ginger flavor. Sorry again for your results and I hope it turns out for you in the future if you give it another go.
Would you go with the same process Using an instant pot?
Yes.
Do you know if it’s the same quantity if i had kombu powder ? I bought that on amazon and i didn’t realise it was on powder form
This is essentially a concentrate at that point since it will be almost fully dispersed. I would start at 25% and you can always add more. The powder is 100% surface area and will be stronger in flavor.
Any odd effects of chopping and adding the mushrooms with the rest of the veggies? I’d like to make a batch of this, but have two eaters that don’t want to eat whole mushrooms.
If I add meat for the broth and cook it in the pressure cooker, will it only give flavour to the broth or can I still eat/serve it with the ramen e.g.
The meat will be hammered (shreddy, dry), but if you fry it in some neutral oil with aromatics (garlic/ginger/green onion), spices (black or white pepper, szechuan/sansho pepper), and add something salty (salt, msg, soy sauce, fish sauce) and something sweet (sugar/mirin) you can transform it into something tasty that would go well in a bowl of ramen.
I just made a half recipe of this as a test. I used the miso and
Mirin additions. It was absolutely NOT bitter. Amazing. I didn’t wait for the pressure to release naturally but it doesn’t seem to matter. This is a home run!
Heck yea, thanks for the feedback Joe!
