Japanese cuisine · Soups & Stews

Tsukemen

Thick, ice-rinsed ramen noodles for dipping into a highly concentrated, hot broth with meat and bamboo shoots.

Ingredients · for 4 servings

• 1.2 l strong chicken broth
• 1 piece of kombu (10 cm)
• 10 g bonito flakes (katsuobushi)
• 5 tbsp soy sauce
• 3 tbsp mirin
• 2 tbsp rice vinegar
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 300 g boneless chicken thigh
• 500 g ramen noodles (thick)
• 150 g bamboo shoots (jarred)
• 4 spring onions
• 1 tsp nori flakes, salt

Instructions

1. Soak the kombu in the cold chicken broth for 20 min., heat slowly and remove just before it boils, then let the bonito flakes steep off the heat for 3 min. and strain the broth.
2. Let the chicken thigh poach gently in the broth over low heat for 20 min., remove and cut into thin slices.
3. Season the broth with soy sauce, mirin, rice vinegar and sugar and reduce uncovered to about half, until it tastes strongly salty-sweet — the dipping broth must be noticeably more seasoned than a soup.
4. Drain the bamboo shoots, warm them with the meat slices in the hot dipping broth for 3 min. and pour everything into four small, preheated bowls.
5. Cook the thick ramen noodles 1 min. longer than the package states, drain into a sieve and rinse thoroughly under ice-cold water until they are properly cold and smooth.
6. Pile the well-drained noodles onto flat plates, sprinkle with spring onion rings and nori flakes and serve with the hot dipping broth for dunking.