I dream of living in a neighborhood where on Friday evenings, I can walk a block to find myself at a ramen bar sequestered below a brownstone apartment building. Wait! That reminds me of Lower Eastside in New York City although I do acknowledge that Tokyo probably has thousands of ramen stalls scattered all over the city serving myriads of ramen types. Along with sushi, ramen has to be one of Japan’s most iconic dishes and such has been its popularity in the last couple of decades, you’ll find ramen places in almost all major cities in the world and has almost been a cult-like obsession for many.
And please, I am not talking about the gross instant noodle which everyone calls ramen — no, you either get it at a proper ramen bar or maybe if you are lucky, you come across a chef friend or a host who has spent years perfecting the art of making a mean bowl of this delicious goodness. But be aware, not every self-proclaimed chef or popular Asian restaurant(even the good ones), can get it right and very few can recreate the same magic you’ll find in the setting of a little ramen shop that serves only one menu item – ramen.
Depending on the ramen kind, a bowl of crafted deliciousness of ramen comes with chewy curled up noodles served over hot n’ spicy broth of chicken or pork and adorned with chashu pork or your favorite protein and toppings such as chopped scallions, menma(fermented bamboo shoots), bean sprouts, naruto(some kind of a fish cake), pickled ginger, gooey or poached egg or hard-boiled egg sliced into two, a dollop of miso paste and delicate sheets of nori(seaweed). Over the years, I have started to love Nori in ramen although I always had it soggy not knowing that it needed to be finished quickly. The noodles can be thick or thin, curly or straight and are usually made with flour and kansui, often called the secret of ramen noodles. The broth can be clear(chintan) or thick(paitan) based on the ingredients used. The color, texture and taste are dictated by regional influences, taste preferences, or the chef’s expertise in bringing a certain variant to life. Yes, there are different kinds of ramen – the ones I have tasted are tonkotsu, shio, miso and tantanmen – and my favorite has to be tonkotsu which is based on a pork bone broth that gives it a distinct texture and a cloudy look. Also, do note that the yolky goodness of the egg gives character to the ramen. I still remember the moment when I skipped and set aside the egg the first time I had ramen in an Asian restaurant in Pune. And, my friend did the same thinking I knew what I was doing. Clearly, it was a wrong decision after having tasted the heavenly creamy taste of the spicy broth mixed with the gooey egg and miso paste.
Now, since it’s casual food, there is no eating etiquette as such in terms of how to eat ramen. You will be provided with chopsticks and a ladle-like spoon for the broth, and maybe an extra spoon for toppings and sides. Usually, you are supposed to loop the noodles over the chopsticks with the help of the extra spoon and slurp away at the incredible broth. I always ask for a fork as I can’t do chopsticks still, even after hundreds of clumsy attempts at it, but I’ll get there someday.
Interestingly, ramen has its roots in Chinese cuisine but has been mainstreamed and popularized, and made unique by Japan. It has evolved over the years with ramen chefs often experimenting to give it their signature kick. Although I have not had the opportunity to live in the global epicenter of ramen itself, I make it a point to try out the most popular ramen places of the cities I visit. The best ramen I have had till now was at Ippudo, which is also a fan favorite across New York City. It was almost after a 2-hour wait that we could get inside the place and it was totally worth it. As the nights begin to turn cold and the sweaters come on, there are not many better ways to treat yourself than enjoying the simmered goodness of a ramen bowl. Ramen is comfort food and has high calories but it is delicious and it is comforting. And every now and then, I would love to slurp away like I don’t care.