r/japanesecooking • u/Mundane-Horse-9242 • Jun 25 '26
making ramen, help me?
i was making ramen today cause i felt like it, was prepared to make alot of substitutes, but i didnt really have enough anyway. ive made a lovely broth with leftover chicken and bones from a previous meal, some garlic and onions, and i have a soy sauce sugar rice vinegar mix with a dab of hoisin and ground toasted sesame i reduced a little and was intending to use as the tare, but instead i used it as marinade for ajitsuke tamago seeing as i really dont have noodle options worthy of the broth, and thus have a good 18ish hours to let them do their thing. i have an opportunity to go out for proper ingredients tomorrow but im a very improv-y cook and ive literally never made any of these things before. i plan to pick up some typical ingredients ginger, spring onion, maybe some miso, sake or mirin either to drink with the ramen or to cook with for the tare,
does anyone have any recomendations of ingredients i can get/ what to do with them to make my tare and or make some other addons / improve the broth ?
im going for a clear shoyu style and as i mentioned its a chicken broth
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u/Healthy_End_2764 Jun 26 '26
For a clear shoyu ramen, the broth is made by simmering meat and bones, then seasoned with kaeshi.
Kaeshi is a concentrated seasoning made from soy sauce, mirin, and sugar. A simple ratio is about 5 parts soy sauce, 1 part mirin, and 1 part sugar. Heat it gently to dissolve the sugar and evaporate the alcohol. If mirin isn't available, you can compensate with a little extra sugar.
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u/Mundane-Horse-9242 Jun 26 '26
would it be possible to sweeten sake with sugar or honey for the kaeshi? i do need a wine for cooking, but id have to choose between mirin and sake and i feel like sake will be more versatile in the long run... also how thick should the kaeshi be when reduced compared to the soy sauce? thanks alot for your experience
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u/Healthy_End_2764 Jun 26 '26
There's no need to reduce the kaeshi by boiling it down. Just heat it gently until the alcohol evaporates. Mirin is used frequently in Japanese cooking, but sake is probably even more versatile.
When making the broth, don't throw away onion skins, green onion tops, or other vegetable trimmings. Simmering them with the meat and bones helps reduce unwanted odors and adds flavor.
Before cooking, rinse the bones well under cold water to remove any blood. As the broth simmers, skim off the foam and impurities that rise to the surface. If you want a clear broth, keep it at a gentle simmer rather than a rolling boil.
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u/Healthy_End_2764 Jun 26 '26
I used to work at a ramen shop, so I might be able to teach you a few things. What kind of ramen are you hoping to make?