Guess who’s back! I finally have enough time and energy to make up some more recipes, and what better recipe to celebrate than some ramen? I got a lot of suggestions for this one, and I understand why. When I was big into Naruto, those hot steaming bowls of ramen seemed like the absolute perfect meal. However, back then, I didn’t understand the difference between those, and what came out of Top Ramen packets. Now, I’m still using the Top Ramen noodles, but I’ve added a lot more traditional ramen elements. And even if the noodles and stock aren’t 110% authentic, it’s still delicious. Believe it!
(If you’re really looking for a from-scratch-as-traditional-as-you-can-get, I’m planning on making up that recipe a bit later. Be forewarned, it’s a bit time consuming)
Ingredients
- 2 Packages of Top Ramen
- About 5 cups of pork or beef broth (You can use the stuff in a box, the stuff in a can, or the cubes or the paste)
- Pork tenderloin
- 2 Eggs
- 1 Baby bok choy
- 1 Green onion
- Soy sauce
- Optional:
- Aburage - that’s those brown sticks on the right side of the bowl, it’s a type of soy product that’s used when you make inari-zushi. It’s some of my favorite stuff, and you should be able to find it at an Asian food store.
- Nori - I forgot to put this is mine, but it’s those black/green sheets sticking out of the back. You’d probably be able to find this at any grocery store with an Asian foods section
- Kamaboko - This is that white thing with the pink swirl. Its made of a sort of fish paste that is steamed into like a cake. I know it’s kind of distintive in the Naruto ramen, but I didn’t have time to go and grab some from an Asian food store (which is where you’d have to get it).
Directions
- Marinate the tenderloin for at least 3 hours. You can use just soy sauce, or a mixure of whatever other Asian sauces you want. Teriyaki would be good, as would some mirin.
- Preheat your oven to 450, then cook the tenderloin for 12-15 minutes, or until cooked all the way through.
- Put your eggs in a pot with enough water to cover them. Bring to a boil and cover with a lid. It should take about 10 minutes to hard boil the eggs. Then pull them out and put them into a bowl of cold water to cool.
- While this is happening, pour or mix the stock/broth in a pot and bring it to a simmer. You can add soy sauce or mirin to taste.
- Once simmering, add the Top Ramen noodles. Do NOT add in the flavor packets. Let that cook.
- Now, we cut up all the toppings! Peel the eggs and slice them in half, cut the pork, kamaboko, bok choy, aburage, and green onion into thin slices.
- Serve up the noodles and broth in a nice deep bowl, then place all the ingredients in groups on top, and add in a few small rectangles of nori. Itadakimasu!