SHIO RAMEN

Shio Ramen image

Yield serves 4

Number Of Ingredients 19

Ingredients

8 pea pods, trimmed
1 tablespoon dried wakame
1 cup hot water
8 cups Ramen Chicken Stock (page 10)
1 1/2 cups Shio Base (page 11)
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 tablespoons minced garlic
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons ground pork
2 tablespoons hoisin sauce
1 teaspoon tobanjan (Chinese chili paste)
1/2 cup sliced onion
1/2 cup peeled and thinly sliced carrots (sliced on an angle)
8 shiitake mushrooms, stems removed and cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices
1/2 green cabbage, cored and cut into bite-size pieces
4 cups bean sprouts, rinsed well
4 (7-ounce) pieces frozen ramen noodles
1 tablespoon ground sesame seeds
2 scallions, both white and green parts, thinly sliced on an angle
Dash of hot chili oil

Steps:

Prepare an ice bath and place a large pot of water over high heat. When the water comes to a boil, add the pea pods and cook for 1 minute. Remove the pea pods from the water and submerge in the ice bath. Once cool, drain the pea pods and cut in half. Set aside. Keep the boiling water to cook the noodles in later.
In a bowl, cover the wakame with the hot water and let sit for 10 minutes. Drain well and set aside.
Combine the chicken stock and Shio Base in a pot and place over high heat to make the shio broth. Bring just to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and cover to keep warm.
Heat 2 tablespoons of the vegetable oil in a very large sauté pan or wide-bottomed pot over high heat. Once hot, add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds, stirring constantly, but be careful not to let the garlic burn. Mix in the ground pork and cook for 2 minutes. Add the hoisin sauce and tobanjan and continue cooking, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon to break up the pork into small pieces. Cook for 5 minutes, then remove the pork from the pan and set aside.
Add the remaining 2 tablespoons vegetable oil to the pan and return it to high heat. Add the onions, carrots, mushrooms, cabbage, and pea pods. Cook until the vegetables begin to soften, stirring often, about 3 minutes. Mix in the bean sprouts and reserved pork. Cook for 1 minute, then pour the heated shio broth into the pan. Bring the liquid to a boil, then reduce the heat to low.
Cook the ramen noodles in the reserved boiling water according to package instructions. Drain well and divide among 4 bowls. Top each bowl with one-fourth of the broth, vegetables, and pork, and garnish with the ground sesame seeds, reserved wakame, scallions, and hot chili oil to taste.