Tonkotsu ramen is a traditional, creamy, milky pork broth. It contains thin noodles and usually some char siu pork and a soft boiled egg. The dish originates from Japan’s Kyushu island. To make this dish, most attention needs to go to making the broth. A good tonkotsu ramen broth has cooked for more than 12 hours!

The art of making Tonkotsu ramen

The main attention needs to go to making the broth. For this you need lots of (meaty) pork bones. Soak the bones first in cold water to extract blood and grit. Then blanch them for a few minutes. Thereafter thoroughly brush them with cold water.  Discard the blanching water. Finally they are boiled with water, keeping a vigorous boil. Add some onions and ginger slices. Mushrooms can also be added. At regular times the evaporated water is compensated for by adding boiling hot water. Due to the rather vigorous boil, fat and collagen are emulsified. This gives the broth it its characteristic milky creamy appearance and taste.

So-called ramen (thin) noodles float in the broth. Top with Char siu pork and a soft boiled egg. Add tare (an even more umami version of miso) which acts as a taste enhancer.

Special equipment

none

 

Tonkotsu Ramen @ Nel Brouwer-van den Bergh

Tonkotsu ramen

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Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 9 hours
Total Time 12 hours 15 minutes
Servings: 5
Course: Dinner, Lunch
Cuisine: Japanese
Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients
  

For making the broth
  • 3 lbs (1.4 kg) pork bones some with meat on them
  • 0.4 lb pork skin
  • 2 chicken legs
  • 2 chicken feet Optional)
  • 4 slices of ginger
  • 1/2 onion
For the finished dish
  • 4 pieces char siu pork
  • 4 spring onions finely sliced
  • 1 soft boiled egg
  • 1 handful of thin (egg) wheat noodles rice noodles also okay
  • salt to taste
  • 1 tbsp tare or miso
  • splash of light soy sauce optional

Method
 

Making the broth
  1. Take the pork bones, and place them for a few hours in cold water
  2. Thereafter blanch them in fresh water for 5 min; Include the chicken pieces here
  3. Thereafter scrub the bones from any left-over blood or grit and rinse under cold water
  4. Thereafter put all bones in a fresh pot of water together with the onion and the ginger and boil vigorously for in total 12 h.
  5. Every hour bring the broth level up by adding boiling water
  6. You may use a lid, to save on energy and evaporation, but the boil needs to be rather vigorous, otherwise the fat and the collagen and gelatin will not emulsify
  7. After 12 h, sieve the broth and bring up to taste with salt. Then cool down and reserve
For making the ramen dish
  1. Heat up to boiling point (part of) the tonkotsu broth
  2. When boiling, switch off the heat and add the noodles
  3. Mean while chop the spring onions, cut the char siu pork and make a soft boiled egg
  4. Place the broth and the noodles in a bowl and garner the pork, egg and spring onions over it.

Notes

Method: boiling
Food allergy & intolerance information: soy (if using), pork

Remarks

The broth can be stored for several days in the fridge or frozen.

Bring the broth to taste with sea salt and tare.

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