KOREAN RAMEN SOUP WITH TOFU
A warming bowl of noodle soup with Sum Yum Kimchi, purple pickled egg and tofu.
SERVES 2-3
Recipe from crazy-cucumber.com
Photography by Crazy Cucumber
INGREDIENTS FOR PICKLED EGG
– Note eggs need to be made 24hrs prior to cooking
4 free range eggs, soft or hard boiled
2 cups finely sliced red cabbage
¼ of a big red onion, sliced
½ tablespoon mustard seeds
1 black cardamom seed
4 cloves
2 bay leaves
Pinch of red chili flakes
1 ½ cups hot water
½ cup red vinegar
1 teaspoon sugar
1 ½ teaspoons Himalayan salt
INGREDIENTS FOR RAMEN SOUP
150g firm tofu, drained
2 tablespoons corn starch mixed with ¼ teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons cooking oil or ghee for tofu frying
3 individually wrapped bundles of dried ramen noodles
1 onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, chopped
1 tablespoon grated ginger
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 litre good quality stock with a rich depth of flavour
6 fresh shiitake mushrooms sliced
Living Goodness Sum Yum Kimchi – to taste
Spring onion, finely sliced
1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds
Soy or tamari sauce – to taste
Pinch of salt
METHOD FOR PURPLE PICKLED EGG
• Place eggs in saucepan and cover with cold water.
• Bring to the boil, reduce heat and let simmer for 6 minutes for a soft-boiled egg and 15 minutes for a hard-boiled egg.
• Drain eggs and place to cool in cold water for 5 minutes then peel gently.
• Heat frying pan and toast mustard seeds, cardamom, and cloves for a few minutes or until fragrant.
• Add 1 ½ cups of hot water, bay leaves, onion, chilli flakes and finely sliced cabbage.
• Heat until it just comes to a boil.
• Add vinegar, salt, and sugar and mix well.
• Turn off the heat and let it rest for 15 minutes.
• Place half the cabbage in a 750ml glass jar, add eggs and cover the remaining cabbage with liquid and place a lid on the jar.
• Once it has cooled to room temperature, refrigerate.
• Let pickles rest minimum at least 24 hours before eating.
METHOD FOR RAMEN SOUP
• Boil a large pot of water and cook ramen noodles follow directions on the pack. Place cooked ramen in cold water.
• Cut tofu into chunks about 1 cm thick and coat tofu with a thin layer of cornstarch in a shallow dish. Remove excess starch.
• Set the skillet over medium-high heat and add the oil or ghee.
• Fry tofu on each side till golden and crispy.
• To prepare the stock, heat sesame oil in saucepan over medium-low heat. Sauté the ginger, onions, and garlic. When they are translucent and fragrant, pour the stock into the saucepan and simmer for about 5 minutes.
• Strain the stock using a fine-mesh strainer and remove onion, garlic and ginger and then put it back in the saucepan with the stock on a medium heat add thinly sliced shiitake mushrooms and cook another 5 minutes.
• Season soup with a pinch of salt and few tablespoons of soy sauce.
• Drain the ramen noodles well, then transfer the noodles to the soup bowls. Add tofu, shiitake mushrooms and kimchi.
TO SERVE
• Pour the hot soup into a bowl, place half a pickled egg on the top, sprinkle with scallion and sesame seeds.