This recipe uses a store bought roast chicken, but feel free to use leftover chicken if you have it. If you wish, substitute soba or udon for the ramen, as each noodle type has something to offer to this dish. A Ben-Riner or other fixed blade slicer makes this dish a lot easier to prep. Thin slices help keep cooking time down.
INGREDIENTS:
2-4 mei quin (use 2 large or 4 smaller), quartered or halved based on size 3 carrots, cleaned, split lengthwise and thinly sliced on a long diagonal 3 celery stalks, cleaned and thinly sliced on a long diagonal 1 cabbage wedge, 1½ inches at the widest, thinly sliced 4-6 king oyster mushrooms*, sliced or torn into long meaty strips ½ brown onion cut through the root, very thinly sliced -OR- 8 scallions thinly sliced on the long diagonal, or 1 leek, white part only, sliced ¼ inch wide into long strips 1 store bought roast chicken, meat pulled and shredded (enough to yield 2 heaping cups or more) 2-4 packets ramen noodles (if using soba or udon, check packets for yield), depending how hungry everyone is and size of packets Neutral flavored oil as neededBroth:
12 cups hot vegetable stock or dashi 2 tablespoons artisanal shoyu (or more as needed) 3 tablespoons mirin (sweet Japanese cooking wine) 2 tablespoons sake 1 piece of peeled ginger, 1×1½ inches (or larger if you like), sliced thinly -Optional- ½ teaspoon toasted sesame oil 1-2 tablespoon unseasoned rice vinegarMETHOD:
Combine all the broth ingredients and simmer gently 20 minutes. Strain out the ginger slices. Keep warm.
Bring 2 quarts of water to a boil.
Bring shredded chicken to room temperature.
Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. When hot, film liberally with oil and get oil quite hot. Using tongs, sear the mei quin on the sliced sides until lightly colored. Give a quick sear to the rounded sides and remove from the pan. Lower the heat to medium and, being sure there is oil in the pan, quickly sauté the mushroom strips. Cook them through so they are golden and crisp up on the edges. Remove and set aside.
Reduce heat to low and gently sauté onions until soft and fragrant, but do not color them. Remove from pan.
Put out four large bowls and heat them with the 2 quarts of hot water. When bowls are hot, distribute chicken, onions, and mushrooms evenly between the bowls.
Bring broth to a boil and add the noodles, then the mei quin, carrots, cabbage, and celery. Cook 2 minutes (if your noodles will take longer than 2 minutes, add the vegetables for the last 2 minutes of cooking time), then use a spider and tongs to transfer noodles evenly to bowls, then evenly divide the remaining vegetables between the bowls.
Ladle broth into the bowls and serve hot.
Chef’s Notes:
I like to have a bowl of rice vinegar with a pile of grated ginger in the bottom plus a few drops of soy sauce, sesame oil, and some sriracha hot sauce for dipping my noodles in.
If you can, take the skin off the chicken in large pieces and roast or sauté until crisp, then cut into strips and place on top of the bowls of ramen for a crunchy garnish.
You can make this dish with gyoza instead of chicken if you wish, or skip it altogether.
Serves: 4
Source: Chef Andrew E Cohen
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