I love a good bowl of ramen, but I'm not a fan of forking out over £10 in a restaurant for what is, essentially, a bowl of broth with some noodles and veggies! This easy ramen bowl is a feast for the tastebuds, deep in flavour from garlic, ginger, shiitake mushrooms and miso with an extra flavour punch from the 5 spice tofu. You can add whatever toppings you like; I've opted for red pepper, courgettes and radishes as it keeps the cost down, adds a nice bit of crunch and a lovely injection of colour. All finished off with a sprinkle of sesame seeds and a soft boiled egg - totally delicious.
Serves 2-4
Ingredients
Broth
1 tbsp vegetable oil
4 cloves garlic, crushed
2.5 inch ginger, peeled and chopped into matchsticks
8 spring onions, finely chopped
1.7l stock (vegetable or chicken)
2 tbsp soy sauce
20g dried shiitake mushrooms
1 tbsp miso paste
1 tsp sesame oil
300g pre-cooked udon noodles (not traditional, but quick and easy! - use Ramen noodles if you prefer)
1 red pepper, finely sliced
1 courgette, sliced into thin strips
Tofu
2 tbsp vegetable oil
Tofu, sliced into 1cm strips
1 tbsp plain flour
1 tsp Chinese 5 spice
Sea salt and black pepper
Garnish
2 eggs, soft boiled
8 radishes, finely sliced
Sesame seeds
Fresh coriander, roughly chopped
2 spring onions, finely chopped
Directions
Broth
Heat the oil in a large pot.
Add the garlic, spring onions and ginger and fry for 3 minutes.
Add the stock, soy sauce and shiitake mushrooms.
Bring to a simmer and then cover.
Cook for 30 minutes over a low heat.
Add the miso paste, sesame oil, udon noodles, strips of red pepper and strips of courgette.
Allow to cook over a low heat for a further 5 minutes.
Tofu
Mix the flour and 5 spice powder together.
Coat the tofu slices with the 5 spice and flour mixture.
Heat the oil in a frying pan and add the seasoned tofu.
Fry over a medium high heat until golden brown on both sides (approximately 2-3 minutes each side).
Remove onto kitchen paper and season well with sea salt and black pepper.
To serve
Ladle the soup into bowls ensuring that each bowl gets plenty of noodles and mushrooms.
Garnish with half a boiled egg, some radish slices, some fresh coriander, a few slices of tofu and a sprinkle of fresh coriander, spring onions and sesame seeds.
Serve immediately.
Delicious x