There are many variations to the popular Japanese noodle dish, ramen. For all the soy sauce lovers out there, shoyu ramen is the way to go. Shoyu ramen traditionally consists of a soy based soup broth. Although the soup broth usually derives its complex flavours by simmering meat for long durations, I wanted to create a vegan flavor combination that would maintain the flavor complexity that a ramen broth requires. Thus, I came up with this Vegan Shoyu Ramen recipe that has an extremely rich and flavorful broth.
Apart from the use of traditional ingredients like Kombu (seaweed / sea vegetables), the broth uses shiitake mushrooms and sesame oil to accentuate its flavour. First, I heat some sesame oil in a large pot and sauté some ginger, garlic and chopped spring onion till they just begin to release an aroma. Then I add water, a few pieces of dried shiitake mushrooms, kombu, thick leek stem, soy sauce and let the stock simmer for two to three hours.
To give this broth some complexity, I add some vegetable stock powder. You can either add powder or use vegetable stock instead of water as the base. Although I recommend simmering the broth for three hours, if you are in a bit of a hurry, 30 minutes of simmering should do the trick. In the meantime, you can season your toppings and keep them ready.
Once your broth and topping are ready, it’s assembly time. Make sure to keep the noodles al dente and you are good to go. I love a little spice hit so I make sure to top my ramen bowl with a few drops of chilli oil.
If you try this recipe, let us know! Leave a comment and don’t forget to tag your photo with #blissofcooking on Instagram. You may like to try our other recipes like Chayote Soup with Lemongrass and Wonton Soup.
Yield: 2 servings
Prep time: 10 minutes
Total time: 40 minutes
Ingredients for Vegan Shoyu Ramen
Broth
1 tablespoon sesame oil
10-12 cloves garlic
6 slices of ginger
1 cup chopped spring onions
6 cups water / vegetable broth
6 dried shiitake mushrooms (or any available mushroom)
1 leek stem
1 piece dried Kombu (seaweed)
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 teaspoons vinegar
1 teaspoon sugar
1 tablespoon mirin (rice wine)
Salt and pepper to taste
Toppings
4 tofu slices
1/2 cup sliced mushroom
1 cup chopped spring onions
Chilli oil (Optional)
Ramen noodles to serve
Directions for Vegan Shoyu Ramen
- In a large pot, add sesame oil, ginger, garlic and spring onions and saute it over medium heat for 2-3 minutes. Then combine the vegetable broth, mushrooms, leek, kombu and soy sauce and bring it to a boil. Once the broth has reached boiling point, reduce the heat, cover the pot and simmer it for at least 30 minutes although I recommend a 3 hour simmer.
- In the meantime, boil the noodles according to the packet instructions in a separate pot and set aside. Make sure you keep the noodles al dente.
- Prepare toppings of your choice. To use the same toppings as this recipe, pan-fry the tofu pieces till golden brown, sprinkle salt and pepper and set aside. Finely chop up some spring onion green and keep it in a separate bowl.
- Once your broth has simmered, strain the broth into a fresh bowl. Add vinegar, sugar, mirin, and additional splash of soy sauce, salt and pepper into this bowl and complete the flavouring. Instead of discarding the rehydrated shiitake mushrooms from the broth, slice up these mushrooms and use it as a topping for the ramen bowl.
- Now for the fun part, divide the noodles and broth between two bowls. Top it with mushrooms, tofu, spring onions and chilli oil. Your ramen bowl is ready!
