A Japanese wheat-noodle soup with a savory broth, toppings, and infinite regional variations — an obsession in Japan and a global phenomenon.
A four-component dish
A bowl of ramen has four parts, each contributing flavor:
- Broth — the body. Made from pork bones (tonkotsu), chicken (tori-paitan), or fish/seaweed (niboshi).
- Tare — the seasoning concentrate. The three classic tares are shio (salt), shōyu (soy sauce), and miso.
- Noodles — wheat noodles with kansui (alkaline mineral water) that gives them their springy yellow body.
- Aroma oil — a small spoonful of fragrant fat (chicken, garlic, sesame) added at the end.
A given style is named for its broth + tare combination — e.g., tonkotsu shōyu or miso paitan.
Regional schools
- Sapporo (Hokkaido) — miso ramen with corn and butter; pioneered miso ramen.
- Hakata (Fukuoka) — milky tonkotsu broth, thin noodles served firm.
- Kitakata — flat curly noodles, soy-based broth.
- Tokyo — soy-based, mid-thickness noodles, balanced.
- Yokohama (ie-kei) — heavy tonkotsu-shōyu, thick noodles, spinach.
- Tokushima — pork bones with raw egg.
The egg test
A perfect ramen egg (ajitsuke tamago) has a barely-set white and a jammy, marmalade-orange yolk, marinated in soy and mirin overnight. It’s a small thing, but the egg often tells you whether the cook cares.
Find more foods by letter
Ramen starts with R and ends with N. Browse other foods along the same letter.
Foods that contain a letter from "Ramen":