Tsukemen (Japanese Dipping Noodles)

Tsukemen has got to be one of the most underrepresented styles of Ramen here in the West. Think of Tsukemen as "dipping noodles," well, because that's exactly how they're eaten. Chubby, long noodles are lowered into a viscous, gravy-like soup for an end result that is much richer tasting (and feeling) than even the richest of Tonkotsu bowls. This delicious Japanese dipping noodles experience is not to be missed.

A few years ago when I was in Japan, I tried a bowl of Tsukemen Ramen and it changed the way I view ramen in the best way possible. However, here in the States, there are few places (outside of populous cities) that do Tsukemen well, if at all. So, if you find yourself searching for "Tsukemen near me" or "Tsukemen Ramen near me" with little luck, fear not! In an attempt to spread Tsukemen love, I've teamed up with the Kobe Bryant of Ramen Making (for us Westerners), Mike Satinover... but you Ramenheads probably know him as Ramen_Lord.

Mike's knowledge of Ramen is incredible; he even once named a shop whose name eluded me from a mere description of the noodles and setting... I mean... the guy is encyclopedic with his noodle wisdom. Anyways, the full Tsukemen recipe to make a sped-up (but not lacking in quality) Tsukemen at home is listed out below. We'll cover it all from soup to toppings, including the perfect Tsukemen noodles and Somen Tsuyu dipping sauce.

Be sure to check out Ramen_Lord's work completely FREE “Book of Ramen” available on Reddit and eat at his restaurant Akahoshi Ramen in Chicago if you can! For those seeking more Tsukemen inspiration, be sure to explore the various varieties of dipping ramen, such as Okiboru Tsukemen, Ramen & Tsukemen Tao, Menya Musashi Tsukemen, and the well-known Tsujita Tsukemen. Also, all of the links to the products and other information used in this recipe and video are posted below. I hope it helps you on your journey to discovering the rich world of Tsukemen Ramen and other delightful ramen varieties! 🤘🏼 Adam

ALl The GeaR:

• Fine Mesh Strainer (chinois)

• Small skimmer

• 8 quart Instant Pot (Electric Pressure Cooker)

• 8 quart Cambro (plastic container)

• Deli Containers

• 6 ounce Ladle (for soup)

• 2 ounce Ladle (for Tare)

Food Products:

• Katsuobushi

• Satobushi

• Niboshi

• Nori

• Soy Sauce (shoyu)

• Mirin

• Sun Noodles

• Menma

Print

Adam & Ramen_Lord's Tsukemen (Dipping Noodles)

Ingredients

Soup

• Water, enough to cover bones by 1 inch
• 3 lbs Pork Bones, half femurs/half necks
• 3 lbs Chicken Backs
• 1 lb Chicken Feet
• 2 ½ lbs Pork Belly
• 1 Yellow Onion, peeled and quartered
• 2 inch knob of Ginger, peeled and sliced into ¼ inch coins
• 10 Garlic Cloves
• 20 g Kombu
• 80 g Niboshi
• 50 g Thick-Cut Katsuobushi
• 50 g Thick-Cut Sababushi
• 30 g Gyofun (fish powder)

Chashu

• ¾ cup Soy Sauce
• ½ cup Mirin

Shoyu Egg

• 4 cups Water
• ¾ cup Soy Sauce
• ⅓ cup Mirin

Tare

• 1 cup Soy Sauce
• 2 Tbsp Mirin
• 1 tsp MSG

To Assemble

• 1 cup Tsukemen Soup
• 2 Tbsp Tare
• 2 tsp Gyofun
• A few grinds of black pepper
• 1 cup Sun "Kaedama" Noodles
• Chashu, ¼ inch thick rounds
• Scallions, sliced thin
• Shoyu Egg
• Nori
• Menma
• Lime Wedge

Instructions

Soup

1. Add water and pork bones to a pressure cooker, at least an 8-quart size cooker, but preferably 10-quart. Bring to a boil, and skim the scum, until little to none rises, around 20 minutes.
2. Roll the pork belly into a cylinder with kitchen twine, add to the pot after skimming. Cover, bring to high pressure, cook for 1 hour.
3. While cooking, remove the toenails of the chicken feet.
4. Open the pressure cooker using the fast release setting, remove the belly, add to a ziplock bag with chashu marinade for two hours at room temperature, agitating as needed to ensure coverage.
5. Add the chicken backs and chicken feet to the pressure cooker. Close the pressure cooker, bring to high pressure again, cook for 1 hour.
6. Fast release again, open the pressure cooker. Add onion, ginger, and garlic. Boil for 30 minutes uncovered.
7. In a stock bag or cheesecloth, add kombu, niboshi, katsuobushi, and sababushi and place in to the pot. Add the gyofun directly to the soup. Cook for 20 minutes at a boil.
8. Remove and discard the stock bag, Strain the soup, reserving the pulp of bones and meat and vegetables. Do not discard pulp.
9. Dig through the pulp to remove large bones, like femurs, or extra chunky neck bones. You’ll notice at this stage that the bones are quite brittle and can break under pressure. Any bones you can crumble in your fingers are good to keep.
10. Blend ⅔ the bones, meat, and vegetables in a blender with enough soup to make a slurry.
11. Combine slurry with remaining soup. Reserve until needed.

Chashu

1. Add cooked chashu to a ziplock bag. Add soy sauce and mirin to the bag. Remove air from the bag and let marinade at room temperature, rotating every so often until the soup is complete.

Shoyu Egg

1. Add as many eggs as you’d like to boiling water and cook for 7 minutes. Immediately transfer the eggs to an ice bath. Allow the eggs to cool fully, then peel.
2. Mix water, soy sauce and mirin in a container. In a separate, resealable container, add the eggs and pour over enough brine to cover the eggs. Allow the eggs to marinade in the soy mixture, refrigerated, for 2 days before using.

Tare

1. Mix well, refrigerate until needed.

To Assemble

1. Place the bowl for the noodles and the bowl for the soup in your oven at the lowest temperature.
2. Lay in ramen noodles to the warm noodle bowl. Top with two slices of chashu, a shoyu egg sliced down the middle, menma, two slices of nori and a lime wedge.
3. Add soup to the warm soup bowl. Top with scallions and gyofun.
4. Grab the noodles with your chopsticks, dip into the soup and slurp.

Adam's Notes

• Sun Noodles is our preferred brand of noodles (this video isn’t sponsored, they just make a very high-quality product that 80% of ramen shops around the US trust. If your favorite shop doesn’t make noodles in-house, chances are they use Sun Noodles. I recommend a thicker, chewier noodle for Tsukemen like this.
• This process is cut down by over half a day by using a pressure cooker. An analog or electric pressure cooker, like an Instant Pot, will do. Just begin the timer for the recipe as soon as your cooker hits pressure, not before.
• For serving, keep the bowls for the noodles and soup in your oven at the lowest temperature. Keeping the dishware hot is a restaurant trick that keeps the food hotter for longer. It’s worth going through the extra step. If serving guests, keep the bowls in the oven on low (in my oven that’s 170F), then carefully remove them, spoon in your soup and grab the noodles, garnish and serve.
• Both Mike and I have scoured the internet and cannot find Gyofun (Japanese mixed fish powder) anywhere. The solution is to toast regular kastubushi, then grind it into a powder in the blender.

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