Tonkotsu Ramen Recipe

This tonkotsu ramen recipe combines a deeply concentrated pork broth with tender chashu pork, wood ear mushrooms, bamboo shoots, baby corn, nori, and springy ramen noodles. Featured on VEGANnotvegan with Maddie and Kiki Longo, this rich Japanese-inspired bowl builds bold flavour through slow-cooked pork bones, roasted aromatics, miso, sesame paste, sake, and soy sauce.

The Inspiration

Inspired by Japanese tonkotsu ramen, this recipe focuses on a rich pork-based broth created through long simmering and an aggressive final boil. Pork bones, trotters, fatty pork belly, charred onions, garlic, leeks, scallions, ginger, and dried shiitake mushrooms create the base, while a tare of soy sauce, sake, mushroom seasoning, red miso, and Neri Goma adds savoury depth.

Tender chashu pork brings sweetness and richness, while wood ear mushrooms, bamboo shoots, baby corn, nori, and scallions add texture and contrast, making this a hearty VEGANnotvegan ramen from Maddie and Kiki Longo.

Ingredients

For the Chashu Pork

1 tbsp peanut oil
1 (1lb) piece of pork belly, from the meaty end
2 scallion
1 inch ginger, chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1/4 cup sake
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup mirin
1/4 cup maple syrup

For the Tonkotsu Broth

6 lbs of pork bones and trotters, cut into small pieces
1 lb of pork belly, from the fatty end
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 large onion, cut in half with the skin on
12 garlic cloves, smashed
4 inches of ginger, roughly chopped
2 whole leeks, roughly chopped and cleaned
20 scallions, whites only (reserve greens for Ramen garnish)
10 dried shiitake mushrooms
3 tbsp soy sauce
3 tbsp sake
2 tbsp mushroom seasoning powder
3 tbsp Neri Goma, Japanese Sesame Pste
2 tbsp red miso paste

For the Ramen

6 cups of Tonkotsu Broth
8 slices of Chashu Pork
1 cup bamboo shoots, thinly sliced
6 scallions, sliced thinly
2 cups wood ear mushrooms, rehydrated and thinly sliced
1 can of baby corn
4 sheets of Nori seaweed shredded
4 portions of Ramen noodles, fresh or dried
Togarashi powder, optional
Green onion for garnish

Method

For the Chashu Pork

Pre-heat oven to 300F. Place all the ingredients, except the pork belly, in a blender and process until smooth.
Pork over the pork belly. Massage the pork with the marinade for 1 minute and wrap in plastic wrap.
Marinade for 3-4 hours. Transfer the pork and the marinade to a baking dish and cover with aluminum foil.
Place the pork in the oven and roast for 3-4 hours.
Once cooked and tender, remove from the oven and let it cool completely, while still in the cooking liquid.
Remove from liquid and heat up when you are ready to serve the Ramen.

For the Tonkotsu Broth

Make the tare by whisking together soy sauce, sake, mushroom seasoning powder, red miso paste and Neri Goma.
Pre-heat the oven to 450F. Place the pork bones and belly in a large stock pot.
Cover with cold water, and place over high heat. Bring to a boil, and cook for 10 minutes.
Remove from the heat and rinse the bones clean under cold water.
Place the clean bones back in the stock pot.
Toss the onions, scallions, garlic cloves, leeks and oil together.
Spread over a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Place in the oven for 15-20 minutes, until nicely charred.
Transfer this to the stockpot with the pork bones.
Add ginger and shiitake mushrooms.
Top up with new cold water and bring to a gentle simmer.
Cook for 8 hours, covered. Remove the lid and bring to an agressive boil.
Cook for 30 minutes. Strain the liquid and return 1.5 litres of broth 2 a smaller pot.
Stir in the tare, adjust seasoning and keep warm for Ramen.

For the Ramen

Blanch ramen noodles in boiling water, following the instructions on the package.
Once ready, strain noodles and shake to remove as much water as possible.
Place noodles in serving bowl. Pour broth over the noodles.
Top with chashu pork, corn, bamboo shoots and wood ear mushrooms.
Tuck a sheet of nori in the back of the bowl. Garnish with scallions and togarashi
powder.

Serving Suggestions

This tonkotsu ramen with chashu pork and wood ear mushrooms is ideal for a comforting weekend dinner or special meal when you have time for a long, slow broth preparation. Serve the ramen immediately after assembly so the noodles remain springy and the broth stays piping hot.

Arrange the chashu pork, bamboo shoots, wood ear mushrooms, baby corn, and nori in distinct sections for a polished presentation, then finish with scallions and optional togarashi. Because the broth is intensely rich and the bowl includes pork, noodles, mushrooms, and vegetables, it works beautifully as a complete main course.

Final Thoughts

This tonkotsu ramen recipe stands out for its long-cooked pork broth and tender chashu pork. Boiling and rinsing the pork bones creates a clean starting point, while charred onions, garlic, leeks, scallions, ginger, and shiitake mushrooms build flavour during the 8-hour simmer.

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