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black sesame ramen

Ramen of the Abyss

A sesame miso ramen goes goth...
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Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 2 hours
Servings 4

Equipment

  • Blender
  • Roasting Pan

Ingredients
  

  • 2 red onions
  • 1 head garlic
  • 8 oz mushrooms shiitake or whatever you can find
  • 3 tablespoons oil
  • 6 inches kombu
  • 4 inches ginger
  • 1/4 cup hatcho (black) miso
  • 1/2 cup black sesame seeds
  • 12 scallions
  • 1/2 cup soy sauce
  • 1/2 cup mirin
  • 4 servings black rice ramen noodles
  • 12 pieces toasted nori
  • black fermented garlic optional
  • black radish optional

Instructions
 

  • Heat oven to 200C/400ºF
  • Take the ginger, mushrooms, onions, and the white part of the scallions and roughly chop or slice them into bite-sized pieces. Slice the top off of the head of garlic.
  • Toss the chopped ginger, mushrooms, onions, garlic, and white part of the scallions in 1 tablespoon oil and place in a roasting pan; roast for approximately 30 minutes or until soft or even a bit charred.
  • Meanwhile, carefully peel the skin off of the eggplant. Set aside the rest of the eggplant for another meal.
  • Toast all of the sesame seeds in a dry pan over medium heat for 5 minutes and set aside to cool.
  • Heat the remaining oil and fry the eggplant skins until they curl up and get crispy; remove to a paper towel lined plate and set aside.
  • By now, your veggies are probably roasted. Put them in a large stock pot with the kombu, cover with water, and bring to a simmer, covered, for 1.5 hours
  • Meanwhile, combine the soy sauce, mirin, and scallion tops in a small saucepan and simmer for approximately 30 minutes until the liquid is thick. Set aside to cool.
  • When your stock is ready, strain it, reserving the garlic head.
  • Squeeze the softened roasted garlic cloves out of their peels and into a blender jar. Blend garlic until smooth, adding strained broth as necessary. Return the blended garlic to the strained broth and bring to a simmer again.
  • Separate the sesame seeds; you'll want to reserve 4 pinches of whole seeds for a garnish.
  • Combine the rest of the sesame seeds (you should have at least 3/4 of a cup) with the reduced soy-mirin glaze and blend until very, very smooth. This may take a bit of time, but the smoother it is, the darker your finished ramen will be!
  • Cook the noodles according to the package instructions.
  • Divide the miso-sesame paste among 4 serving bowls. Place 2 pieces of toasted nori on the side of each bowl.
  • Divide the noodles among the bowls. Ladle the hot broth over the top to fill each bowl.
  • Garnish each bowl with toasted black sesame seeds, fried eggplant skins, and fermented black garlic and/or black radish if you have them.

Notes

The miso, sesame seeds, and black rice noodles can typically be found in Asian markets or organic/bio grocery stores, and of course, online.