Japanese cuisine is fantastic for its freshness and speed. In restaurants like the insanely successful Wagamama, you will receive your meal as soon as it’s completed to ensure supreme flavour; that’s why you’re usually the unlucky one, glaring in envy at your companion scoffing down their yaki soba.
Ramens are messy, playful, and they sparkle with nutrition. They are my absolute favourite, and the simplest things to make – so much more so than your bog-standard student spag bol, where every spoonful tastes like monotony. Replicating the Instagram-worthy Wagamama meals in your student kitchen is effortless, and you can do so at the fraction of the price.
These recipes are inspired by ‘Tokyo: Cult Recipes’, the Wagamama cookbooks, but I have written them through trial and error. I source my ingredients from Exeter’s continental food markets. The best is BHL Oriental; it’s stocked with everything you could possibly need, and the staff are so willing to pass on their wisdom and inspire your culinary creations.
If you aim to become a Japanese cuisine aficionado, the staple cupboard ingredients you will need are: light and dark soy sauce, sesame seed oil, wasabi, oyster sauce, miso, panko breadcrumbs and a variety of noodles and rice. I also stock picked ginger and tins of bamboo shoots, but that’s because I’m a loser.
Right, the lowdown on noodles. There’s such a vast range of noodles available it’s intimidating. The instant ones aren’t all that great- i.e. the Tesco everyday value noodles at a small fortune of 25p. Moreover, I would stick to the unflavoured noodles; you can add your own flavouring to the broth easily, but you could be stuck with a meal tasting like prawn cocktail crisps if not. The best way is to try all the different types and find your preferred. If the noodles are rice, then they are vegan; by a general rule, this includes udon and soba- but not ramen (egg based). I highly recommend the brand Yukata if you want to stick to supermarket shopping.
Chilli Chicken Ramen (serves 1; price average £3.50)
- 1 chicken breast
- 90g noodles of your preference (for this dish, I chose thick udon)
- 1 chicken stock cube (note that this can be replaced with ramen paste for a more authentic but more expensive taste)
- Dark and light soy sauce
- A handful of kale
- 2 sliced spring onions
- 3 sprigs of pak choi
- ½ red chilli
- To ensure that the chicken breast retains its shape in when placed on top of the noodles, cook it in the oven for 15 minutes at 180°. Remove, and slice as shown in the photo. This slices will be added to the veg at a later point.
- In a pan, make the chicken stock. When boiling, add the kale. Cook for three minutes then add the noodles and continue simmering for a further 3 minutes. Do not drain and leave to one side.
- On a high heat, fry the sliced spring onions and then the pak choi. Add the chicken and the sloshes of dark and light soy sauce (to taste) and take off the heat.
- Poor your saucepan concoction into a deep bowl, then add the veg. Place on the chicken, and sprinkle with sliced red chilli.
It was a sad moment when I found myself excitedly anticipating the arrival of my vegetable spiralizer. So the next ramen recipe is an excuse for me to play with my new toy.
Vegan Tofu Ramen (serves 1; price average £2.50)
- 100g tofu
- 2 tablespoons teriyaki sauce OR soy sauce
- Half a spiralized courgette and half a spiralized carrot OR 90g soba noodles
- 1 vegetable stock cube
- 2 sliced spring onions
- 3 sprigs of pak choi
- 2 sliced mushrooms
- Marinate the tofu in either teriyaki or soy sauce for an hour in the fridge.
- Pan fry your tofu for 10 minutes on a medium heat, then add the vegetables.
- Sprialize your courgette and carrot, and place in a bowl (this requires no cooking), and pour over a vegetable stock. Alternatively, cook your soba noodles in the vegetable stock and pour into a bowl.
- Arrange and enjoy!
Prawn and Egg Ramen (serves 1; price average £3)
- 1 hard-boiled egg halved
- Handful of defrosted frozen prawns
- 90g ramen noodles
- 1 vegetable stock cube
- Dark and light soy sauce
- 2 sliced spring onions
- 3 sprigs of pak choi
- 1 sliced mushroom
- 1 garlic clove
- Hard boil the egg for 5 minutes. Drain, de-shell, halve, and leave to one side. Using the same pain, make the stock. Add the ramen noodles and cook for 4 minutes. Take off the heat, but do not drain.
- Gently fry the spring onions, pak choi, mushrooms, and garlic.
- Pour the noodle stock into a bowl. Add sloshes of soy sauce. Arrange the vegetables and egg on top, and finalise with the prawns.
I hope you enjoy awkward-chopstick-using, noodle-sucking, and a chin-dripping-in-soup!
