How To Make Soy Marinated Ramen Eggs
One of the things we love most about Ramen is how versatile it is. Sure, you can prep the noodles and broth in just a few minutes. And that’s just fine if you’re feeling a bit peckish. But if you’re hungry enough for a full meal, you probably want something a bit more substantial. You’ll add veggies, meat, and other proteins to your dish. One of the most popular ramen toppings is an egg, which can be prepared in almost any variety.
Let’s be honest; any egg is going to taste great in your ramen. At the same time, your ramen will be even tastier if you kick things up a notch by marinating your eggs. Here’s one of our favorite recipes. After that, we’ll talk about how to prepare the perfect noodles. By the time you’re done reading, you’ll be ready to make any number of recipes.
Soy Marinated Ramen Egg Recipe
There are any number of ways to marinate ramen eggs. You can experiment all you like and choose any combination of spices. But almost any ramen egg marinade is going to have a soy sauce base. This recipe will produce a spicy, savory marinade with just a little bit of bite.
First, collect the following ingredients:
- 3-4 eggs
- 4tbsp soy sauce
- 1tbsp chili flakes
- 1tbsp dashi powder
- 1tbsp mirin
- ½ cup water
In a pot, bring some water to a boil. Slowly lower your eggs into the water with a spoon, then reduce the temperature until the water is at a low boil. Set a timer for 5 to 6 minutes.
While the eggs are cooking, combine the rest of the ingredients in a Ziploc bag. You can set the bag inside a mug to keep it rigid and help prevent anything from spilling.
When your timer goes off, remove the eggs from heat and rinse them from cold water. Peel them carefully, so as not to puncture the yolk. Put your peeled eggs into the bag, and squeeze out as much excess air as possible. Let them marinade for at least 2 hours, although it’s best if you put them in the fridge and let the flavor absorb overnight.
This recipe will produce soft boiled eggs, which have a gooey yolk and will keep in the fridge for up to a week. If you want, you can leave your eggs in for a couple minutes longer and hard boil them. You won’t get the same delicious gooey yolk, but many people prefer a fully-cooked yolk.
Tips for Making the Perfect Ramen
Great toppings will only get you so far. If you want a delicious ramen bowl, everything starts with the noodles. Cook them wrong, and the whole meal can fall flat. Let’s talk about how to get the perfect noodle with a chewy, bouncy texture.
Add Your Noodles to Boiling Water
First things first; your water needs to be boiling. Even water that’s very hot won’t cook your noodles properly if it’s not at a full boil. This causes many people to struggle, since they add noodles to the water the moment it starts bubbling.
Unfortunately, bubbles can start to form when the water is only 176°F. That’s nowhere near the boiling point of water, which is 212°F. Now, let’s say the water is 176 degrees and you drop in your noodle pack. What happens?
The outside of your noodles will start to cook immediately and begin absorbing water. But due to the lower temperature, it will take longer for the insides of the noodles to cook. By the time they’re nice and soft, the outsides are soggy and slimy. Either that, or you take out the noodles out when the outsides are the perfect texture, and the insides are still hard.
When you add your noodles to boiling water, they cook much faster. Water absorbs more quickly, and the inside is moist before the outer layer is too soft. The entire noodle has the same chewy consistency.
Now, maybe you’re one of those people who adds their noodles early because they don’t want fully-cooked noodles. If that’s you, you can still add your noodles at a full boil. Just remove them sooner than the recipe calls for, and you’ll get a less-cooked noodle with a consistent texture.
For noodle cups, this means you’ll have to keep them as hot as possible after adding your boiling water. A plate or other stiff object can keep steam from escaping, so your water stays nice and hot.
Be Patient
Once you’ve boiled your water, it’s time to cook your noodles. However, you’ll prepare a pillow pack differently from the way you’d cook a cup of noodles. Cooking is also different in a microwave than it is on a stovetop. Here’s how to prepare Mike’s Mighty Good noodles to chewy perfection.
How to Make a Perfect Pillow Pack
To get the perfect pillow pack, start with 1 ¾ cups of water. This will give you the right amount of water for an ideal broth, once some of it has boiled off. Bring the water to a boil, add your noodles, and let them boil for three minutes. Then, remove the pot from the heat, and mix in the flavor packet and any other seasonings. Add your toppings and other ingredients, and you’re ready to go.
If you’re using a microwave, it works a bit differently. Put the ramen puck into a bowl. Add 1 3/4 cups of water (according to the package instructions), and arrange the noodles so they’re fully covered. Run your microwave until the water boils, then stop as soon as it looks like it’s about to boil over. This normally takes around 4 minutes, but a lot depends on your microwave. You’ll have to experiment to find the perfect time for yours.
Making the Perfect Cup of Noodles
To Mike’s Mighty Good noodle cup, open the top halfway and remove any flavor packet and other materials. Pour in 1 1/2 cup of water, and bring it to a boil in your microwave. Shut it off and let the cup sit, covered, for 6 minutes. After that, you’re ready to eat it.
You can also do this with an electric kettle or even a teapot. Just boil your water, then pour it into the cup and cover like you would after microwaving.
Stir While You’re Cooking
While they’re boiling, noodles have a tendency to clump up. This has a couple of negative effects. For one thing, the noodles on the inside of the clump cook slower than those on the outside, so a lot of your noodles are raw. For another thing, a clump can even become stuck together, so you have a noodle ball instead of discrete noodles.
To keep this from happening, stir your noodles periodically while you’re cooking. This will prevent them from sticking together, and the swirling water will keep all the noodles in motion.
Keep in mind that this only applies if you’re cooking on a stovetop or preparing your noodles in an electric kettle. If you’re pouring boiling water into a noodle cup, there’s no need to stir them. Just let them sit and they won’t clump up.
Start With Restaurant-Style Mike’s Mighty Good Noodles
If you want the best ramen bowl, start with the best noodles. Most commercial noodles you buy at the grocery store are not the best quality. They use a lot of salt in their seasoning packets, and they boil their noodles in oil instead of steaming them.
At Mike’s Mighty Good, we don’t believe in cutting corners. Instead of loading our flavor packets with salt, we use all kinds of herbs and spices to deliver a complex flavor profile the big commercial brands can’t touch. We also steam our noodles instead of frying them, so they have the same steamed, not fried bouncy texture you’d get at a Japanese ramen bar. Combine that with some savory soy marinated ramen eggs, and you’re well on your way to the perfect bowl.
Want more topping ideas? Find them at the links below.
