Ramen

• Tonkotsu
• Chashu

Tonkotsu

Easy Beginner Tonkotsu Ramen

Ingredients

Pork broth

• 4lbs Pork Neck and additonal fatty meat if more creamier
• 1/4 cabbage
• 1/2 onion
• 8 garlic cloves

Tare

• 150ml water
• 125ml of soy sauce
• 25ml of sake
• 15ml of mirin
• 1g instant shrimp dashi powder
• 9g msg
• 18g of sea salt - just before simmer heat

Toppings

• Green Onion
• Wood Ear Fungus
• Chashu

Instructions

1. Soak the pork bones in water for a few hours or overnight
2. Boil and collect the brown foam until white
3. Dump the water and rinse bones with finger or brush to knock brown clumps
4. Instant Pot: Pressure cook high for 1 hour
5. Boil open with cabbage, onion, and garlic for 1 hour or longer (aromatics in at the last hour)

I used to be a ramen chef; if you want the broth to be milky white, you need to add FATBACK and you need to STIR and AGITATE the bones periodically throughout the boil. Skim! The water should reduce by half by the end. Also add kombu, ginger, garlic and scallions as well into the broth, and finish with katsuobushi after turning the fire off. Let stand for about 30 minutes before straining. When straining, press to get every single drop.

Chashu

Ingredients

3-pound boneless pork shoulder roast, cut in half (Each piece about 3x4x4 inches)
1 cup soy sauce
½ cup sake
½ cup mirin
½ cup water
¼ cup brown sugar
4 garlic cloves, smashed
2-inch piece of ginger, unpeeled, sliced into ¼-inch rounds
3 green onions, roots trimmed, cut in half (about half a bunch)

Everything in the pot

1. Pour the soy sauce, sake, mirin, and water into an Instant Pot or other pressure cooker. Add the brown sugar and stir until the sugar dissolves. Add half the garlic, ginger, and green onions. Put the pieces of shoulder roast in the pot and turn them to coat with the sauce. Scatter the remaining garlic, ginger, and green onions over the top.
2. Pressure Cook for 50 minutes with a Natural Release
3. Rest (optional) and serve
   Carefully lift the pork out of the sauce. If you are using it immediately, cut the pork into ½-inch thick slices and serve. If you have the time, rest the pork - it will slice easier. Let the pork cool to room temperature, put it in a zip-top bag, ladle a cup or two of pot sauce over the pork, and seal the bag. Rest the bag in the refrigerator for a few hours to a few days. Then, remove the pork from the bag, slice it into ½-inch thick slices, and serve. If you want to sear the pork, heat a small skillet over medium heat, then sear the pork until just browned on each side, about 2 minutes each.