Japanese Ramen with Silky Braised Tofu

1

If you have the time, tear a few pieces of kombu and soak it in a liter of water the night before (it will give you a head start). If not, very slowly bring the kombu and water to almost boiling point on low heat but do make sure to remove it before it boils. This should take around 30 minutes.

2

Add the dried shiitake mushrooms, leek, onion and ginger to the saucepan. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce to a simmer for a further 20 minutes. This will reduce the liquid but leave you with a flavourful base.

3

Add the rest of the ingredients (soya milk, rice wine vinegar, coconut sugar, toasted sesame oil and tahini) and stir through.

4

Add your broccoli and other vegetables to the mixture and let cook for just two minutes.

5

Remove from heat. After 5 minutes of cooling, add the miso paste. (You don’t want to boil the miso as you want to keep all the lovely probiotic properties.)

6

In a separate pan, make your ramen noodles. Instructions will be on the packet but this usually involves boiling water and popping them in for a minute or 2. (I love black rice and Soba King has just come out with black rice ramen noodles!)

7

Slice the braised tofu into bite size chunks and warm up in a pan in the liquid marinade.

8

Pour the broth soup in a bowl and arrange your noodles and vegetables before serving.