Tofu Ramen with a Homemade Twist 🍜💚

Tonight, I decided to take my ramen game up a notch and create a flavorful masterpiece from scratch. While I don’t have a formal recipe to follow, I can certainly share the loose description of how I crafted this culinary delight:

Preparation:

  • First, I pressed a block of extra firm tofu for about half an hour to remove excess moisture.
  • Preheated the oven to 425°F to get it ready for the tofu.

Broth:

  • In a large pan over high heat, I browned coarsely chopped onions, fresh ginger, celery, leeks, and garlic until fragrant and golden.
  • Then, I added in some lemon zest, bay leaves, peppercorns, fennel seeds, whole cloves, dark miso paste, and soy sauce to infuse the broth with rich flavors.
  • After letting the flavors meld together for a couple of minutes, I poured in 10 cups of water and stirred well.
  • I transferred the mixture to the instant pot and cooked it for 45 minutes. If you don’t have an instant pot, simmering the broth on the stove for a couple of hours will also do the trick.

Tofu:

  • While the broth was simmering away, I cut the pressed tofu into rectangular shapes.
  • I brushed the tofu with miso paste and arranged it on a pan lined with a silicone baking mat.
  • Then, I brushed the tofu with fried garlic chili oil for an extra kick.
  • After baking for a while and turning halfway through, I finished them off under the broiler for a couple of minutes to achieve that perfect crust.

Additional Toppings:

  • I also browned some thinly sliced leeks and mushrooms to add to the ramen later on.

Assembly:

  • Once the broth was ready, I strained it back into the original large pan and brought it back to a low boil.
  • I threw four packs of ramen noodles into the broth and let them cook for a couple of minutes until tender.
  • I carefully transferred the noodles to large bowls and poured a few ladlefuls of the flavorful broth on top.
  • Next, I arranged the tofu rectangle prisms on top of the ramen and broth, adding a touch of elegance.
  • For the finishing touches, I garnished the ramen bowls with fresh green onions, red jalapeños, basil, mint, and cilantro, along with a squeeze of lime.
  • I also added the sautéed mushrooms and leeks, a spoonful of hoisin sauce, and a drizzle of fried chili oil for an extra burst of flavor.

Conclusion: This homemade Tofu Ramen was a labor of love and creativity, resulting in two big bowls of pure culinary bliss. I hope you enjoy every mouthful of this aromatic and comforting dish as much as I did. Bon appétit! 😊💚🌱

I decided to dress up my ramen tonight 💚🌱
***I don’t have a formal recipe per se but I can give a loose description of how I made this:
The first thing I did was pressed a block of extra firm tofu for about a half hour.
Preheat oven to 425°.
Then in a large pan on high heat I browned coarsely chopped onions, fresh ginger, celery, leeks, and garlic, then I added in some lemon zest, bay leaves, peppercorns, fennel seeds, whole cloves, dark miso paste, and soy sauce. I let the flavors mesh together for a couple of minutes then I added in 10 cups of water and stirred well.
I then transferred to the instant pot and cooked for 45 minutes (if you don’t have an instant pot you can simmer the broth for awhile on the stove maybe for a couple of hours).
While the broth was going in the IP, I came back to the tofu and cut it into rectangular shapes. I brushed the tofu with miso paste and then arranged in a pan on a silicone baking mat. I then took some fried garlic chili oil and brushed the top. I let bake for awhile, then turned halfway through and brushed the other side with the chili oil. At the end I put it on low broil for a couple of minutes to get that nice crust.
I then browned some thinly sliced leeks and mushrooms and set them aside.
When the broth finished in the instant pot I strained it back into the original large pan. I brought it back to a low boil and threw four packs of ramen noodles in the broth for a couple of minutes.
I got the noodles out the pot and placed in a large bowl, then poured a few ladlefuls of the broth on top.
I carefully arranged four of the tofu rectangle prisms on top of the ramen and broth, then garnished with fresh green onion, red jalapeños, fresh basil, mint, and cilantro, lime, sautéed mushrooms and leeks, a spoonful of hoisin, and a spoonful of fried chili oil.
It made enough for two big bowls of ramen and some leftover broth.
I hope you all enjoy 😊💚🌱