JAPANESE RAMEN COOKING EXPERIENCE WITH WAGAMAMA

A few weeks ago I was very fortunate to be part of a small group that was invited to a ramen cooking experience with Wagamama's head chef and trainer Juan Carlos Manteca. Juan has developed a great passion for Japanese food through his work in Wagamama's restaurants in Belfast, Cork and Dublin over the last 7 years. 

Juan started off with a very interesting presentation on ramen. Ramen was brought into Japan from China and over time has become one of the most loved dishes in Japan. Throughout Japan you'll find thousands of ramen restaurants (called ramen-ya). Japanese people believe that ramen making is like an art so each ramen-ya closely guards their secret ramen stock recipe and method of preparation. This art of ramen making is portrayed in a Japanese comedy film called "Tampopo" and an American film called "The Ramen Girl". 

Ramen is a noodle dish served in a flavoured soup with toppings such as bamboo shoots, boiled egg and seaweed. The four main categories of ramen include:

1. Shio - yellow coloured soup usually made from chicken stock

2. Tonkotsu - cloudy white coloured soup made from pork stock

3. Shoyu - clear brown soup made from chicken/vegetable stock and soya sauce

4. Miso -  miso paste mixed with one of the other flavoured stocks

After learning about ramen we got ready to start cooking in Wagamama's South King St kitchen in Dublin. We were each presented with our own Wagamama hat and apron. Juan explained that we'd have a ramen cook-off where each one of us would make our own ramen and then we'd rate each person's ramen.

It felt surreal to be at the other side of the counter as a chef rather than a customer. We had a quick tour around the kitchen and then started to make our own ramen. I made a salmon ramen with vegetables using pork stock (which Juan had been up the night before preparing) and miso paste.

Here's my Salmon Miso Ramen

My Wagamama pose which believe it or not was not a pose (I was tasting Wagamama's ramen stock)!

Wagamama's cooking experience has been enjoyed by the Irish Rugby team and the Irish Olympic team. I had so much fun with Juan and all the staff there. Thanks so much it's an experience that I'll always treasure.

Patrick Hanlon from RTE Food also attended this, click here to see his article on the ramen experience. 

View Wagamama's selection of ramen dishes at www.wagamama.ie.

BASIC JAPANESE COOKING INGREDIENTS PART II

This post is a continuation of my first post on Basic Japanese Ingredients and gives a brief description of an extended list of basic ingredients used in Japanese home cooking. All these ingredients can be found in either Asian markets or large supermarkets. From my experience Asian supermarkets tend to be cheaper compared to supermarkets.

NORI - ROASTED SEAWEED

These roasted seaweed sheets are well known for wrapping sushi rolls. They can be shredded and sprinkled over dishes before serving. This type of seaweed is relatively easy to find and not expensive.

WAKAME - TYPE OF SEAWEED

Wakame is often added to Japanese miso soup and Japanese style salads. Be careful how much wakame you add to a dish as these tiny dry pieces of seaweed expand once they are added to water. 



HIJIKI - TYPE OF SEAWEED

Hijiki goes well with vegetables in a Japanese style stir-fry. It's important to soak the dried seaweed in water before adding to any dishes.

KOMBU - TYPE OF SEAWEED

This seaweed is used along with bonito fish flakes to make Japanese homemade fish stock called dashi.

KATSUOBUSHI - BONITO FISH FLAKES

Katsuobushi is used along with kombu seaweed to make Japanese homemade fish stock. It goes well with fresh tofu and soy sauce. Depending on where you live it can be difficult to get and a little expensive. I get it in my local Asian supermarket.

TOFU - PREFERABLY GM FREE

Tofu is made from fermented soya beans. It's low in calaroies yet high in protein and calcium. Try to buy tofu in an Asian store as the quality and the taste of the tofu tend to be much better. Fresh tofu can be eaten cold straight from the fridge or added to hot dishes. 

PANKO - JAPANESE BREAD CRUMBS

The biggest difference between panko and standard breadcrumbs is that panko doesn't contain the crust of the bread and the breadcrumbs are bigger in panko. Seemingly panko absorbs less oil than standard breadcrumbs! Panko is used for dishes such as Japanese style croquettes and tonkatsu.

ROASTED SESAME SEEDS

These are often sprinkled over dishes before serving.

NANAMI TOGARASHI - JAPANESE SEVEN SPICES

This spice mix includes chilli, orange peel, black sesame seed, white sesame seed, seaweed, Japanese pepper and ginger. It's often added to Japanese dishes to add a little kick and extra taste to the dish. 

 

SESAME OIL
Used to flavour Japanese Chinese style dishes such as fried rice

SHISO LEAF

A type of herb that is used in Japanese cooking. It can be difficult to find in supermarkets outside of Japan however if you can get shiso leaf seeds then you can grow your own!

WASABI - JAPANESE HORSERADISH

This is the green coloured mustard that is served with sushi. The wasabi root looks like a ginger root and can be hard to find. 

UDON NOODLES

A type of thick wheat flour noodle. Udon is usually served in a clear lightly seasoned soup with other ingredients.

 

RAMEN NOODLES

This is a wheat noodle used for Japanese Chinese style dishes including "Ramen" which is a tasty and very popular noodle soup. 

SOBA NOODLES

This is a thin brown buckwheat noodle which tends to be eaten cold during the summer months and hot during the colder times of year. 

JAPANESE FOOD REVIEW: MUSASHI NOODLE AND SUSHI BAR, CAPEL ST, DUBLIN 1

After reading several good reviews about Musashi I was excited to go there and check it out for myself! I popped into Musashi with my husband for a quick lunch on a Friday afternoon. We were greeted by friendly staff and asked to wait for a table as the restaurant was full. While we waited we enjoyed soaking up the bustling atmosphere. We were seated after 5 minutes and given complimentary green tea. When I asked the waitress for a refill she returned with a small pot of Japanese green tea which I thought was a nice touch. At first glance, I wanted to order everything on the menu! Then, I promised myself that if the food was good I'd return and work my way through the menu. Finally, I decided on the bento box special which included Japanese style breaded chicken on a bed of stir fried vegetables, lightly fried squid with a Japanese style salad, 2 pieces of maki sushi and rice (miso soup was served with the bento box). My husband ordered the seafood miso ramen. We love authentic/ traditional Japanese cuisine so this was a big treat and brought us right back to our time in Japan. Our lunch cost just over 20 euro which is more than reasonable for an enjoyable lunch in central Dublin. The whole experience surpassed our expectations and we'll definitely return again soon to try the sushi and sashimi.

BENTO BOX SPECIAL

SEAFOOD MISO RAMEN

Website: http://www.musashidublin.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/musashisushibar

Twitter: @musashi_sushi

Phone: 01 5328068

Irish times article on Musashi:

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/magazine/2012/0/1224314064951.html

NOTES: All restaurant reviews posted on this blog are written by me without the prior knowledge of the restaurant. I visit the restaurant as an average customer and always pay for the food!