Cheat’s Ramen

Whilst this recipe has moved somewhat away from our ‘China series’ and into the Japanese sphere, I have not veered too drastically off path. See, the name ramen is the Japanese pronunciation of the Chinese lamian (拉麵) and is in fact, a modern adaptation of Chinese cuisine that was introduced to Japan over a century ago and actually, until the 50s, ramen was called shina soba, 支那そば, literally meaning ‘Chinese soba’.

Whilst ramen is traditionally a meat or fish based broth, this version is a fantastic vegetarian alternative, taking just 30 minutes to whip up. It can also easily be made vegan.

Serves two

Cooking Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients

For the broth:

• 1 small chilli (Only use half, or even remove, if you are not a fan of spicy foods)
• 2 spring onions
• 1 tsp ginger
• 1 stick celery
• 1 clove garlic
• 600ml boiling water (You may need a touch more if the water evaporates)
• 1 vegetable stock cube
• 1 tbs soy sauce
• 1 tbs mirin (Japanese rice wine vinegar)

To add:

• 100g ramen noodles 
• 4 large mushrooms
• 1/2 a courgette
• 1/4 cabbage
• 5 water chestnuts
• 2 eggs (remove if making vegan)

Method:

1.  Chop the chilli, celery and spring onions (leaving a little spring onion to garnish). Fry for 1 minute in a large saucepan on a low heat then add the ginger and garlic and cook for a further minute.
2. Add all of the remaining liquid ingredients, as well as the stock cube to the saucepan and simmer for 15 minutes until the kitchen fills with a wonderful aroma.
3. Chop the mushrooms, courgette and cabbage, then add to the broth with the water chestnuts.
4. Add the two eggs to the broth for 5 minutes to cook then remove and place in cold water.
5. Add the noodles to the broth and cook for 5 minutes, or to cooking instructions.
6. Whilst the noodles are boiling, peel the eggs shells off and place the white eggs into the broth for final cooking and liquid absorption.
7. Finish with a few sprigs of spring onion and serve in a bowl with chopsticks and a Japanese soup spoon (or a fork and soup spoon).

Enjoy! Tanoshimimasu – 楽しみます 

Qing bu liang

Qing bu liang [清補涼] is a real Hainan summer evening speciality. Commonly sold from small carts on blisteringly hot Hainanese evenings. You can choose the ingredients you’d like in your soup. Common options include dates, mung beans, barley, taro, watermelon, quail eggs, and glutinous rice balls. These are made together and then added to a base of either iced coconut milk or sweetened ice water.

This is my recipe that can be created using UK ingredients…:

Ingredients:

• 1 cup of Coconut Milk (the kind you buy as milk, not the cream in the can) [ye nai 椰奶]
• 3 dates [Hai Zao 海枣]
• 1 tablespoons of cooked barley [da mai 大麦 ]
• 1 tablespoon watermelon [Xi gua 西瓜]
• 1 tablespoon raisins or sultanas [Pútáogān 葡萄干]
• 1 tablespoon mung beans (other beans such as azuki are acceptable!) [Lǜdòu 绿豆 ]
• 1/2 avocado (I am not a massive fan of this addition, however, it is becoming more popular) [È lí 鳄梨 ]

Method:

1. If you are having your dish cold, make sure you chill your coconut milk and ingredients. If you are having your meal warm, gently warm the coconut milk until a good drinking temperature.
2. Chop and add all of the other ingredients
3. Enjoy!

It really is as simple as that, what might seem a rather odd, mishmash of ingredients really is a truly delectable dish.

Best wishes – yílùshùnfēng – 路顺风

 

Yuxiang Qiezi

Welcome to the China series! Where I will detail my absolute favourite Oriental recipes from the ‘middle country’ (Zhong Guo) – and you might even learn some Mandarin along the way… Enjoy!

Yuxiang Qiezi [鱼香茄子]

• 2 aubergines [茄子 qiézi
• Fresh ginger, peeled [姜 jiāng]
• 100ml vegetable oil [植物油 zhí wù yóu］
• 2-3 cloves garlic, finely chopped  [蒜  suàn］
• 1-2 tablespoons chilli sauce or chilli oil ［辣椒酱 làjiāojiàng］
• 1 tablespoon mature vinegar ［老陈醋 lǎochéncù］
• 2 teaspoons sugar [糖 táng]
• 1 teaspoon dark soy sauce [老抽 lǎochōu］
• 1/2 cup chopped green onions ［青葱 qīngcōng］

 

1. Chop the aubergine into strips.
2. Slice the ginger into tiny pieces.
3. Heat oil in a large saucepan over high heat. When hot, carefully drop in the aubergine. Fry for about 3 minutes and remove from the oil.
4.  Preheat a wok over medium-high heat. Add ginger and cook for about 30 seconds. Add garlic and chilli oil for another 30 seconds. Add the vinegar and the sugar and stir well. Add the dark soy sauce and stir well . Add half of the green onion and stir.
5. Add the aubergine to the wok and coat well in the sauce to ensure it’s re-heated.
6. Place on a serving plate and top with the remaining green onion.

And that’s it! Enjoy and share with me on Instagram and WordPress.

Warming wishes