Ramen

Ramen(/ˈrɑːmən/)(拉麺, ラーメン or らあめん,rāmen,[ɾaꜜːmeɴ])is aJapanesenoodle dish. It includesChinese-style wheat noodles(中華麺,chūkamen)served in abroth. Common flavors aresoy sauceandmiso, with typical toppings including sliced pork(chāshū),nori(dried seaweed),menma(bamboo shoots), andscallions. Ramen has its roots in Chinese noodle dishes and is a part ofJapanese Chinese cuisine.Nearly every region in Japan has its own variation of ramen, such as thetonkotsu(pork bone broth) ramen ofKyushuand themisoramen ofHokkaido.
The origins of ramen can be traced back toYokohama Chinatownin the early 20th century. The word "ramen" is a Japanese borrowing of the Chinese wordlāmiàn(拉麵), meaning "pulled noodles", but is not derived from the northern Chinese dish oflamian. Instead, the dish evolved from southern Chinese noodle dishes from regions such asGuangzhou, reflecting the demographics of Chinese settlers inYokohama. Ramen gained popularity in Japan, especially during food shortages following World War II. In 1958,instant noodleswere invented byMomofuku Ando, further popularizing the dish.
Today, ramen is a cultural icon in Japan, with many regional varieties and a wide range of toppings. Examples includeSapporo's rich miso ramen,Hakodate's salt-flavored ramen,Kitakata's thick, flat noodles in pork-and-niboshibroth, Tokyo-style ramen with soy-flavored chicken broth,Yokohama'sIekei Ramenwith soy flavored pork broth,Wakayama's soy sauce and pork bone broth, andHakata's milkytonkotsu(pork bone) broth. Ramen is offered in various establishments and locations, with the best quality usually found in specialist ramen shops calledrāmen'ya(ラーメン屋).
Ramen's popularity has spread outside of Japan. In Korea, ramen is also known as its original name (라멘), having their own variation of the dish, ramyeon (라면). In China, ramen is calledrìshì lāmiàn(日式拉面/日式拉麵 "Japanese-style lamian"). Ramen has also made its way into Western restaurant chains. Instant ramen was exported from Japan in 1971 and has since gained international recognition.
The wordramenis a Japanese borrowing of theMandarin Chineselamian(拉麵, 'pulled noodles').
The wordramen(拉麺)first appeared in Japan in Seiichi Yoshida'sHow to Prepare Delicious and Economical Chinese Dishes(1928).In the book, Yoshida describes how to makeramenusing flour andkansui, kneading it by hand, and stretching it with an illustration. He also states thatramenis better suited for soup or cold noodles than for baked noodles. In this case, however,ramenrefers to Chinese noodles, not the dish. The first mention oframenas a dish appears in Hatsuko Kuroda'sEnjoyable Home Cooking(1947).
Early ramen or ramen-like dishes went by different names, such asNankin soba(南京そば,lit.'Nanjingnoodles'),Shina soba(支那そば,lit.'Chinese noodles')orChūka soba(中華そば,lit.'Chinese noodles').For example, in 1903, inYokohama Chinatown(then known as Nanjing Town), there was a Nanjing noodle restaurant(南京蕎麦所,Nankin soba dokoro).
Until the 1950s, ramen was most commonly calledShina soba, but todayChūka sobaor justramen(ラーメン) are more common, as the word支那(Shina, meaning 'China') has acquired a pejorative connotation through its association with anti-Chinese racism and Japanese imperialism.
Ramen is a Japanese adaptation of Chinese wheatnoodle soups.It is first recorded to have appeared inYokohama Chinatownin the early 20th century.Although ramen takes its name fromlamian,it did not originate from the hand-pulled lamian noodles of northern China, since the noodles used in ramen are cut, not pulled.Rather, ramen is derived from southern Chinese noodle dishes such aschar siutangmian(roast pork noodle soup) fromGuangdong, androusi tangmian(sliced meat noodle soup) fromJiangnan.This is reflective of Yokohama Chinatown's demographics, as most Chinese settlers there were Cantonese or Shanghainese.
Sōmenis another type of noodle of Chinese origin made from wheat flour, but in Japan it is distinguished from the noodles used in ramen. The noodles used for ramen today are calledchūkamen(中華麺,lit.'Chinese noodles')and are made withkansui(鹹水, alkaline salt water).
The official diary ofShōkoku-jiTemple in Kyoto,Inryōken Nichiroku(蔭涼軒日録), mentions eatingjīngdàimiàn(経帯麪), noodles withkansui, in 1488.Jīngdàimiànis the noodle of theYuan dynasty. This is the earliest record ofkansuinoodles being eaten in Japan.
One theory says that ramen was introduced to Japan during the 1660s by theneo-ConfucianscholarZhu Shunsui, who served as an advisor toTokugawa Mitsukuniafter he became a refugee in Japan to escapeManchu rule. Mitsukuni became the first Japanese person to eat ramen. However, the noodles Mitsukuni ate were a mixture of starch made fromlotus rootand wheat flour, which is different fromchūkamenwithkansui.
According to historians, the more plausible theory is that ramen was introduced to Japan in the late 19thor early 20th centuries byChinese immigrantsliving inYokohama Chinatown.By 1900, restaurants serving Chinese cuisine fromGuangzhouand Shanghai offered a simple dish of noodles, a few toppings, and a broth flavored with salt and pork bones. Many Chinese living in Japan also pulled portable food stalls, selling ramen andgyōzadumplingsto workers. By the mid-1900s, these stalls used a type of a musical horn called acharumera(チャルメラ, from the Portuguesecharamela) to advertise their presence, a practice some vendors still retain via a loudspeaker and a looped recording. By the earlyShōwa period, ramen had become a popular dish when eating out.
According to ramen expert Hiroshi Osaki, the first specialized ramen shop wasRairaiken[ja](来々軒), which opened in 1910 inAsakusa, Tokyo. The Japanese founder, Kan'ichi Ozaki (尾崎貫一), employed twelveCantonesecooks fromYokohama'sChinatownand served the ramen arranged for Japanese customers.Early versions were wheat noodles in broth topped withchar siu.The store also served standard Chinese fare likewontonsandshumai, and is sometimes regarded as the origin of Japanese-Chinese fusion dishes likechūkadonandtenshindon.
Rairaiken's original store closed in 1976, but related stores with the same name currently exist in other places, and have connections to the first store.
In 1933, Fu Xinglei (傅興雷), one of the twelve original chefs, opened a secondRairaikenin Yūtenji,Meguro Ward, Tokyo.
In 1968, one of Kan'ichi Ozaki's apprentices opened a store namedShinraiken("New Raiken") inChiba Prefecture.
In 2020, Ozaki's grandson and great-great-grandson re-opened the originalRairaikenas a store insideShin-Yokohama Rāmen Museum.
After Japan's defeat inWorld War II, theAmerican militaryoccupied the country from 1945 to 1952.In December 1945, Japan recorded its worst rice harvest in 42 years,which caused food shortages as Japan had drastically reduced rice production during the war as production shifted to colonies in China and Formosa island.The US flooded the market with cheap wheat flour to deal with food shortages.From 1948 to 1951, bread consumption in Japan increased from 262,121 tons to 611,784 tons,but wheat also found its way into ramen, which most Japanese ate atblack marketfood vendors to survive as the government food distribution system ran about 20 days behind schedule.Although the Americans maintained Japan's wartime ban on outdoor food vending,flour was secretly diverted from commercial mills into the black markets,where nearly 90 percent of stalls were under the control of gangsters related to theyakuzawho extorted vendors for protection money.Thousands of ramen vendors were arrested during the occupation.
In the same period, millions of Japanese troops returned from China and continental East Asia from their posts in theSecond Sino-Japanese War. Some of them would have been familiar with wheat noodles.By 1950 wheat flour exchange controls were removed and restrictions on food vending loosened, which further boosted the number of ramen vendors: private companies even rented outyataistarter kits consisting of noodles, toppings, bowls, and chopsticks.Ramenyataiprovided a rare opportunity for small-scale postwar entrepreneurship.The Americans also aggressively advertised the nutritional benefits of wheat and animal protein.The combination of these factors caused wheat noodles to gain prominence in Japan's rice-based culture.Gradually, ramen became associated with urban life.
In 1958,instant noodleswere invented byMomofuku Ando, the Taiwanese-Japanese founder and chairman ofNissin Foods. Named the greatest Japaneseinventionof the 20th century in a Japanese poll,instant ramen allowed anyone to make an approximation of this dish simply by adding boiling water.
Beginning in the 1980s, ramen became a Japanese cultural icon and was studied around the world. At the same time, local varieties of ramen were hitting the national market and could even be ordered by their regional names. Aramen museumopened inYokohamain 1994.
Today ramen is one of Japan's most popular foods, with Tokyo alone containing around 5,000 ramen shops,and more than 24,000 ramen shops across Japan.Tsuta, a ramen restaurant in Tokyo'sSugamodistrict, received aMichelin starin December 2015.
A wide variety of ramen exists in Japan, with geographical and vendor-specific differences even in varieties that share the same name. Usually varieties of ramen are differentiated by the type of broth and tare used. There are five components to a bowl of ramen: tare, aroma oil, broth, noodles, and toppings.
The type of noodles used in ramen are calledchūkamen(中華麺,lit.'Chinese noodles'), which are derived from traditional Chinesealkaline noodlesknown asjiǎnshuǐ miàn(鹼水麵). Mostchūkamenare made from four basic ingredients: wheat flour, salt, water, andkansui[ja], derived from the Chinesejiǎnshuǐ(鹼水), a type of alkaline mineral water containingsodium carbonateand usuallypotassium carbonate, as well as sometimes a small amount ofphosphoric acid. Ramen is not to be confused with different kinds of noodle such assoba,udon, orsomen.
Thejiǎnshuǐis the distinguishing ingredient injiǎnshuǐ miàn, and originated inInner Mongolia, where some lakes contain large amounts of these minerals and whose water is said to be perfect for making these noodles. Making noodles withjiǎnshuǐlends them a yellowish hue as well as a firm texture.But since there is no naturaljiǎnshuǐorkansuiin Japan, it was difficult to makejiǎnshuǐ miànorchūkamenbefore theMeiji Restoration(1868).
Ramen comes in various shapes and lengths. It may be thick, thin, or even ribbon-like, as well as straight or wrinkled.
Traditionally, ramen noodles were made by hand, but with growing popularity, many ramen restaurants prefer to use noodle-making machines to meet the increased demand and improve quality. Automatic ramen-making machines imitating manual production methods have been available since the mid-20th century produced by such Japanese manufacturers as Yamato MFG. and others.
Similar to Chinese soup bases, ramen soup is generally made from chicken or pork, though vegetable and fish stock is also used. This base stock is often combined withdashistock components such askatsuobushi(skipjack tunaflakes),niboshi(dried baby sardines),shiitake, andkombu(kelp). Ramen stock is usually divided into two categories: chintan and paitan.
Tare sauceis a sauce that is used to flavor the broth. The main purpose of tare is to provide salt to the broth, but tare also usually adds other flavors, such as umami. There are three main kinds of tare.
After basic preparation, ramen can be adorned with any number of toppings, including but not limited to:
Seasonings commonly added to ramen are white pepper,black pepper, butter,chili pepper, sesame seeds, and crushed garlic.Soup recipes and methods of preparation tend to be closely guarded secrets.
Mosttonkotsuramen restaurants offer a system known askae-dama(替え玉), where customers who have finished their noodles can request a "refill" (for a few hundred yen more) to be put into their remaining soup.
While standard versions of ramen are available throughout Japan since theTaishō period, the last few decades have shown a proliferation of regional variations, commonly referred to asgotouchiramen(ご当地ラーメン"regional ramen"). Some of these which have gone on to national prominence are:
There are many related,Chinese-influencednoodle dishes in Japan. The following are often served alongside ramen in ramen establishments. They do not include noodle dishes considered traditionally Japanese, such assobaorudon, which are almost never served in the same establishments as ramen.
Ramen is offered in various types of restaurants and locations including ramen shops,izakayadrinking establishments, lunch cafeterias,karaokehalls, and amusement parks. Many ramen restaurants only have a counter and a chef. In these shops, the meals are paid for in advance at a ticket machine to streamline the process.
However, the best quality ramen is usually only available in specialistramen-yarestaurants. Some restaurants also provideHalalramen (using chicken) in Osaka and Kyoto. Asramen-yarestaurants offer mainly ramen dishes, they tend to lack variety in the menu. Besides ramen, some of the dishes generally available in aramen-yarestaurant include other dishes fromJapanese Chinese cuisinesuch asfried rice(calledchahanoryakimeshi),gyoza(Chinese dumplings), and beer.Ramen-yainteriors are often filled with Chinese-inspired decorations.
From January 2020 to September 2021 during theCOVID-19 pandemic, many ramen restaurants were temporarily closed, with 34 chains filing for bankruptcy by September 2020. Ramen restaurants are typically narrow and seat customers closely, makingsocial distancingdifficult.
Ramen became popular in China where it is known asrìshì lāmiàn(日式拉麵,lit.'Japanese-stylelamian'). Restaurant chains serve ramen alongsideJapanese dishes, such astempuraandyakitori. In Japan, these dishes are not traditionally served with ramen, butgyoza,kara-age, and others fromJapanese Chinese cuisine.
In Korea, there is a variation of ramen calledramyeon(라면 / 拉麵), made much spicier than ramen. There are different varieties, such askimchi-flavoredramyeon. While usually served with egg or vegetables such as carrots and scallions, some restaurants serve variations oframyeoncontaining additional ingredients such asdumplings,tteok, or cheese as toppings.Famous ramyeon brands includeShin RamyeonandBuldak Ramyeon.
Outside of Asia, particularly in areas with a large demand forAsian cuisine, there are restaurants specializing in Japanese-style foods such as ramen noodles. For example,Wagamama, a UK-based restaurant chain serving pan-Asian food, serves a ramen noodle soup and in the United States and Canada,Jinya Ramen Barservestonkotsuramen.
Instant ramen noodles were exported from Japan byNissin Foodsstarting in 1971, bearing the name "Oodles of Noodles".One year later, it was re-branded "NissinCup Noodles", packaged in afoam food container(It is referred to asCup Ramenin Japan), and subsequently saw a growth in international sales. Over time, the termramenbecame used in North America to refer to other instant noodles.
While some research has claimed that consuming instant ramen two or more times a week increases the likelihood of developing heart disease and other conditions, including diabetes and stroke, especially in women, those claims have not been reproduced and no study has isolated instant ramen consumption as an aggravating factor.However, instant ramen noodles, known to have a serving of 43 g, consist of very high sodium.At least 1,760 mg of sodium are found in one packet alone. It consists of 385 kilocalories, 55.7 g of carbohydrates, 14.5 g of total fat, 6.5 g of saturated fat, 7.9 g of protein, and 0.6 mg of thiamine.
InAkihabara, Tokyo, vending machines distribute warm ramen in a steel can known asramen kan(らーめん缶). It is produced by a popular local ramen restaurant in flavors such astonkotsuand curry, and contains noodles, soup,menma, and pork. It is intended as a quick snack, and includes a small folded plastic fork.
In October 2010, anemojiwas approved forUnicode6.0U+1F35C🍜STEAMING BOWLfor "Steaming Bowl", that depicts Japanese ramen noodles in a bowl of steaming broth with chopsticks.In 2015, the icon was added to Emoji 1.0.
The main storyline ofTampopo, a 1985 Japanese comedy billed as the first "ramen western", concerns a trucker helping a widowed ramen shop owner reach the top of her craft.
TheShin-Yokohama Rāmen Museumis a museum about ramen, in theShin-Yokohamadistrict ofKōhoku-ku, Yokohama.