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5 stars (1 review)

Tantanmen Ramen

Thanh | Eat, Little Bird
Prep10 minutes
Cook20 minutes
Total30 minutes
Serves: 4
A spicy and creamy ramen noodle soup which is hearty and delicious. Make this delicious Tantanmen Ramen at home with this quick and easy recipe.
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Ingredients

For the Spicy Meat Topping

  • 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
  • 300 g (11 oz) minced pork, or minced chicken (ground pork or ground chicken)
  • sea salt
  • black peppercorns
  • 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
  • 1 teaspoon ginger, finely grated
  • ½ teaspoon sugar
  • 2 tablespoons doubenjiang
  • 1 tablespoon soy sauce
  • 1 tablespoon sake, or Chinese cooking wine
  • spring onions, (scallions) finely chopped

For the Soup Paste

  • 4 tablespoons (¼ cup) sesame paste, tahini or smooth peanut butter
  • 2 tablespoons soy sauce
  • 2 tablespoons rice vinegar, or white vinegar
  • 1-2 tablespoons chilli oil, or to taste (optional)

For the Soup Broth

  • 1.5 litre (6 cups) chicken stock, or vegetable stock
  • 500 ml (2 cups) unsweetened soy milk

For the Toppings

  • 400-500 g (1 lb) fresh Japanese ramen noodles, or Chinese noodles
  • bok choy, or other green vegetables
  • soft-boiled eggs, peeled and halved
  • spring onions, (scallions) finely sliced
  • chilli oil

Instructions 

For the Spicy Meat Topping

  1. Heat the oil in a medium-sized pan.
  2. Season the meat with salt and pepper.
  3. Cook the meat until it starts to brown and is slightly caramelised.
  4. Add the garlic and ginger, and cook until fragrant.
  5. Add the remaining ingredients.
  6. Simmer gently for about 5 minutes.

For the Soup Paste

  1. Whisk all of the ingredients together.
  2. Divide the paste evenly between 4 soup bowls.

For the Soup Broth

  1. Pour the stock and soy milk into a large pot.
  2. Bring to the boil and then let it simmer gently.

To Serve

  1. Cook the noodles according to the packet instructions, and then rinse under cold water.
  2. Cook the bok choy in boiling water for a few minutes (depending on size).
  3. Ideally, the noodles should be warm before serving, so I typically plunge them with a noodle strainer into the same boiling water used to cook the vegetables.
  4. Divide the noodles between the soup bowls.
  5. Ladle some hot soup broth over the noodles.
  6. Place some bok choy and soft-boiled eggs into each soup bowl.
  7. Place a generous spoonful of spicy meat topping on top of the noodles.
  8. Garnish with spring onions (scallions).
  9. Add more chilli oil to taste.
  10. Just before eating, use your chopsticks to gently dissolve the soup paste into the broth.

Kitchen Notes

  • MAKE IT VEGETARIAN
    Substitute the meat for crumbled firm tofu or sliced mushrooms (I like king oyster mushrooms or shitake mushrooms), and use a vegetable stock.
  • MAKE IT KID-FRIENDLY
    When I make this dish, I cook half of the meat without the doubanjiang for the kids, or I only use a teaspoon of doubanjiang for just a bit of spicy kick.
  • MAKE IT AHEAD OF TIME
    This dish lends itself well to meal-prepping. Store each of the components separately in the fridge for up to 3-4 days.
  • OVEN & STOVE TEMPERATURES
    All recipes on this website have been tested on an induction stove and/or with a conventional oven (i.e. an oven without fan). All recipes on this website use temperatures for a conventional oven, unless otherwise mentioned. Convection ovens (i.e. fan-forced ovens) are typically 20°C/70°F hotter than conventional ovens, but please check your manufacturer’s handbook.
  • CONVERSIONS
    To convert from cups to grams, and vice-versa, please see this handy Conversion Chart for Basic Ingredients.
Nutrition Information

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