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Mushroom Dashi Ramen With Vegetables & Fried Tofu

We all know Asian food tends to be on the healthier side, but we're a big fan of keeping things vegan here at SL. This mushroom raman dish is just the ticket, while tofu and vegetables add extra flavour and texture.
Serves
Serves 4
Total Time
20 Minutes
Ingredients
1 pack (300g–350g) of firm silken tofu, cut into 8 rectangles
2 tbsp of sake
100g of cornflour
1 tbsp of black sesame seeds
100 ml plus 2 tbsp of vegetable oil
Pinch of salt
1 sheet of nori, or 1 tablespoon aonori flakes
1.2 litres of Mushroom Dashi
90 ml of soy sauce
4 tbsp of mirin
1⁄2 a daikon/mooli, peeled and cut into rounds about 2.5 cm thick
80–100g enoki or shimeji mushrooms, roots removed and broken into small clusters
1⁄4 of a Chinese cabbage, cut into 2.5 cm strips
4 portions of uncooked ramen noodles
4 shiitake mushrooms, destemmed and thinly sliced
2 spring onions, finely sliced
2 spring onions, finely sliced
A few strips of lemon or yuzu zest
Method
Step 1

Put the tofu into a small bowl and pour the sake over. Mix together the cornflour and sesame seeds, then carefully cover the tofu in the cornflour mixture, ensuring it is evenly coated.

Step 2

Heat 2 tbsp of oil in a non-stick frying pan over a medium-high heat and cook for a few minutes on each side, until the tofu is golden brown and crisp. Drain on paper towels and set aside.

Step 3

Purée the 100 ml of oil, nori and salt together in a food processor until the seaweed is completely pulverised. Leave the oil to settle while you prepare the rest of the dish.

Step 4

Bring the dashi, soy sauce and mirin to the boil in a saucepan, then add the daikon rounds. Reduce the heat to a high simmer, place a lid on the pan and cook until the daikon are tender, about 10 minutes. Remove the daikon with a slotted spoon and reserve. If you’re using shimeji mushrooms, boil them in the dashi for a couple of minutes, then remove and reserve (the enoki don’t need cooking). Keep the dashi at a low simmer with a lid on the pan.

Step 5

Bring a large pan of water to the boil and blanch the cabbage for 1 minute, then remove with a slotted spoon and reserve.

Step 6

Let the water come back to the boil and cook the ramen until al dente, according to the packet instructions. Drain very well.

Step 7

Divide the ramen among four deep bowls, pour over the mushroom dashi and toss the noodles with chopsticks to ensure they aren’t stuck together. Top with the cabbage, daikon, mushrooms, tofu, spring onions, chilli shreds and lemon or yuzu zest. Finally, add a generous spoonful or two of the nori oil to the surface of the broth. Enjoy immediately.

Extracted from Vegan JapanEasy by Tim Anderson, (Hardie Grant Books, £22). Photography Nassima Rothacker.
 

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