Vegan Tantanmen Ramen

February 5, 2021 / 1 Comment

The first time we tried Tantanmen ramen was at Hindodeya in San Francisco. Ever since we have been addicted to the wholesome warm broth. Tantanmen is dish where ramen is swimming in a balanced broth with nuttiness of sesame, spiciness of japanese chilli oil and sweetness of soy milk. Japanese cuisine is all about balance, so it took me a while to build up the flavors and get the needed depth in the broth. Traditionally the broth has soy milk, but because my daughter is not able to digest soy milk very well, I had to come up with a recipe without it. The recipe looks difficult, but it is a sequence of easy steps. Again, it is all about balance of flavors so taste as you go and adjust as needed. Hope you try it and enjoy it as much as we do!

Vegan Tantanmen Ramen
Print

Vegan Tantanmen Ramen

Recipe by NidhiCuisine: JapaneseDifficulty: Easy
Servings

6

servings
Prep time

45

minutes
Cooking time

40

minutes

Vegan, gluten free ramen with a creamy sesame broth. Topped with veggies of your choice, tofu and some fried onions. It is warm bowl of deliciousness on a cold day.

Ingredients

  • Vegan stock

  • 6-7 cups water

  • 2 inch piece of galangal cut into slices (ginger works as well)

  • 2 star anise

  • 5 cloves

  • 1 small piece of whole cinnamon

  • 1 tbsp whole black pepper

  • 1 lemon peeled (use the peel only)

  • Soup base

  • 4-5 tbsp tahini (Sesame seeds ground to a paste)

  • 1-2 tbsp any asian chili garlic paste or chili oil

  • 3-4 tbsp reduced sodium soy sauce

  • 2 tbsp rice wine vinegar

  • Toppings

  • 4-5 bok choy leaves separate

  • 2 carrots grated

  • 5 green onion stalks

  • 1 pack tofu

  • Handful pistachios or peanuts (optional)

  • 1 tbsp miso paste

  • 1 tbsp reduced sodium soy sauce

  • 1 tbsp rice wine vinegar

  • 1 tbsp oil

  • 1 tsp chili paste

  • 1 tbsp sesame seeds

  • 6 servings of ramen cooked according to package instructions.

Directions

  • Making the stock
  • Add all of the ingredients listed under stock (water, galangal, star anise, clove, cinnamon, black pepper, and lemon peel) to a large pot or instant pot
  • For instant pot, set the device to high pressure for 10 mins. Once done let the pressure release naturally
  • For stove top, bring the mixture of water and spices to boil, cover, and simmer on low for 15-20 minutes.
  • Toppings
  • Bok Choy: Split the leaves apart — peeling the leaves and then separating them. Wash the leaves and quickly steam or blanch them in hot water.
  • White part of green onions: Cut the white part green onion into long julienned matchstick shaped pieces. Add a tsp of oil and bake them in the oven at 325 for 2-5 mins until crispy. You can also fry them in a pan.
  • Green part of green onions: Cut the green parts into thin rounds and set them aside.
  • Celery: Chop into thin slices and set aside
  • Carrots: Shred or grate and set aside
  • Tofu meat
  • In a hot pan, add oil and then crumble the tofu in.
  • Cook the tofu for 5 mins or until it is somewhat dry
  • Add in soy sauce, vinegar and chili paste (siracha would work too).
  • Continue to cook the tofu until the moisture is gone and the mixture is dry and resembles a crumble. Takes about 10 mins.
  • Add the pistachios in the last minute to roast them with the tofu. Add miso at the end when you turn the heat off.
  • Soup base
  • Mix everything listed in the soup base (tahini, chili, soy sauce, and vinegar).
  • Take the stock from earlier, strain it, and put it back on the heat.
  • Slowly add the soup base mix to the stock, stirring with a whisk on a low heat to and making sure everything is thoroughly combined.
  • Taste and adjust seasoning as needed. You can add salt if needed.
  • Gently heat the broth utill everything comes to boil.
  • In the meantime, cook the ramen/noodles as per instructions on the package and set aside in the serving bowls when done.
  • Assemble the bowl
  • Add broth on top of the ramen, into the bowl.
  • Top with the veggie garnishes, tofu scramble, and sprinkle with sesame seeds.

Notes

  • Usually tantanmen has soy milk added to you. To make it the traditional way replace 6.5 cups of Water with 4.5 cups of water and 2 cups of soy milk.
  • You can add any toppings of your choice – steamed cabbage, corn or any vegetables you like
  • I have used Lotus foods ramen in my recipe to make it gluten free. Any ramen noodles work. Halo ramen or fresh ramen from the asian grocery store work great too.

One Comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *