Peckerwood Café: 2 Asian Fancy Noodles and some links on the Menu. Recipes, Tips and Ideas

One of my closest OG friends is a Vietnamese American ride or die friend who visits me at least once a year. We grew up in each other's houses, where food was a central part of life and our cultures. Her mother thought it was funny when we went to Asian markets to tell people I was her daughter. "Third daughter," she would say in her thick accented mix of Vietnamese and English. The funny looks never got old to her. 

E's mother was like my mom: maternal, warm, and loved mothering and being a wife, but was a force to be reckoned with at her job (as a respected scientist and chemist), whose primary focus was family and making them fresh food every night. I spent so much time eating with them at their house that Vietnamese food comforts me to this day. Her mother had 8 sisters, and they would descend on the house for holidays, and the kitchen would be hopping with Vietnamese; minor disagreements about recipes, but E's mom is the oldest, so her word was final. She was Aunt #1 to E's cousins. Back then, she had a city garden where she grew herbs; she would go outside, tear off some leaves, and bring them in to make delicious dishes she poured her love into. 

E's parents served dinner family-style every night. There was also broth on the stove for phở, rice in the cooker, these meats to make bánh mì, and fixings to make a heaping bowl of phở for after-school meals. Her mother taught me how to make it, perfectly char the whole onion, spice the broth, slice the meats, and dip the meat in hoisin sauce.   

I had the idea of a post about delicious Asian noodles. My brother's wife is Asian, but she's such a terrible cook that I didn't even tell her I was writing an article about Asian food in case she wanted to chime in. She is lovely, but never needs to step foot in another kitchen for the rest of her life. 

First up is Phở. 

Buy the ingredients in Asian markets, including fresh herbs, bean sprouts, rice vermicelli, and star anise. If you have a butcher shop you like or a market with various cuts of beef, get your fresh meat there. You can get the meatballs at the Asian market. Ensure the market has Vietnamese and Korean ingredients, not just Chinese and Japanese. 

Because making the dish is easier to see than write, I added a YouTube video that is very close to E's mother's only; she liked Vietnamese meatballs, raw bean sprouts(for a different texture), not blanched, and sliced a little green chili in each bowl if wanted. She would dip the meat in a little hoisin sauce as we ate. To me, basil is necessary. I made this twice with the above differences, and it is close. It is very tasty and better made in two days. You won't regret taking the time. The daikon is yum, but it must be regional because I have never had it that way at Vietnamese restaurants or at E's house. This chef is not Vietnamese, and some things she says are biased toward her own cultural taste buds, but she's thorough, and the oxtails are a chef's kiss.

Ramen

I love to make all kinds of Ramen. I could eat it every day, happily, and mix it up a thousand ways. Below is one labor-intensive version, but I am adding links to ones I like or are similar to mine. Ramen is an excellent way to use some leftover pork roast, roasted chicken, and fresh vegetables that might go off...but for more formal recipes:

Tonkotsu Ramen

Ingredients:

Stock

2 pounds chicken bones or 1 whole chicken carcass

2 pounds pork neck bones or pork ribs

1 (1- to 2-pound) pork trotter, halved lengthwise 

1 bunch scallions, trimmed and cut in half crosswise

1 (6-inch) piece fresh ginger, unpeeled and cut into 1/4-inch slices (about 3/4 cup)

4 to 6 quarts cold water

1 (8-by-4-inch) kombu sheet

Chashu Pork

3 tablespoons canola oil

1 (1 1/2 pounds) boneless pork shoulder (Boston butt)

4 garlic cloves, peeled and smashed

1 bunch scallions, trimmed and cut in half crosswise

(2-inch) piece fresh ginger, unpeeled and sliced 1/4-inch thick (about 1/4 cup)

1 de árbol chile

1/2 cup mirin

1/2 cup sake

6 tablespoons shoyu

2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar

2 tablespoons light brown sugar

Pickled Mushrooms

2 ounces dried shiitake mushrooms, sliced (about 1 1/4 cups)

1/2 cup rice wine vinegar

1/4 cup shoyu

1/4 cup water

1 (1-inch) piece fresh ginger, peeled and grated on a Microplane grater (about 1 teaspoon)

Ramen

4 to 6 (about 3-ounce) bundles dried ramen noodles

1 cup shoyu

1/4 cup mirin

1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar

1 1/2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil

Kosher salt, to taste

3 tablespoons canola oil, divided, plus more as needed

4 baby bok choy (about 1 1/2 ounces each), halved lengthwise

1/4 cup water

4 to 6 soft-cooked eggs

4 to 6 small (about 4- x 3-inch) nori sheets

Chile oil (optional)

Directions

Prepare the Stock

Place chicken bones, pork bones, trotter, scallions, and ginger in a large stockpot; cover with cold water, noting the water level in the stockpot. Bring to a rapid boil over high, skimming off and discarding any foam and scum that rises to the surface. Boil for at least 6 but can be up to 16 hours, replenishing water to the original level every hour or so. Allow the Stock to reduce without replenishment during the final 1 hour of cooking, letting the stock reduce to roughly 2 quarts (this may take up to 2 hours). Remove the stock from heat; stir in kombu and let it cool at room temperature for about 1 hour. Pour stock through a coarse mesh strainer into a large bowl; then pour stock through a fine mesh strainer into a separate large bowl, discarding solids. Cover and refrigerate until stock is fully gelatinized, about 12 hours.

Meanwhile, prepare the Chashu Pork

Heat a Dutch oven with a tight-fitting lid over medium-high; add oil. Add pork and sear until golden brown on at least 2 sides, about 3 minutes per side. Transfer pork to a plate and set aside. Reduce heat to medium; add garlic, scallions, ginger, and chile; cook, stirring often, until aromatic, about 1 minute. Carefully add mirin, sake, shoyu, rice wine vinegar, and brown sugar, stirring until sugar dissolves, about 30 seconds. Return pork to Dutch oven, nestling it among ingredients. Bring mixture to a simmer over medium; reduce heat to medium-low. Cover Dutch oven tightly with lid; simmer pork, flipping and basting every 30 minutes, until pork is tender enough to easily yield to a poke from a chopstick and a thermometer inserted into thickest portion registers 180°F, 1 to 1 1/2 hours. If a lot of cooking liquid evaporates during cooking process, add just enough water to keep bottom of Dutch oven covered. Let chashu cool in its cooking liquid at room temperature, about 1 hour; cover (still in its liquid) and refrigerate 12 hours.

While chashu chills, prepare the pickled mushrooms: Bring water in a medium saucepan to a boil over high. Remove from heat and stir in mushrooms; cover and let soak until mushrooms are softened and doubled in size, 15 minutes. Drain mushrooms and thinly slice. Place mushrooms in a heatproof container. Bring rice wine vinegar, shoyu, water, and grated ginger to a boil in a small pot over high. Pour vinegar mixture over mushrooms and let cool to room temperature, about 1 hour. Cover and refrigerate 12 hours.

Prepare the Ramen

Remove pickled mushrooms from refrigerator and let come to room temperature, about 30 minutes. Meanwhile, prepare noodles according to package directions.

While noodles cook, skim congealed fat from top of stock using a spoon; reserve fat for another use. Place stock in a medium pot and bring to a simmer over medium. Add shoyu, mirin, rice wine vinegar, and sesame oil, stirring to combine; season with salt to taste. Reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer until ready to serve.

Remove chashu from the cooking liquid, reserving the liquid for another use. Cut pork into 1/4-inch slices. Working in 3 batches, heat a large skillet over medium-high; add 1 tablespoon of the oil. Place pork slices in a single layer in the skillet and cook until browned, about 1 minute per side; set aside.

Add the bok choy, cut side down, to the skillet and cook, undisturbed, until browned, about 1 minute. Add water; cover the skillet, steaming the bok choy until vibrant green and slightly softened, about 2 minutes.

Ladle about 2 cups of hot stock into each of 4 warm bowls. Drain noodles and divide evenly among each bowl, arranging noodles neatly. Gently arrange 2 bok choy halves in each bowl; fan 3 to 4 chashu slices on top of noodles. Top each bowl with about 1/4 cup pickled mushrooms and 1 egg; place 1 nori sheet behind toppings. Serve immediately with chile oil on the side, if desired.

About this recipe

Cookbook author Hugh Amano notes that, as developed in ramen-yas, ramen is the perfect restaurant dish: prep-heavy and straightforward to finish in a hurry.

I included this prep-heavy version for weekends when you want something nourishing and you want to cook something WOW. I adapted it for my tastes, and you should too. 

MORE RECIPES FROM LINKS: 

https://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/chicken_lo_mein/

A plethora- https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/noodle