ramyun, ansungtangmyun style

ramyun does not equal ramen. the first name derives from the latter but while the japanese usually associate a delicate noodle soup with it, koreans exclusively mean highly addictive junk food.

(if it wasn't addictive why would there be ramen blogs since 1997? an era when i didn't really know about the world wide web, let alone weblogs...)

the ramyun addiction could be the reason why koreans don't nourish healthier than other people. the traditional cuisine, that is, low-fat, dairy-free and vegetable dominated.

there is no possible situation where you would turn down a bowl of ramyun or cup ramyun.

breakfast, lunch, dinner, as main dish, as dessert, after holidays when you are almost fed up with festive foods, after a carousal...
always having in mind how harmful the stuff is (contains saturated fat plus flavor enhancers) we still enjoy it.

thus since longer time i tried to make ramyun myself according to the ingredients' list on the package.

with ansung tang myun, which is a fishy type, it worked out really well. it takes 10 min to make while the processed one (see comparison pic) would take 5 min. i can live with that :)

directions:

1) per each serving bring 1/2 liter water to a boil.

2) meanwhile add 1/3 tsp minced garlic, 1/3 tsp minced ginger (i rarely can be bothered to peel and mince them, so i keep both stored this way) 1/2 tsp black pepper, 1/2 tsp sugar, 1 tsp red pepper flakes (gochugaru), 1 tsp wakame, 2 tbsp soy sauce and optionally, 1 tsp vegetable oil.

3) with a scissor cut some spring onion into the pot. with a vegetable peeler add some carrot juliennes.

4) as soon as the broth cooks add asian wheat noodles. (haven't found tasty ramen noodles yet, so i take udon. my favorite brands are japanese and they are steadily disappearing from the markets here. which is very depressing and makes me feel sorry for the japanese and become even more depressed about the environmental problems but that is another chapter.)

5) after the noodles are getting softer (will take around 5 minutes) lower the heat and add 1 tbsp miso. stir well and cook for another 2 minutes.

6) pour everything into a bowl and garnish with fresh onion rings and sesame seeds (attention: this step is not authentic ;)).

note 1: eat it with kimchi (if not selfmade, i can totally recommend this brand which gets luckily more and more easy to find in the groceries).

note 2: koreans use steel chopsticks (wooden and plastic ones only when they are on the go...). and to clarify this as well, we never use these porcelain "asian spoons".

note 3: if the serving was not filling enough, one would dump cooked rice into the broth and eat the rest as cooked rice usually is on hand in a korean household. apart from that there is no reason to eat remaining ramyun broth.

note 4: korean snack bars usually offer ramyun as well as kimbap. if you have both one would (after having eaten the noodles) dump the kimbap into the remaining broth (it's great fun and not as freaky as it sounds but you don't have to...).