Cooking this Vegan Ramen recipe is pure joy. I can honestly say this is why I still love cooking, after spending my entire adult life in the kitchen, nothing makes me happier than creating a broth that has layer after layer of flavor. Cooking is a never-ending exploration, take these two vegan ramen broths, the miso broth I sauté the onions very slowly over low heat, drawing out the sugar and aroma. In contrast, in the Tofu Brûlée broth, we cook the red onions over very high heat caramelizing the sugars and adding umami and color to the broth.

This is the perfect time for you to find the same joy that I see in cooking this vegan ramen recipe. You can always add our Crispy Tofu to this Ramen.

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WHAT YOU NEED…

Tofu, medium-firm: Used in both broths. The miso broth uses tofu as protein adding richness and body to the broth. For the braised tofu broth, we slow cook the tofu with earthy beets and shiitake mushroom.
Mirin: A rice wine made with two types of rice. A mixture of steamed glutinous rice and koi, cultured rice. The two are fermented together for months or as long as two years.
Red miso paste: Brings all of the umami and depth to the tofu broth. Red miso is fermented longer than yellow miso, creating a darker color and bolder flavor.
Ramen Noodles: Ramen noodles are made with flour, salt, and water. The noodles are treated with an alkaline agent that creates a yellow hue, as well as a chewy texture.
Sweet soy sauce: A mixture of soy sauce and palm sugar. The consistency is thick and mildly salty with an equal level of sweetness.
Clamshell mushrooms: These mushrooms have a mild flavor with surprising hints of shellfish. Mushrooms are the most amazing thing ever.

How To Make Vegan Miso Broth

MISO BROTH ONION, GINGER, GARLIC — Start by sautéing the onions, then add ginger and garlic.

MISO BROTH ONION, GINGER, GARLIC, KOMBU,MUSHROOMS, SCALLIONS,TOFU — Add the rest of the ingredients.

MISO BROTH ONION, GINGER, GARLIC, TOFU, KOMBU, MUSHROOMS, PLANT MILK — Combine the plant milk and simmer for 45 minutes.

MISO BROTH COOKED 2 — The final broth is rich and creamy.

How To Make Vegan Braised Tofu Broth

TOFU BROTH COOKING RED ONIONS — Sauté red onions on high.

TOFU BROTH CRISPY RED ONIONS, RED MISO, BROWN SUGAR — Then add brown sugar and red miso.

TOFU BROTH CRISPY RED ONIONS, RED MISO, BROWN SUGAR, BEETS,SHIITAKE TOFU_ — Add the rest of the ingredients.

TOFU BROTH CRISPY RED ONIONS, RED MISO, BROWN SUGAR, BEETS,SHIITAKE TOFU cooked in pot_ — Simmer for 40 minutes.

How To Sauté Clamshell Mushrooms

clamshell cooking in saute pan — Cooking the clamshell mushrooms is a simple 2-3 minute sauté.

clamshell mushrooms cooked in saute pan — Sauté with olive oil and salt.

TOFU TO MAKE TOFU BRULEE_ — Cover tofu slices with brown sugar and salt.

BRULEE TOFU TO MAKE TOFU BRULEE_ — Carefully torch until you have a crispy layer.

COOKED RAMEN NOODLES — Ramen noodles are cooked right before plating.

VEGETABLE RAMEN INGREDIENTS — Ramen components

Chefs Tips

This might be the most important tip! Have all of your garnishes, and broth hot and waiting to plate the ramen. You want to fill the bowl with hot broth just before the noodles finish cooking. The goal is to remove the noodles from the boiling water directly into the broth, then right into placing all of the garnishes on top.
I can’t stress this point enough, take your time when making the two broths, keep tasting, and adjust the levels of salt, acid, and sweetness. Give the broths the time they need to develop and grow into a build-bodied broth.
Have fun with the side vegetables that go into the Ramen. This is your opportunity to cook with some of your favorite vegetables. Try adding more spice to one vegetable. For example, spicy sauté mushrooms that will combine with the sweetness of the bok choy.

Substitutions and Swaps

Sweet soy sauce is a quick fix if you can’t find it at your local grocery store. It is as simple as mixing equal parts soy sauce and maple syrup.

Red Miso should be available at your local Whole Foods or local coop. You can use yellow miso as a one-to-one swap, I also like to add a teaspoon of tomato paste. The tomato paste will bring a hint of color and umami. You will also want to add a pinch of salt to amplify the flavors.

Black vinegar is such a great vinegar it is my secret weapon ingredient. I have found that balsamic vinegar works well with a dash of maple syrup and a pinch of salt.

Baby bok choy is tender and sweet, plus they look so cool in the vegan ramen. You can use full-size bok choy, cook it, then trim the bok choy down to bite-size bites.

Ramen noodles are very important. However, you can easily use udon noodles. If you want wheat-free noodles then Buckwheat noodles work perfectly.

Vegan Ramen

Course: Dinner

Cuisine: Asian

Keyword: Ramen, Vegan

Prep Time: 30

Cook Time: 45

Servings: people

Calories: 768kcal

Cooking this vegan ramen recipe is pure joy. I can honestly say this is why I still love cooking, after spending my entire adult life in the kitchen, nothing makes me happier than creating a broth that has layer after layer of flavor. Cooking is a never-ending exploration, take these two vegan ramen broths, the miso broth I sauté the onions very slowly over low heat, drawing out the sugar and aroma. In contrast, in the Tofu Brûlée broth, we cook the red onions over very high heat caramelizing the sugars and adding umami and color to the broth.

This is the perfect time for you to find the same joy that I see in cooking this vegan ramen recipe.

Print Recipe

Ingredients

Miso Broth

2 Tbsp coconut oil
1 yellow onion large, thinly sliced
½ tsp salt kosher

¼ cup ginger sliced
½ cup garlic cloves smashed
1 tsp salt kosher

2 Tbsp yellow miso
1 tsp poultry seasoning
2 Tbsp mirin

6 oz tofu medium-firm
1 dried mushroom
1 kombu sheet
3 scallions
2 cups plant milk
1 cup vegetable broth

Braised Tofu Broth

2 Tbsp coconut oil
½ cup red onion small dice
2 Tbsp miso red
¼ cup brown sugar dark
2 Tbsp red wine vinegar
2 Tbsp black vinegar
1 cup soy sauce light sodium
5-8 shiitake mushrooms
2 cups water or vegetable broth
⅓ cup ginger fresh sliced
1 beet sliced into rounds 1/4” inch
2 Tbsp sweet soy sauce
15 oz tofu medium

Brûlée Tofu Glaze

1 Tbsp brown sugar dark
¼ tsp salt kosher

Sautéed Clamshell Mushrooms

2 cups clamshell mushrooms
1 tsp olive oil extra virgin
¼ tsp salt kosher

Baby Boy Choy

3 cups baby bok choy
2 Tbsp salt kosher

Fresh Ramen noodles

10 oz ramen noodles fresh

Instructions

How to make Miso Broth

Temperature and time are key in this first step. Heat the coconut oil over low heat, add the sliced onions, and season with kosher salt. Cook the onions slowly for 5 minutes. Make sure to stir the onions, the goal is to keep the onions pale in color.
Add the sliced ginger and smashed garlic. Continue to cook for another 3 minutes.
Add the miso, cooking for 3 minutes, keeping the temperature low.
Add the poultry seasoning and Mirin. Sauté for 3 minutes.
Add the tofu, dried mushrooms, combo sheet, and scallions.
Add the plant milk and the vegetable broth. Bring them to a boil, then reduce the heat to a very low simmer cooking for 45 minutes.
Remove the kombu, scallions, and dried mushrooms, and carefully remove the tofu placing it on a separate plate.
Strain the broth removing the onions, ginger, and garlic.
Place the broth and the tofu in a blender and puree until velvety smooth. Adjust the salt levels if needed, and keep warm until it's time to build the vegan ramen.

How to make the Braised Tofu Broth

Heat the coconut oil over high heat, and add the red onion, cooking for 5 minutes. Stir occasionally, the onions should be starting to turn brown along the edges.
Reduce the heat to medium, and add the brown sugar cooking for 2 minutes.
Red miso is added next, stir to combine cooking for 2 minutes, lightly toasting the red miso.
Add the soy sauce, black vinegar, red wine vinegar, sweet sauce, and vegetable broth.
Remove the stems of the shiitake mushrooms. Add the shiitake mushroom and sliced ginger to the broth.
Peel the beet, slice into 1/4” rounds, and place in the broth.
Cut the tofu in half, and place the tofu in the broth.
Bring the broth to a boil, then reduce the heat to a low simmer cooking for 35-40 minutes.
Remove the shiitake mushrooms, beets, and tofu, and set them aside. I chose to strain the onions from the broth but you can just as easily leave the onions in the broth.

How to Brûlée Tofu

Combine the brown sugar with the salt.
Slice the tofu, it does help to lightly dab the tofu with a paper towel before you start to Brûlée the tofu.
Sprinkle the brown sugar mixture over the tofu, using a handheld propane torch start to cook the sugar until caramelized forming a crisp exterior.
The key to the tofu brûlée is making this the very last step before building the ramen. The tofu is of course full of moisture that will start to melt the brûlée, so timing is critical.

How to sauté Clamshell Mushrooms

Trim the base of the mushroom cluster, removing any dirt, and freeing the mushrooms from the cluster to form perfect individual clamshell mushrooms.
Heat a pan over high heat, add the extra virgin olive oil to the pan, and add the mushrooms.
Cook the mushrooms for 2-minutes, and season with kosher salt. This is meant to be a very fast cook, I want the mushrooms to maintain texture and moisture.
Remove mushrooms from the pan, and set aside until time to build the ramen.

How to blanch baby Bok Choy

Bring a medium-sized pot of water to a rapid boil, and add the kosher salt.
Place the baby Bok Choy in the boiling water cooking for 2 minutes, the Bok Choy should just be cooked, and be bright green. Drain the Bok Choy and allow it to cool to the touch.
Cut the Bok Choy in half lengthwise.
Set aside until time to build the Ramen.

Cooking ramen noodles

Follow the instructions on the ramen package.
Shake excess water out of the ramen before adding it to the broth.

Building the Vegan ramen

Pour the braised tofu broth intake bowl first about 6 ounces.

The miso broth is added next, 16-24 ounces.
The ramen noodles are added to the broth.
Gently place the baby Bok Choy on top of the noodles, the beets are next, then shiitake mushrooms and clamshell mushrooms, the brûlée tofu is last to be placed in the broth.

Notes

Nutritional values are an estimate.

Nutrition