Ramen (ラーメン) is a bowl of wheat noodles served in a hot, savoury broth, topped with slices of pork, a soft egg, spring onion, seaweed, and whatever else the shop is known for. Fast, cheap, and endlessly variable, it has become one of Japan's great everyday foods and, over the last few decades, a global obsession.
A short history
Despite how Japanese it now feels, ramen arrived from China around the turn of the 20th century: the name comes from Chinese lāmiàn, "pulled noodles." It spread through the cheap eateries of port cities and, crucially, after the Second World War, when American wheat flooded a hungry country and street carts (yatai) sold hot noodle soup to workers. In 1958 Momofuku Ando invented instant ramen, and the dish went from local staple to worldwide pantry item; there is even a ramen museum in Yokohama devoted to its history.
The four broths, and the regions
Ramen is defined first by its tare (seasoning base) and broth:
- Shōyu (醤油): clear brown soy-sauce broth, the Tokyo classic.
- Shio (塩): light, delicate salt broth.
- Miso (味噌): rich and hearty, born in Hokkaidō and perfect for the cold.
- Tonkotsu (豚骨): pork bones simmered for hours into a cloudy, collagen-thick broth, the pride of Fukuoka in the south.
Regions guard their styles fiercely: Sapporo's buttery miso, Hakata's thin-noodled tonkotsu, Kitakata's flat noodles. Ordering is often done at a vending machine by the door: buy a ticket, hand it over, sit at the counter. In tonkotsu shops you may be asked how firm you want the noodles, and kaedama (替え玉) buys you a second helping of noodles for the broth you have left.
Words & idioms to take away
Idioms & proverbs to carry away
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拉麺 / ラーメン: usually written in katakana, marking it as a word of foreign origin, though the kanji 拉麺 ("pulled noodles") reveal its Chinese roots.
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替え玉 (kaedama): an extra portion of noodles added to your remaining broth, a word you will only ever use in a ramen shop.