A Guide to Ramen: Most Common Types and Recipes

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Ramen is more than just a bowl of noodles or a cheap meal for broke college students. It’s a culinary staple with a rich history, originating in Japan and evolving into a globally beloved comfort food. Its rich broth, perfectly cooked noodles, and endless topping options make it a dish that has something for everyone. Whether you prefer the light and savory taste of shoyu or the creamy richness of tonkotsu, each bowl offers a unique experience.

In this guide, we’ll explore the key components of ramen, introduce you to the most common types, and share tips and recipes to help you make delicious ramen at home. No matter your skill level, ramen can be a fun and rewarding dish to create.

What Is Ramen?

Ramen is a dish of noodles, broth, and an assortment of toppings. While there are four traditional types of ramen, the elements and flavors can be mixed and matched in endless ways. Ramen can be as simple and inexpensive as you need or as elevated and gourmet as you desire. It’s a versatile dish that appeals to a wide range of tastes and budgets.

Apart from being a popular dish, ramen is also a great example of Japanese culture. While the meal was an essential and inexpensive dish in Japan during food shortages after World War II, it has also evolved to become a dish that highlights the visual appeal of food in addition to taste. Japanese culture teaches that people eat with their eyes first (me de taberu), thus meals are to be enjoyed visually before tasting.

The dish’s influence extends beyond the kitchen, making its mark in media and global competitions alike. For example, the documentary Ramen Heads, which aired in 2017, covered 15 months in the lives of ramen masters. And there are competitions around the world to find the best ramen.

For Chef Instructor Erin Kanagy-Loux, ramen represents a core memory. When Chef Erin was about three years old and living in Tokyo, her father heard the ramen cart guy calling from down the street and scooped young Erin up to go meet the cart.

“It was mesmerizing to watch the bowl come together from a simple cart setup,” chef Erin said, adding how her father held her up at the standing-only cart. “Eating a steamy hot ramen, from a push cart, right outside our doorstep with my dad was such an amazing memory and I’ve been a noodle soup fan ever since!”

The Origins of Ramen

Although ramen is known for being a Japanese dish, it actually originated in China. In 1859, Chinese immigrants living in Japan established Chinatowns, and one, located in the port town of Yokohama, helped spread the popularity of the dish.

Ramen soon became a Japanese staple and the first ramen restaurant, Rairaiken, opened in Tokyo’s Asakusa neighborhood in 1910. During busy times, the restaurant was known to serve 3,000 bowls a day. It shut down in the 1970s when there was no one to carry on the family business, but has since reopened in the Shin Yokohama Ramen Museum.

Despite the popularity of the dish, ramen largely remained local to the coastal towns where it had first arrived. However, in 1923, the Great Kanto Earthquake dispersed people from the coastal areas, and as a result, ramen spread throughout Japan. This spread helped create new “local” varieties of the dish.

Vendors continued experimenting with ingredients and creating new variations of ramen in the 1930s and 1940s, and it became a staple after World War II, when the Japanese used the surplus of wheat flour from the United States and bone scraps to continue making ramen as an affordable and filling meal for families.

From Humble Beginnings to Global Fame

In the 1950s, Momofuku Ando, founder of Nissin Foods, created instant ramen—which became an instant hit. The invention, named “Chicken Ramen,” spread the popularity of the dish worldwide. The company later developed Cup Noodles, which made this form of instant ramen even more convenient.

Ramen was taken to new heights in the culinary world when ramen specialty shops began to pop up in Japan during the 1970s. Eventually, similar shops spread in large US cities like Los Angeles and New York. As more people were exposed to ramen dishes, the popularity continued to expand throughout the world. Innovative chefs and ramen masters continued to elevate the dish in new ways. There were even a few Michelin star ramen restaurants in Tokyo at one point.

So, what is it about ramen that makes people everywhere love it? It all comes down to the amazing mix of ingredients that make each bowl unique and delicious.

Breaking Down the Components of Ramen

Ramen doesn’t require many ingredients, but there is a careful balance that must occur within the dish.

“In order for a bowl of ramen to be good, it has to have the right texture of noodles. It has to have a broth or soup that’s flavorful and layered,” says Amy Kimoto-Kahn, Escoffier student and author of the cookbook Simply Ramen. “It has to have all the different toppings that make sense for it, and are each individually made, with care.”

Let’s take a closer look at the five main components that make this dish so special.

1. Soup

In ramen, soup is the stock or broth portion of the dish. Soup is what helps tie everything together and provides a rich and flavorful base for the rest of the ingredients. The most common broths are made from chicken, pork, or seafood, but they can vary widely depending on the style of ramen and the region it’s from.

Each broth is carefully crafted to complement the other components of the dish. Some chefs even incorporate unique ingredients like kombu (seaweed), dried fish, or mushrooms to add depth and complexity to the soup. The choice of broth can help set the tone for the entire bowl of ramen, making it a crucial element in creating a memorable dish.

2. Tare (sauce)

Tare is the seasoning base of the ramen. It helps to enhance the flavor and adds richness to the broth. However, it’s made separately and then added to the stock or broth.

The main types of sauce include:

• Shio (Salt-based): The simplest and oldest type of tare, shio provides a clean, light, and slightly briny flavor. It works particularly well with delicate broths like chicken or seafood.
• Shoyu (Soy sauce-based): This tare is made with soy sauce, offering a savory and slightly tangy profile. It adds depth and pairs beautifully with a wide range of broths, from light chicken to rich pork.
• Miso (Fermented soybean-based): This hearty tare is made with miso paste, lending a robust, nutty, and slightly sweet flavor. It’s commonly used in thicker broths, such as those found in Hokkaido-style ramen.

Tare is what transforms a good broth into a truly exceptional bowl of ramen. Chefs often have their own secret recipes, blending additional ingredients like sake, mirin, or garlic to create unique and memorable flavors.

3. Noodles

The noodles create the foundation of ramen’s texture and structure. They can vary in length, shape, and thickness. Traditional ramen noodles are made from wheat flour, salt, and kansui, which is an alkaline water that helps give the noodles the springy texture they are known for.

Noodles are carefully matched to the broth to create balance in every bite. For example, curly noodles are great for capturing thick or chunky broths, while straight noodles glide smoothly through lighter, more delicate broths. These careful pairings help ensure that every bite delivers the right combination of flavor and texture.

You might notice numbers on ramen noodle packaging at the store. These numbers often indicate the cut size, referring to the thickness or shape of the noodle, such as thin, straight noodles for lighter broths like shio or curly, thicker noodles for richer broths like tonkotsu.

4. Oils and Fats

Oils and fats play a crucial role in enhancing the flavor and richness of the ramen. Historically, the fat from the bone broth was the main source of richness in the dish. However, as ramen has continued to evolve over the years, chefs began including additional oils and fats at various stages of cooking to help elevate the flavors of the dish.

The addition of these ingredients also helps to add texture and aroma, helping to create a more balanced and satisfying bowl of ramen. Prepared animal fats, such as chicken or pork fat, and infused oils like garlic oil (mayu), chili oil, or sesame oil are often used. The addition of oils and fats helps add complexity to every bite, ensuring that each spoonful is flavorful.

5. Toppings

Toppings are used in ramen dishes to add flavor, texture, and visual appeal. Typically prepared separately and added right before serving, toppings allow for endless customization while preserving the integrity of the broth and noodles.

Traditional toppings can include:

• Chashu or thin slices or pork
• Tamago or eggs (soft or hard boiled)
• Menma or bamboo shoots
• Seaweed
• Negi or green onions which may be coated in chili oil for extra flavor
• Kamaboko or steamed fish cakes
• Butter
• Ginger
• Bean sprouts
• Mushrooms

Non-Traditional topping options can include ingredients like:

• Sliced avocado
• American cheese slices
• Bacon
• Bell peppers
• Peanut butter
• Canned tuna

Like other areas of the culinary world, ramen has been transforming to meet the changing demands of hungry consumers. Options such as vegan ramen made from mushroom broth and gluten-free ramen made from rice noodles or gluten-free flour are becoming more commonplace.

Most Common Types of Ramen (And What Makes Them Unique)

Ramen styles vary widely based on region, broth, noodles, and toppings. However, the four primary styles—Shoyu, Miso, Shio, and Tonkotsu—form the foundation of most ramen dishes, with regional and creative variations branching out from these.

Shoyu Ramen (Soy Sauce-Based)

Shoyu ramen features a light yet savory broth with a soy sauce base, delivering a salty, umami-rich flavor profile balanced by subtle hints of sweetness.

Flavor Profile:

• Salty and umami-rich with hints of sweetness.

Key Ingredients:

• Broth: Chicken or pork-based stock combined with soy sauce tare.
• Noodles: Medium-thick, curly noodles.

Recipe Idea: Classic Shoyu Ramen

• Broth: Simmer chicken stock with soy sauce, ginger, garlic, and a touch of mirin for added depth and balance.
• Noodles: Cook #20 medium-thick curly noodles until just tender, ensuring a springy texture.
• Toppings: Add marinated soft-boiled egg, chashu pork, chopped green onions, and a sheet of nori for a traditional touch.

Miso Ramen

Miso ramen features a rich and hearty broth originating in Hokkaido, delivering deep, nutty flavors balanced by a slight sweetness and a creamy texture from miso paste.

Flavor Profile:

• Deep, nutty, and slightly sweet with a creamy, hearty texture.

Key Ingredients:

• Broth: Chicken, pork, or seafood-based stock combined with miso tare.
• Noodles: Thick, wavy noodles that hold up to the rich broth.

Recipe Idea: Hokkaido Miso Ramen

• Broth: Sauté miso paste, garlic, and ginger until fragrant, then add pork or chicken stock for a rich, flavorful base.
• Noodles: Use #16 thick, wavy noodles to complement the creamy texture of the broth.
• Toppings: Add butter, sweet corn, bean sprouts, ground pork, and chopped green onions. For extra heat, serve with optional chili paste.

Shio Ramen (Salt-Based)

Shio ramen features the lightest and most delicate broth, delivering clean, clear flavors with a subtle saltiness that highlights its simplicity.

Flavor Profile:

• Clean, clear, and lightly salty with a delicate balance of flavors.

Key Ingredients:

• Broth: A simple, transparent stock often made with seafood or chicken, enhanced with salt-based tare.
• Noodles: Thin, straight noodles that pair perfectly with the light broth.

Recipe Idea: Simple Shio Ramen

• Broth: Simmer chicken stock with kombu, dried shrimp, and sea salt for a light yet flavorful base.
• Noodles: Use #26 thin, straight noodles to complement the broth’s delicate profile.
• Toppings: Add kamaboko (fish cake), bamboo shoots, green onions, and nori. Garnish with sesame seeds for an extra layer of flavor.

Tonkotsu Ramen (Pork Bone-Based)

Tonkotsu ramen features a rich and creamy broth originating in Kyushu, delivering deeply savory flavors with a thick, almost milky texture from long-simmered pork bones.

Flavor Profile:

• Deeply savory with a luxurious, creamy texture.

Key Ingredients:

• Broth: A thick, creamy stock made by simmering pork bones for hours to extract flavor and collagen.
• Noodles: Thin, straight noodles that pair well with the richness of the broth.

Recipe Idea: Hakata Tonkotsu Ramen

• Broth: Simmer pork bones, garlic, and ginger for 8–12 hours until the broth reaches a creamy, milky consistency.
• Noodles: Cook #28 extra-thin, straight noodles until al dente to provide a light contrast to the rich broth.
• Toppings: Add black garlic oil, pickled ginger, chashu pork, and sesame seeds. Drizzle with additional garlic oil before serving for an extra layer of flavor.

Tsukemen (Dipping Ramen)

Tsukemen offers a unique ramen experience with noodles and broth served separately, allowing diners to dip cold, chewy noodles into a rich, bold, and concentrated sauce.

Flavor Profile:

• Rich and umami-packed dipping sauce balanced by the refreshing chewiness of chilled noodles.

Key Ingredients:

• Dipping Sauce: A hot, umami-rich broth made with soy sauce, mirin, dashi, and bonito flakes.
• Noodles: Thick, chewy noodles served cold to contrast the warm sauce.

Recipe Idea: Tokyo-Style Tsukemen

• Dipping Sauce: Simmer soy sauce, mirin, dashi, and bonito flakes, then strain to create a rich and flavorful base.
• Noodles: Prepare #12 thick, chewy noodles and chill them before serving.
• Toppings: Serve boiled eggs, lime wedges, and sliced pork on the side for added flavor and variety.

Regional and Specialty Ramen Styles

Kitakata Ramen (Fukushima): Light soy sauce broth paired with #14 thick, flat, curly noodles.

Recipe Tip: Add bamboo shoots and pork belly for authenticity.

Tantanmen (Spicy Ramen): A spicy, sesame-based broth inspired by Sichuan dan dan noodles.

Recipe Tip: Use chili paste, tahini, and ground pork for bold flavor.

Vegan Ramen: A plant-based option with mushroom or kombu broth and vegetable toppings. Choose #18 medium-thick straight noodles for a well-balanced bite.

Recipe Tip: Roast mushrooms and simmer kombu to create a rich vegan broth.

Tips for Making Ramen at Home

Creating balance among the five elements in ramen can feel challenging, but don’t let that deter you from jumping into the ramen journey. Here are some tips to help beginners enjoy delicious ramen from home.

1. Use Store-Bought Ingredients: You can cut an easy corner when making ramen by purchasing noodles instead of making them from scratch.
2. Don’t Make It All At Once: You can prepare the different parts of your ramen dish days before, allowing you to more quickly prepare the dish when you’re ready. Amy Kimoto-Kahn even recommends freezing individual noodle portions for easy ramen prep.
3. Experiment with Toppings: Mix traditional and non-traditional toppings to customize your bowl. Leftover vegetables, proteins, or condiments in your fridge can make creative additions.
4. Start with a Simple Broth: Shoyu broth is beginner-friendly and requires fewer specialty ingredients. You can enhance it with soy sauce, ginger, garlic, and mirin for extra flavor.
5. Use a Pressure Cooker or Instant Pot: Speed up the process of making rich broths, such as tonkotsu, by using a pressure cooker. This can reduce simmering time from hours to just one or two.
6. Layer Your Flavors: Build flavor depth by sautéing garlic, ginger, and onions before adding liquids. This step can elevate your broth without much effort.
7. Try Pre-Made Oils: Purchase or make aromatic oils, such as garlic oil or chili oil, to drizzle on top for an instant flavor boost.
8. Focus on Presentation: Assemble your ramen thoughtfully. Arrange toppings neatly and garnish with green onions, sesame seeds, or nori for a restaurant-quality look.
9. Taste as You Go: Adjust seasoning during the cooking process. A small pinch of salt, splash of soy sauce, or a spoonful of miso can make all the difference.
10. Don’t Forget the Condiments: Keep chili oil, soy sauce, vinegar, or sesame oil on hand for diners to customize their bowl to taste.

Continue Your Ramen Journey

Ramen is more than just a dish—it’s a delicious blend of history, culture, and creativity. Whether you prefer the light, salty notes of shio ramen or the bold, nutty flavors of miso, every bowl is an opportunity to experiment with new layers of flavor. With the tips and recipes in this guide, you can take the first step to start making ramen creations at home.

But why stop there? At Escoffier, we provide a chance for food enthusiasts to turn their love for cooking into a lifelong craft. Our culinary arts programs can teach you the foundational techniques behind a wide variety of dishes and help inspire your creativity in the kitchen.

If you’re interested in taking your cooking to the next level, talk to us about how you can begin to build culinary skills and knowledge of global cuisines.

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