Miso Tori Paitan Ramen

For the Gyofun:

• 3 dried red chiles, such as árbol, Thai bird, Bangladeshi, or Kashmiri, stemmed (optional)
• 5g (about 1 small handful) katsuobushi shavings (Japanese smoked, dried skipjack tuna)

For the Miso Tare:

• 1 tablespoon (15ml) shoyu tare (from the chintan shoyu ramen recipe)
• 2 tablespoons (30ml) red miso paste
• 2 fresh red Thai bird chiles, stemmed and thinly sliced crosswise (optional)

To Serve:

• 4 cups (about 950ml) chicken paitan broth
• 2 servings ramen noodles, either store-bought or homemade
• 4 teaspoons (20ml) aroma oil (from the chintan shoyu ramen recipe)

To Garnish:

• Sliced braised pork belly (from the chintan shoyu ramen recipe, warmed through and seared with a torch if desired); marinated egg (shelled and halved); and sheets of toasted nori (all optional)
• 2 tablespoons finely diced white onion
• 2 scallions, sliced crosswise as thinly as possible
• Lime wedges

Instructions:

• For the Gyofun: Place dried chiles (if using) and katsuobushi in a pan and set over medium heat. Toast until fragrant. Using a spice grinder or mortar and pestle, grind toasted chiles and katsuobushi to a fine powder. Set aside.

• For the Miso Tare: In a small bowl, stir together shoyu tare with miso paste and sliced fresh chiles (if using) until thoroughly combined. Set aside.

• To Assemble the Ramen Bowls: Bring paitan broth to a boil. Bring a separate large pot of unsalted water to a boil.

• Add one ladleful of boiling water to each serving bowl to warm the bowls. Place noodles in pot of boiling water, stirring vigorously to prevent clumping, and cook as directed on packaging or as directed in recipe.

• Meanwhile, empty serving bowls of warming water. Place half of miso tare mixture and half of aroma oil in each bowl. Top each with 1 1/2 cups (350ml) boiling paitan broth. Using an immersion blender placed directly in each bowl, pulse the mixture 2 to 3 times, until broth is mixed and somewhat frothy. (Before beginning to assemble the bowls, it’s a good idea to fill one with an equivalent volume of water and check that the liquid won’t spill over when blended; see note for more info.) Alternatively, you can use a whisk to blend the broth, tare, and aroma oil in each bowl.

• Strain cooked noodles, shaking off as much excess water as possible, and add a portion to each bowl of hot broth. Using chopsticks, lift noodles up out of the bowl and fold them over, back into the broth. Garnish with any desired toppings, such as pork belly, a halved egg, and/or nori sheets. Garnish with diced white onion and sliced scallions. Add 1 teaspoon chile gyofun (or more, if you like) to each bowl. Serve immediately, with lime wedges alongside.