Slow Cooker Pork Belly Ramen

This is the easy, cheat's version to a delicious ramen - I love it!

A special visit to an Asian store is required for some of these ingredients, but once you have them you are ready to make many a ramen. It is a great value meal too.

If you find pork belly too fatty, you can swap it for pork shoulder. There are also many other pre-cooked substitutes that you can add at the final serving stage instead - just make sure to add some chicken or ham bones to the stock as it will need the flavour. Try serving it with roasted pork, grilled chicken breast, peking duck or char siu pork, or any left over roasted meat you already have - even if it has been roasted in garlic and herbs etc, the more flavour the better!

If I have time I also like to make the soy eggs that can accompany this dish for extra flavour - see the extra recipe below.

Apparently a ramen should be devoured quickly and not sat on for 30 minutes, so slow cook away and then tuck in!

Based on a recipe in the Good Food Section of the SMH.

Pictured: Slow Cooker Pork Belly Ramen 

1 litre chicken stock

2tbsp tamari or good soy sauce

2 tbsp sake

2 tbsp mirin

2 tsp sugar

80g white miso paste

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

4 cm piece ginger, sliced

1 leek, white part only, halved and thinly sliced

1 carrot, roughly chopped

1 – 2 pieces kombu depending on its size

750g – 1kg lean pork belly , skin on (serving 4 – 6)

500g – 750g cooked ramen noodles (serving 4 – 6)

To serve – soft boiled eggs or soy eggs (see recipe below), halved, sliced spring onion, sesame seeds, sesame oil and shredded nori

You need to cook the base of this soup for at least 8 hours in the slow cooker, so plan this for the night before or first this that morning, depending on when you plan to serve this.

If making the soy eggs begin this recipe the night before as well.

Whisk the stock, tamari, sake, mirin, sugar, miso paste, and 750ml water in the bowl of a slow cooker until combined, add the garlic, ginger, leek, carrot, kombu and pork belly. Add some chicken or ham bones if you have them for extra flavour and bone broth.

Cook on low for 8 - 10 hours until the pork is tender,  and set aside to cool and then strain through a fine sieve keeping the pork aside ready for slicing and the liquid soup ready for warming in a saucepan to serve.

Remove the pork belly skin and discard, cut the meat into 1cm thick slices.

Cook the noodles according to instructions.

Divide the noodles and pork among bowls, pour over the strained soup, and garnish with the eggs, spring onions, nori, sesame seeds and oil.

Serves 4 - 6

Soy Marinated Eggs - start this recipe the night before

2 eggs

100ml soy sauce

1 tbsp rice vinegar

1 tbsp mirin

1 tbsp brown sugar

Place the eggs in a small pan of cold water and bring to the boil, simmer 5 minutes. Drain and plunge into iced water to cool and stop further cooking. Peel once cool enough to handle.

Het the soy, vinegar, mirin and brown sugar in a pan until the sugar dissolves, then cool.

Place the eggs in a jar to fit with the marinade and be covered – seal and refrigerate overnight, turning once or twice to colour the eggs evenly.

Pictured: Soy Marinated Eggs