If you’ve been following along for any length of time, you probably know I’ve been working on concocting the perfect bowl of ramen for quite some time. With the soup improving with each batch I made, I was starting to feel like the store-bought noodles were the weak link holding the entire bowl of ramen back. It was time to tackle the noodles, but given the decade of trial-and-error it took to get the soup right, I figured I was in for another dozen years of experimentation before I’d turn out a decent batch of noodles.
Part of the problem is that there isn’t much information out there in English on making ramen noodes. Even in Japan, noodle making is a closely guarded secret and you don’t see ramen shops parading around their recipes on the web. From the information I was able to glean, I knew that the noodles are made with wheat flour, and get their yellow color and distinctly firm texture from the addition of kansui. I also knew that they’re traditionally hand pulled, which means the dough has a higher water content than noodles you’d roll and cut.
Since noodles get their texture from the proteins in the wheat forming elastic chains of gluten, I decided to use bread flour, which typically contains 12-14% protein (higher than all-purpose flour). I also knew that learning how to hand pull noodles as fine as ramen was a skill that would take far longer to master than I, or many of my readers would have patience for, so I decided to make a dryer dough that could be rolled and cut using a pasta maker.
Here’s an account of my learnings batch by batch:
Batch #1: I made this with 2 cups bread flour, 2/3 C water and 1/2 teaspoon of liquid kansui. Everything went into a mixer with a dough hook until the dough came together. Then I formed it into two squares, wrapped and refrigerated one, and rolled out the other. I rolled it out to setting #5 of on the pasta maker and cut it using the spaghetti attachement, then boiled the noodles for 1 1/2 minutes. This batch had a couple of problems. The dough was a bit tacky, so even after being dusted with flour, the noodles stuck together in pairs of two and had to be hand separated. I’d also rolled it out too thin and by the time the noodles were in the ramen, they were soggy. The dough also lacked the lustrous yellow color I was looking for.
Batch #2: After resting in the fridge overnight, I took the other half of the first batch and rolled it out, this time only to setting #3. It was still sticking together, but the noodles had a nice firm texture when cooked.
Batch #3: For this batch, I used 2 cups of bread flour, reduced the water to 1/2 cup and increased the kansui to 1 teaspoon. As soon as I added the water/kansui mixture I knew this batch was going to be better, as the flour immediately turned a bright golden yellow. I let the mixer run for 10 minutes this time and the mixer bowl was full of golden yellow nuggets. I was worried I hadn’t added enough water, but with a little hand kneading it came togehter into a ball, and let this rest overnight in the fridge. The next day, I cut the dough in half, rolled it out to setting #3 and cut it with the spaghetti attachment as before. This time the noodles didn’t stick together, and I reduced the boiling time to just over a minute. The noodles were extremely firm (almost too firm), but by the time I had the soup and all the toppings on the ramen, they were the perfect texture and stayed that way until the last drop of soup was gone. Success!
If you’re wondering what kansui is, it’s the ingredient that makes all the magic happen. The story goes that the unique noodles produced around lake Kan in Inner-Mongolia were attributed to the water from the lake. Modern science has since revealed that the lake is highly alkaline, which is what gives the noodles their unique texture and color. You can now buy factory produced “kansui” (lake kan water) either in powdered or liquid form. I used a brand called Koon Chun which labels their product as Potassium Carbonate Sodium Bi-Carbonate.
If you’re looking for a more scientific explanation behind how kansui works, here’s what Dr. Kantha Shelke, Scientist at Corvus Blue LLC, a Chicago-based food and nutrition research firm has to say:
Science Behind the Noodle
Kansui is a mixture of sodium carbonate and potassium carbonate which form an alkaline solution (pH ~9) when mixed with water. Wheat flour contains a number of compounds called flavones and trans-ferulic acid which are bound to starch and therefore colorless or white. The addition of an alkaline solution to wheat flour changes the pH of the mixture which in turn detaches these flavones (specifically apigenin glycosides) and trans-ferulic acid from starch and allows their natural yellow color to manifest.
Another reason for the addition of kansui is to toughen the protein in wheat flour so that the resulting noodles are firmer, more elastic and springy texture and less sticky when cooked. The addition of Kansui allows the use of lower protein (and therefore less expensive) wheat flour to make noodles with the quality one would expect of noodles made with superior quality flour with higher protein levels.
I know this isn’t a typical post since you don’t end up with a finished dish, but I really wanted to write a comprehensive post on making ramen noodles from scratch. Here are some recipes for ramen and ramyeon that you can use these noodles for:
Kimchi Ramyeon (Korean style ramen)
makes enough noodles for 4 bowls
Ingredients
-
300
grams
bread flour (about 2 cups)
-
1/2
cup
water warm
-
1
teaspoon
kansui (Potassium Carbonate & Sodium Bi-Carbonate)
Steps
-
Put the flour in the bowl of a mixer fitted with a dough hook. Mix the water and kansui together, then add the mixture to the flour. The flour should immediately start turning yellow. If it doesn't, it's possible your kansui is less concentrated than the one I used, in which case, you will need to experiment to figure out the right amount to add.
-
Give the mixture a quick stir with a fork or chopsticks to combine everything then attach the bowl to your mixer and run on medium high speed for 10 minutes. It's a dry dough so it will look like a bunch of gravel at this point. Use your hands to divide it in two and press together into two balls.
-
Flatten each ball out on a flat surface, and run it through the largest setting of your pasta roller a few times, folding it in half each time. The dough will be ragged the first few runs though but will smooth out. When it starts rolling out smoother, fold it up into a square and wrap with plastic wrap and store it in the fridge overnight.
-
When you're ready to cook it, prepare a large pot of boiling salted water. Each ball will make enough for 2 bowls of ramen, so figure out how much you need. Flour the dough generously and roll it out to the 3 setting on your pasta roller. Cut the dough in half so you have two sheets of dough a little over 1 foot long and flour generously again.
-
Use the spagetti attachment to cut the pasta into long thin noodles, dusting them with flour as they are cut to keep them from sticking together.
-
Boil the noodles until they are slightly firmer than the final consistency you want, since they will continue cooking after you remove them from the water. I usually let them boil for about one minute.
Wow this is great! Thanks for this– I just love ramen so will have to try your recipe soon.
Thanks for shedding some light on the mystery of noodle-making! I’ve wondered how it’s done for a while now, and this recipe is another reason for me to get a pasta machine!
Marc, I had no idea you could make these at home. Hats off…
Hi Marc.
Making noodle at home is fun! I am enjoy it. Only one thing I have been missing was “kansui.” I couldn’t find the places to buy it, so I have been using baking soda. Thank you for the information about it.!
wow thats an good thing to do on a holiday and family members helping in kitchen, will love to try this
There was an article in the New York Times food section about alkaline noodles
several weeks ago, including how to make them.
Very impressive! David Chang includes a recipe for alkaline noodles in the Momofuku cookbook, but I’ve never dared tackle the project.
I am so happy I found your blog—thanks for reaching out to me on Foodbuzz. You are an exquisite chef and have a great writing style. I have a weak spot for raman. I’d love to make some with your recipe.
Unbelievable. Firstly, an awesome photo. And then a great story. Thank you for your open and honest work. It is so appreciated.
Very interesting. Really a good job!! Congratulations.
http://recetasdemon.blogspot.com/
I love the detailed explanation you give for these noodles. This would be a good project to do with kids, especially if they think ramen only comes in a box! On a quest now for kansui
I am so glad you did this as I would never have tried this project. You are truly a master and I so enjoy your posts.
Wow. My boyfriend and I are working on mastering hand-pulled noodles for homemade ramen but it’s not going so hot. This seems like a much easier technique. We’ll definitely be trying this out!
When am I getting a bowl of this ramen?
I love ramen! Can’t say that I will make the noodles from scratch — I’d probably be likelier to hop a flight to NYC or Honolulu to eat ramen there instead — but I loved learning about the kansui and how the noodles are made. Thank you for the informative post!
I am seriously addicted to ramen. I am known to disappear for longer than I should during lunch just so I can sit at the counter at my favorite noodle shops and savor a bowl of the good stuff. I am so delighted to learn about the secret of kansui. I knew it wasn’t an egg noodle, so now I feel fulfilled. Fantastic post, Marc. Thanks.
Here is the article you are referring to, from Harold McGee, including info on how to make your own strong alkali. Good for other things too, like pretzels.
http://www.curiouscook.com/cook/other_writings_detail.php?id=56
I want to get into more noodle making, so I really appreciate this post. Thank you.
Umm… This is amazing. Good Ramen noodles are hard to beat.
Wow! Perseverence pays off big time! Great job on everything from research, tirals, and photos! Thanks for sharing.
Very cool post. I was looking for an home made noodles recipe.
Thank you!
These noodles sound awesome! I can’t wait to try this one out!
You are my savior. I have searched all over the internet for this information. After weeks of frustration and dissapointment you have delivered the secrets I sought. This is the only recipe for ramen, I’ve found, that uses the rumored “special water” instead of egg, and which confirmed my suspicion that ramen would have been origonally hand pulled. ARIGATOO GOZAIMAS!!!!!
Thanks! I had the same problem as yourself and decided it was time someone
fixed it:-)
Certain kinds of noodles are hand-made. You can find tons of videos on Youtube on how the chefs make them. It does take a lot of practice.
Thank you for this enlightening post! I will try this recipe as soon as I find some kansui. I have a question though. Do you wash your noodles under cold running water after boiling them?
I hope very much that you’ve seen the film “Tampopo.” In which we gain an all new respect for the humble Ramen…
I just tried this and it’s just not working out for me. I measured out 300g of bread flour, added in the warm water/kansui mixture and ran it in my mixer. I thought the mixer was going to break, the dough was so tough. I ran it for a little while, but the mixer could barely keep up with it. I pulled out the dough after a minute or two then tried to knead it by hand. It just kept falling apart into huge clumps, it seemed way too dry to ever hold together. After (unsuccessfully) trying to knead it… Read more »
Thank you for the Ramen recipes, you saved me! I have a small restaurant in Bariloche, Patagonia, Argentina named Butterfly (www.thebutterflygroup.com.ar) and i just got back from Japan with the plan of making Ramen. I am working on the recipe and will send mine on to you once it is fiished. My problem is that I cannot get Kansui. I want to make it but I would like to know if the sodiums are dissolved in water, and if so what proportions. I was hoping it might be on the packaging of the Koon chun product. Could you let me… Read more »
Another commenter pointed out that there’s a recipe for Alkalai
noodles on the New York Times website by Harold McGee. I’m not sure
about his use of semolina flour for the dough, but he uses soda ash
(which can be made from baking soda) instead of kansui. You might be
able to do a hybrid between the two recipes.
My son would live on Ramen noodles and it used to depress me so, since the package is mostly sodium. Well, with these I would love for him to consume them on a daily basis! I am going to try your recipe, as soon as humanly possible! It is similar to a recipe for noodles that is traditional in Lebanese and Syrian cooking and eaten with a lentil porridge. Very interesting Mark.
Wow that is really interesting. Do the Lebanese noodles use an alkali
with the flour? Do you have a recipe for it?
How terrible would it be to just use straight baking soda? I expect some adjustments would have to be made, but if it’s mostly about changing the ph, that should work, right?
Do you have any recommendations for store-bought noodles for those of us without a pasta making dealy?
I’ve tried it with baking soda and it’s just not strong enough. You don’t get the yellow color and it doesn’t give you the right texture. As for store bought noodles I think I’ve bought every kind of premade noodle in Chinatown here in NYC and none of them have been satisfactory for me. I found that the best store-bought ramen noodles were the ones in the refrigerated packs of “instant” ramen, but they’re expensive (about $7 a pack for 2 servings), and it’s kind of wasteful throwing the soup base out. If you don’t have a pasta maker, you… Read more »
nice~ i’ve always wondered how to make ramen noodles from scratch… thank you for doing all the research/work!
What kind of pasta maker are you using? It would be nice to know the exact product, so us people in Europe can get an understanding of how the device looks and how to find something similar.
Its an attachment for a Kitchenaid stand mixer, but I’ve seen hand cranked
Italian pasta makers with a similar design. Basically you want one that will
cut noodles about 2-3mm in thickness.
You are my hero! Thank you for posting this. I just went to Alhambra out here in LA to track down the potassium bi carbonate solution, but wasn’t exactly sure how I was going to use it. The recipe I had from Momofuku just said alkaline salts, so I was just going to do a little trial and error. Then I came across your recipe, thank you. The whole ramen recipe looks fanatastic, I’ve tried many different variations and can’t wait to try this one.
These noodles do require a bit of faith and perseverance to pull off, but boy are they worth it! I coupled them with tonkotsu broth had one of the best bowls of noodle soup on record!
I acquired the Koon Chun kansui from Asia Supermarket.com.
Hi, just to let you know I bought both sodas in powder form in the chemist. I mixed them 60% / 40% and I dissolve 1 tsp into the warm water and then add it to the flour. The noodles come out great but if I try to dry them they turn grey. I am making them fresh everyday but also have an emergency stock in the freezer, which also works out well.
I am really excited about making your tonkotsu broth… but I do not have a pasta tool. If this is really successful, I will hunt down the kitchenaid attachment, but is there a decent brand or type of ramen noodles I would be able to find at an Asian grocery? I have some fresh cooked/packed udon noodles which I know are not the right noodles, but are they going down the right alley? I would think a fresh cooked/packed noodle would be superior to the flash fried type. Also, keep in mind I have never had a “real” bowl of… Read more »
Unfortunately I’ve yet to find a store bought noodle here in the US that comes close to Japanese ramen noodles. The refrigerated fresh “instant” ramen packs have descent noodles, but they come with soup, so if you’re making your own soup it’s kind of redundant. If you have a sharp knife you could hand cut your noodles, but the challenge is going to be in rolling the dough thin enough without a pasta roller as the dough is very firm. If you go to Chinatown, they do have thin (about the thickness of spagetti) yellow noodles, but the ones I’ve… Read more »
I am planning on making this tonight, so I haven’t tried this recipe. However, I have been making different types of noodles/pasta for a while now and I find that you may just need one or two tablespoons of water to get the flour to hold together (note: it should still be on the dry side). Then once the flour holds together you can wrap it in plastic and let it rest for at least 30 minutes until the moisture is absorbed throughout the dough. The pasta then can be rolled at that point. I then dry the sheets a… Read more »
BOOKMARK! I have been searching the web for the last week for a ramen noodle recipe and this is the first one I’m excited about trying. I stayed in Japan for 3 months when I was in college and I haven’t had a decent bowl of ramen since! During my search for the perfect recipe I have come across ones that include egg or where the noodle is fried… Do you have any experience with ramen noodles that are prepared this way and whether either of those would contribute anything to the chewy texture that good ramen has?
The frying process creates “instant” cook noodles that you can just
add boiling water to, but it will ruin the texture (the noodles will
come out spongy like in cup-noodles). As for the adding egg, it’s the
Italian way of making pasta. Ramen noodles do not traditionally use
egg, they get their firm texture from the wheat gluten’s reaction with
the kansui.
Sorry for such a late response, but I just saw your comment. The dough should not come together easily. It will look almost like a pie dough and come together into little pearls that you’ll have to press together by hand. You use a rolling pin to flatten it out a little before running it through your pasta machine so it doesn’t put as much strain on it. It will be very ragged and may even come out in little clumps, but you just have to keep pressing the bits together and passing it through the machine and it will… Read more »
Just some forewarning, this dough will not hold together by itself. If you add enough water to make it hold together, it won’t cut properly. I do like your idea of letting the rolled dough dry a little before cutting it and will try this out next time with a little more water in the dough to make it easier to work with.
So I tried out the recipe and I like the texture better then any of the other recipes I’ve tried. The noodles had the texture I was looking for… but it loses some of the springiness before I can finish the bowl. Do you think adding a tiny bit more kansui may help?
I’ve actually been experimenting and adding a 1/2 tsp more kansui does increase the springiness. Anymore than that though and the noodles take on a gummy texture that’s not pleasant. Also while the extra kansui is okay for noodle soups, it makes the noodles too sticky to use for dry applications (such as stir-fried noodles). One thing you could try is to boil them for less time. I’ve actually been boiling them for about 30 seconds (in a large pot at a rolling boil) when I put them into noodle soups. They’re a little too chewy out of the pot,… Read more »
damn thanks for the tricks!it really worked.Am sooooo glad it really worked out just as instructed. I left half of the dough for tomorrow and see the difference. I let my staff taste the noodles and they were extremely amazed how I did it.