HOOK MISO RAMEN

Wok-stir-fried Veggies For Fragrant Soup
[published December 2019] 

Hook Miso Ramen, or “Misokko Hook” as its official name, opened in 2018, replacing Kaede Miso Ramen in the same location. The owner-chef has been trying his new ideas while maintaining the recipe of its miso ramen predecessors, Kaede, and the popular Nakano shop Miso Mendokoro Hanamichi, where he had trained.

Yet Hook is fresh and new and not the same as Hanamichi or Kaede, as he changed the blending ratio of two kinds of broth, made from pork and chicken bones to make the soup smoother and more velvety. Additionally, although many miso ramen shops blend the broth and miso in a ramen bowl to make the soup, Misokko Hook carries on the method of Sapporo (the city in Hokkaido famous for miso ramen): firstly garlic, onion, and aromatics are stir-fried in a wok, then sprouts are added, and finally broth and miso are added into the wok. By using this method, the ingredients harmonize well with the soup, and the fragrance of the soup is improved. In winter, the amount of ginger in the soup is increased to warm your body.

The chashu (grilled pork with soy sauce flavor) at Hook is also worth noting. Pork loin boiled with various spices in advance is seared in a pan to seal in the juice, then quickly simmered with tare (a kind of sauce which is generally based on soy sauce). Since the simmering time is short, the pork keeps its softness and moisture.

As for the noodles, they maintain their wheat flavor and are different from the “aged noodles” commonly used at Sapporo-style ramen shops. They are a little bit thicker and not coated well with the soup compared to thin noodles, however these thick noodles are perfect with the thick soup at Hook.

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