How to Make Authentic Hakata Tonkotsu Ramen — A Fukuoka Third-Generation Ramen Master and a Yatai Street-Stall Ramen Chef Walk You Through the Recipe From the 12-Hour Pork-Bone Broth to the Final Bowl
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Overview
This video teaches you to make authentic Hakata Tonkotsu Ramen from scratch, guided by two masters from Fukuoka. Learn the 12-hour process for the rich pork-bone broth, homemade noodles, chashu, and ajitsuke-tamago to create the perfect bowl at home.
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Ingredients
- 2 kilograms pork bones (trotter, femur, neck bones)
- 4 liters fresh water
- more boiling water (as needed)
- 300 grams bread flour
- 130 milliliters water
- 4 grams salt
- 6 grams kansui
- cold egg
- ice water
- chashu liquid (for marinade)
- water (for marinade)
- 200-gram slab pork belly
- string
- 200 milliliters soy sauce (for braise)
- 200 milliliters sake (for braise)
- 100 milliliters mirin (for braise)
- 100 grams sugar (for braise)
- 60 milliliters saved chashu liquid (for tare)
- 40 milliliters soy sauce (for tare)
- 20 grams sea salt (for tare)
- little grated garlic (for tare)
- 2 tablespoons tare
- 350 milliliters hot tonkotsu broth
- cooked noodles
- 2 slices chashu
- 1 half ajitsuke-tamago
- negi green onion
- menma
- nori
- mayu black garlic oil
Instructions
- Blanch 2 kilograms of pork bones (trotter, femur, neck bones) in hard boiling water for 10 minutes until the water turns dirty brown.
- Discard the dirty water and scrub every bone clean under cold water.
- Place the cleaned bones in a clean pot with 4 liters of fresh water and bring to a hard, rolling boil for 8 to 12 hours.
- Every hour, add more boiling water to keep the pork bones covered, ensuring a violent boil to emulsify fat and collagen, creating a creamy white broth.
- For the noodles, mix 300 grams bread flour, 130 milliliters water, 4 grams salt, and 6 grams kansui to form a dough.
- For ajitsuke-tamago, place a cold egg into boiling water for exactly 6 minutes and 30 seconds.
- Immediately transfer the cooked egg into an ice water bath for 5 minutes to stop cooking, then peel.
- Marinate the peeled egg in a bag with chashu liquid and water for a few hours.
- For chashu, roll a 200-gram slab of pork belly tight into a log and tie with string.
- Sear the rolled pork belly on all sides in a hot pan.
- Braise the seared pork belly low for 2 hours in a liquid made of 200 milliliters soy sauce, 200 milliliters sake, 100 milliliters mirin, and 100 grams sugar. Turn the pork every 30 minutes.
- Let the chashu cool in the braising liquid, and save the liquid for the tare.
- For the tare (for four bowls), mix 60 milliliters of the saved chashu liquid with 40 milliliters soy sauce, 20 grams sea salt, and a little grated garlic.
- Boil fresh noodles for about 45 seconds for barikata (extra firm).
- To assemble, place 2 tablespoons of tare in a hot bowl.
- Pour in 350 milliliters of hot, 90-degree Celsius tonkotsu broth and stir.
- Immediately add the cooked noodles.
- Top the ramen with two slices of chashu, one half ajitsuke-tamago, negi green onion, menma, nori, and drizzle with mayu black garlic oil.
- Serve and eat immediately.
Frequently asked questions
- What defines authentic Hakata Tonkotsu Ramen?
- Hakata Tonkotsu Ramen is defined by its rich, opaque pork-bone broth. Authentic Hakata noodles are very thin, very straight, low moisture, and boil in about 45 seconds for an extra firm bite.
- What is the secret to a clean, white tonkotsu broth?
- The secret is to blanch the pork bones in hard boiling water for 10 minutes, then discard the dirty water and scrub every bone clean under cold water before the main boil. This prevents the broth from turning gray.
- How long does it take to cook Hakata-style noodles?
- Hakata-style noodles are very thin and boil quickly. For an extra firm bite, called barikata, they cook in as little as 45 seconds.
- How do you make ajitsuke-tamago, the marinated ramen egg?
- To make ajitsuke-tamago, boil a cold egg for exactly 6 minutes and 30 seconds, then immediately transfer it to an ice water bath for 5 minutes. After peeling, marinate the egg in a bag with chashu liquid and water for a few hours.
- What is tare in ramen, and why is it important?
- Tare is the final seasoning for ramen, typically added to the bowl first. It's crucial because the broth itself is not very salty, and the tare provides the key flavor balance.
Transcript
Anna Park: Since 1937, the city of Fukuoka has been the world capital of tonkotsu ramen, a style defined by its rich, opaque pork-bone broth. Today, we're going deep into the 12-hour process to make it at home. We're joined by two masters from Hakata: Kenji Tanaka, a third-generation ramen-ya owner, and Yuki Nakamura, a beloved yatai street-stall chef and noodle maker. They'll walk us through every step, from the bones to the final bowl.
Kenji Tanaka: Hajimemashite. Ze secret is ze bro-su, ne? For home, start with 2 kilograms of po-ku bones—trotter, femur, neck bones. First, very big step! You must blanch in hard boi-ru for 10 minutes. Ze water gets dirty, brown. Throw it all away! Scrub every bone clean under cold water. This is why our tonkotsu is clean white, not gray-bai! Honto ni!
Yuki Nakamura: Hai hai! And for ze noodles, Hakata style is special-tai! Very thin, very straight, not wavy. Low moisture for a firm bite. At my yatai, I make fresh: 300 grams bread flour, 130 milliliters water, 4 grams salt, and 6 grams of kansui, ze alkaline water. This gives ze chew! We boil so fast, maybe 45 seconds for barikata, extra firm! And always ask for kaedama, an extra noodle serving! Oishii!
Kenji Tanaka: So desu ne! After you scrub ze bones, put in a clean pot with 4 liters fresh water. Now, ze most important part. Bring to a hard, ROLLING boi-ru. Not a simmer! A violent boi-ru, for 8, maybe 12 hours. This emulsifies ze fat and collagen. Sugoi! It makes ze creamy white color. Every hour, you must add more boiling water to keep ze po-ku bones covered. This is ze heart of tonkotsu-bai!
Yuki Nakamura: Mochiron! While ze broth boils, we make toppings! My favorite is ajitsuke-tamago, the marinated egg. So simple, so delicious! Take a cold egg from ze fridge, put it in boiling water for exactly 6 minutes and 30 seconds. No more, no less! Immediately into an ice water bath for 5 minutes to stop cooking. Peel, then marinate in a bag with chashu liquid and water for a few hours. Ze yolk becomes like jam! Umai!
Kenji Tanaka: Yosh! Now, for ze chashu. You need a good 200-gram slab of po-ku berry. Roll it tight into a log, tie with string. Sear all sides in a hot pan. Then, braise it low for 2 hours. Ze braise is 200 milliliters soy sauce, 200 milliliters sake, 100 milliliters mirin, and 100 grams sugar. Turn ze po-ku every 30 minutes. Let it cool in ze liquid. And remember to SAVE this braising liquid! It is for ze tare-tai!
Yuki Nakamura: Saa! Almost time to eat! Ze final seasoning is ze tare. This is key! Ze broth itself is not so salty. You put tare in ze bowl FIRST. For four bowls, I mix 60 milliliters of that saved chashu liquid with 40 milliliters soy sauce, 20 grams sea salt, and a little grated garlic. Then, boil ze fresh noodles—remember, just 45 seconds for barikata! Everything must be screaming hot and happen very fast at ze yatai! Genki!
Kenji Tanaka: Hai, hai! Assembly is a ceremony. Everything must be fast, fast! First, 2 tablespoons of tare in a hot bowl. Pour in 350 milliliters of ze hot, 90-degree Celsius tonkotsu bro-su and stir. Add ze cooked noodles right away. Top with two slices chashu, one half ajitsuke-tamago, some negi green onion, menma, and nori. Drizzle mayu, black garlic oil. Do not wait! Ze noodles get soft. Eat immediately! Itadakimasu!
Anna Park: An incredible journey from bone to bowl. Our three big takeaways: First, a true tonkotsu requires a hard, rolling boil for 8 to 12 hours to create the creamy, emulsified broth. Second, the secret flavor isn't just the broth; it's the salty tare seasoning you put in the bowl first. And third, authentic Hakata noodles are thin, straight, and boiled for under a minute for that perfect firm bite. Kenji Tanaka and Yuki Nakamura, thank you for sharing your mastery with us.
Note: Informational only. Figures are a guide — verify before relying on them.