Japanese Kyoto Ramen and the Philosophy of Regional Broth Diversity

Ingredients

• For the broth
• 1.5 kg chicken carcasses and backs, rinsed
• 500 g pork bones, rinsed; blanched and rinsed again
• 3 litres cold water
• For the tori abura (rendered chicken fat)
• 200 g raw chicken fat (tori abura), trimmed from carcasses or thighs
• For the shoyu tare
• 120 ml aged dark soy sauce, Kyoto-style assertive soy preferred
• 40 ml mirin
• 20 ml sake
• For the noodles
• 400 g thin straight ramen noodles (細ストレート麺), fresh or dried; not wavy, not thick
• For service
• 4 slices chashu pork belly, braised and sliced; standard accompaniment
• 4 spring onions, finely sliced
• 4 tsp rendered tori abura (from above), reserved for finishing at service

Method

1. 1
   Place the chicken carcasses and pork bones in a large stockpot and cover with cold water. Bring to a vigorous boil over high heat. Drain, discard the blanching water, and rinse the bones clean of coagulated proteins. Return the bones to the pot and cover with 3 litres of fresh cold water.
2. 2
   Render the tori abura: place the raw chicken fat in a small heavy saucepan over low heat with a splash of water. Cook slowly until the fat has fully liquefied and the water has evaporated, leaving a clear golden oil and any solid cracklings. Strain through a fine sieve. Reserve in a warm vessel. The finished tori abura is clear, golden-yellow, and intensely chicken-aromatic.
3. 3
   Combine the soy sauce, mirin, and sake in a small saucepan. Bring briefly to a simmer to cook off the raw alcohol, then remove from heat. The tare is ready when it smells of cooked soy and mirin with no sharp alcohol note.
4. 4
   Bring the bone-and-water pot to a full, rolling boil over the highest available heat and maintain it throughout the cooking period. Do not reduce to a simmer. The vigorous boil is the mechanism by which chicken fat emulsifies into the liquid, producing the style's defining cloudy, milky, sticky broth. A gentle simmer produces only a clear, thin stock — this is where the dish lives or dies. Boil until the broth is opaque white, viscous, and coats the back of a spoon.
5. 5
   Strain the broth through a sieve, discarding the bones. Measure approximately 300 ml of finished broth per portion. Season each serving bowl with 2–3 tablespoons of shoyu tare before ladling over the hot broth. Stir once to integrate. The seasoned broth should taste intensely savoury, chicken-forward, and fat-glossy on the palate.
6. 6
   Cook the thin straight noodles according to the maker's instruction in rapidly boiling unsalted water, erring toward the shorter end of the stated time. Drain immediately and portion into the seasoned broth. The noodle should offer slight resistance at the centre — it will continue to soften in the hot broth.
7. 7
   Place one slice of chashu and a portion of sliced spring onion over each bowl. Finish with a measured pour of 1 teaspoon of warm tori abura over the surface of each bowl. The fat forms a glossy, aromatic slick on the surface — this is the defining aromatic lift of Kyoto ramen at service and must not be omitted.