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1
The night before: submerge the kombu in 2 litres of cold water. Refrigerate overnight. The water should take on a faint golden-green colour and a clean oceanic scent — this is the cold steep complete.
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2
Place the kombu water in a pot over medium heat. Remove the kombu just before the water reaches a simmer — small bubbles will begin to form at the base of the pot. Add the dried shrimp. Maintain a gentle simmer for 20 minutes. The broth should remain fully clear; it should smell lightly sweet and of the sea, with no bitterness.
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3
Strain out the dried shrimp. Stir in the dashi powder. Taste: the broth must be delicate, slightly sweet, and clean — this is where the dish lives or dies. A strong, cloudy, or aggressively savoury broth is not saimin broth; it cannot be corrected by dilution without loss of body. Adjust with a little salt if needed. Keep at a gentle simmer.
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4
Bring a separate large pot of unsalted water to a full boil. Cook the saimin noodles according to the package, then continue past standard pasta doneness until the noodles yield fully to gentle pressure between the fingers — tender and soft throughout, not springy. Drain.
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5
Divide the noodles among four large, deep bowls. Ladle the hot broth generously over the noodles — the ratio should lean towards more broth; the noodles should sit in a full bowl of liquid, not merely be moistened. The broth must remain visibly clear in the bowl.
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6
Arrange thin slices of char siu, thin rounds of kamaboko, and diagonally cut green onion across the top of each bowl. If using a fried egg, place it directly on the noodles. The toppings should lie flat and begin to warm at once in the broth — they are not cooked further.
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7
Serve immediately with shoyu and sesame oil at the table. Each diner adjusts their own seasoning intensity directly in the bowl — this tableside adjustment is standard practice at Hawaiian saimin restaurants.