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1
At least 24 hours before service, make the tare. Combine the usukuchi soy sauce, mirin, and sake in a small saucepan over low heat. Bring just to a simmer, stirring once, then remove from heat. Add the kombu. Allow to cool completely, then transfer to a sealed jar. Rest at room temperature for a minimum of 24 hours; the liquid will deepen in colour and round in flavour. The tare is ready when the raw edge of the alcohol is gone and the kombu has given a perceptible savouriness to the blend.
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2
Pull any loose fat deposits from around the chicken cavity and reserve for the tori-no-abura. Place the cleaned chicken in a large pot and cover with cold water. Bring to 80–85 °C over medium heat, monitoring with a thermometer. Hold at this temperature — never allowing a full boil — for 3 to 4 hours, skimming any foam or impurities from the surface every 20 to 30 minutes. This is where the dish lives or dies: if the broth boils aggressively even once, the emulsified fats cloud the stock permanently, and the defining clarity of Tokyo shoyu ramen is lost. The broth is done when it is a clear, pale amber, smells cleanly of chicken with no off-notes, and has a light but discernible body when a small amount is cooled on a spoon.
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3
Strain the broth through a fine-mesh sieve lined with muslin, discarding solids. Return to the pot and keep at 80–85 °C until service. Render the reserved chicken fat in a small pan over low heat until liquid and clear; reserve warm. The rendered fat is ready when the fat pieces are golden and the liquid fat is completely clear.
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4
Make the chashu. Combine the soy sauce, mirin, sake, and sugar in a small saucepan and bring to a simmer until the sugar dissolves. Sear the rolled pork belly in a dry pan until browned on all sides. Transfer to the braising liquid, add just enough water to half-submerge, cover, and braise over the lowest possible heat for 90 minutes, turning once at 45 minutes. The chashu is done when a skewer passes through the roll without resistance and the braising liquid is syrupy and dark. Allow to cool in the liquid, then slice to 5 mm rounds for service.
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5
To assemble each bowl, place 30–35 ml of tare in the base of a warmed serving bowl. Ladle 350 ml of hot broth over the tare and stir once to combine. Add 1–2 teaspoons of warm rendered chicken fat to the surface. The bowl, before the noodles are added, should read as a clear, amber soup with a thin iridescent fat layer — not opaque, not pale yellow, not dark brown.
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6
Cook the noodles in rapidly boiling unsalted water for 60–90 seconds only, agitating with chopsticks or tongs throughout. Drain well and transfer immediately to the prepared bowl. Arrange chashu slices, menma, narutomaki, and nori around the noodles, then scatter the sliced negi over the surface. The noodles are correctly cooked when they are tender with a faint resistance at the core and have absorbed a slight alkaline fragrance from the cooking water.