Spicy & Savory Fish Cake Ramen
Chef Ryu Soo-young’s ‘Eoguri Ramen’ Recipe: A Delicious Twist on Neoguri with Chewy Fish Cakes
Following the viral success of Chef Ryu Soo-young’s recipes, I decided to try his ‘Eoguri Ramen,’ a spicy fish cake noodle soup. This recipe elevates the classic ‘Neoguri’ ramen by adding perfectly cooked, chewy fish cakes for a richer, more flavorful, and satisfying experience.
Ramen & Main Ingredients- 1 pack Spicy Neoguri Ramen
- 3 sheets of square fish cakes
- 15g green onion (about 1/4 stalk)
Cooking Instructions
Step 1
Prepare one packet of ‘Spicy Neoguri Ramen,’ known for its robust and fiery broth. This will be the base of our delicious noodle dish.
Step 2
Take the three sheets of square fish cakes and first, cut them lengthwise in half. Then, cut each half in half again lengthwise. This will create strips that are easy to skewer and cook evenly.
Step 3
Fold the fish cake strips back and forth in a zig-zag or accordion pattern, like a fan. Once folded, thread them onto a wooden skewer, pushing them towards the center of the skewer to secure them.
Step 4
Repeat this process for the remaining fish cakes, so you have a total of six fish cake skewers. Gently press the center of the skewers to ensure the fish cakes stay in place. Before adding to the pot, check if the skewers will be fully submerged in the ramen broth. If the skewers are too long, you might need to trim them or use a larger pot. Chef Ryu Soo-young emphasizes this careful preparation of the fish cakes for his ‘Eoguri Ramen’.
Step 5
Finely chop about 15g of green onion (approximately 1/4 of a stalk). Also, measure out 0.5 Tbsp of minced garlic.
Step 6
Lightly preheat the pot you’ll be cooking the ramen in over medium-low heat. Add one swirl of cooking oil. Then, add the 0.5 Tbsp of minced garlic and 0.5 Tbsp of Gochujang. Reduce the heat to low and stir-fry gently.
Step 7
Slowly sauté the minced garlic and Gochujang over low heat to create a chili oil base. You’ll know it’s ready when you see a vibrant red oil forming at the bottom of the pot. (Chef Ryu Soo-young explains that this step infuses the broth with the spicy and savory notes of the Gochujang, giving it a deeper, more complex flavor reminiscent of a spicy fish cake soup.)
Step 8
Pour 700ml of cold water into the pot with the prepared chili oil. (If you have a piece of dried kelp (dashima), you can add it now for an extra layer of umami. Remember to remove the kelp once the water starts to boil.)
Step 9
Before the water comes to a rolling boil, add both the powder and flake (dried vegetable) packets from the ‘Spicy Neoguri’ ramen. Adding the soup base early allows the flavors to meld beautifully.
Step 10
Add all the chopped green onions to the pot, reserving just a small amount for garnish later. Now, turn the heat up to high and bring the broth to a boil.
Step 11
Once the broth is boiling vigorously, add the ramen noodles. Set a timer for 5 minutes, which is the recommended cooking time indicated on the Neoguri ramen packaging.
Step 12
About 1 minute after adding the noodles, gently loosen them with chopsticks. This prevents the noodles from sticking together and ensures they cook evenly in the flavorful broth.
Step 13
Approximately 1 minute after loosening the noodles, when they are starting to soften, add all the prepared fish cake skewers to the pot, ensuring they are submerged in the broth. Continue to simmer for the remaining 4 minutes. (Chef Ryu Soo-young suggests that 4 minutes is the ideal cooking time for the fish cakes to achieve a perfectly chewy texture.)
Step 14
Add the fish cake skewers when about 1 minute has passed since adding the noodles. Chef Ryu Soo-young times his addition of fish cakes so they cook for 4 minutes, having added the noodles 1 minute prior. This timing, with 1 minute for the noodles and 4 minutes for the fish cakes within the total 5-minute cooking time, results in the perfect ‘Eoguri Ramen’.
Step 15
When the 5-minute timer goes off, immediately turn off the heat. Carefully ladle the ramen noodles and the delicious spicy broth into a serving bowl. Arrange the tempting fish cake skewers on top. Your ‘Eoguri Ramen,’ as perfected by Chef Ryu Soo-young on ‘Pyeonstorang,’ is now complete! Enjoy this wonderfully spicy and satisfying noodle dish.
