Most of you know Ramen as those packages of noodles that come with little powder packets and sells for 99 cents (or less) at the supermarket. What you may or may not know is that traditional Japanese Ramen doesn’t come in little packets, it’s made using many different ingredients and slow cooked to produce a savory broth and served with noodles and a variety of toppings. Traditional broths are rich, milky white in color and will actually gelatinize in the refrigerator because of the collagen from the bones used in making the broth. While I eat quite a bit of the packaged stuff at home (especially the spicy kind), the traditional Japanese Ramen is a totally different experience.
Ramen originated in China and is thought to have moved to Japan by 1900 and was popularized after World War II when food was scarce. Since then, many different kinds of Ramen were created in Japan with localized variations providing even more variety. The noodle packet version was invented in 1958 by Nissin foods which helped Ramen to become an international hit.
At Sushiya, we spend most of our time preparing our broth because it’s such an integral part of the Ramen. We create our broth by slow cooking it for over 12 hours until it becomes a milky white color. To add spice, we use six different kinds of chili taking our Ramen from mild to very, very spicy (I call this Asian spicy). We also feature 11 different toppings from sweet to savory to add levels of texture and flavors. Even the pork belly slice that tops every Ramen is made using 8 different ingredients and slow cooked for tenderness and so the flavors can penetrate the pork.
We take pride and it’s shown, because since our launch in March 2012, our Ramen has become our number one seller! So much so that the idea of a “Sushiya Ramen” store is not totally ridiculous. All joking aside, our Ramen has become a big hit and we hope that you’ll visit to give it a try.
Sushiya Bar & Grill is located at 23360 Valencia Boulevard, Suite D in Valencia. For more information, please call 661-254-3855 and visit www.sushiyavalencia.com.