Here, sticky onions combine with miso, stock, and sake to make a very special-tasting soup
Ingredients
Canola oil
1 large onion, finely sliced
3 cloves of garlic, finely sliced
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 bird's-eye chile, finely sliced
6 1/2 cups vegetable stock
2 tablespoons cooking sake
1 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon brown rice or red miso paste
7 ounces dried ramen noodles
1/2 pound choy sum, cut into 2 1/2-inch pieces
Optional: 4 soy eggs (see recipe below) or soft-boiled eggs
Optional: Chile oil, to serve
1/4 cup plus 3 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
2 tablespoons superfine sugar
6 large eggs
Instructions
In a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan, warm 5 tablespoons of oil over a medium heat. Add the onions, garlic, and salt, stir to coat in the oil, and cook for 8 to 10 minutes, until the onions become translucent. Reduce the heat to its lowest setting and continue to cook for 30 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes. The onions will gradually caramelize and color, eventually breaking down to form a soft, sweet paste.
Add the bird’s-eye chile and stock, bring to boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer and add the sake, soy sauce, and brown rice miso, stirring well to combine. Check the seasoning and adjust if need be.
Cook your noodles according to the package instructions. Refresh in cold water and stir in a little oil to keep them from sticking together. Finally, bring the broth back to the boil, add the choy sum and cook for 1 to 2 minutes, until tender. To serve, divide your noodles between four bowls and ladle the broth and greens over the noodles. If you’re serving the eggs, halve and pop on top of the bowls, and serve with some chile oil if you like.
First, set up somewhere to leave your eggs to marinate. I like to use a Kilner jar, but you could also use a deep plastic box. Pour the soy sauce, vinegar, sugar, and 2/3 cup of cold water into your chosen container and stir to mix.
Next, take a bowl that will fit all the eggs and put a couple of handfuls of ice inside. Pour cold water into the bowl so that it’s three-quarters full, and leave to one side.
To cook the eggs, take a saucepan just big enough to hold the eggs snugly (so they can’t rattle around too much), fill it half full of water, and bring to the boil over a medium-high heat. When the water is at a rolling boil, gently lower the eggs into the water using a large spoon. Cook for exactly 7 minutes (set a timer) from the moment the last egg hits the water. Drain and pop the eggs into the bowl of iced water to cool off.
Leave for 10 minutes, then peel the eggs (it sometimes helps to peel under the water to keep them perfect) and drop into the soy mixture. Put a piece of paper towel over the eggs to keep them submerged, and place in the fridge. Leave overnight, then remove the eggs from the solution and transfer to an airtight container in the morning. They will keep for a week in the fridge (and the solution can be used for another round of eggs).
