Easy Korean Ramen Bowl

The success of this dish hinges entirely on the sauce. Who knew that peanut butter and gochujang (a fiery hot Korean paste) would be such a formidable pairing? Nothing could take the sheen off this number.. Should you wish to forgo the ramen element, feel free, because truthfully this recipe is also magnificent with steamed white rice – just don’t put it underneath the sauce or else it will be swamped.
Serves
Serves 4
Total Time
30 Minutes
Ingredients
½ tablespoon of coconut oil
1 red onion, roughly chopped
1 large carrot, sliced diagonally
1 large parsnip, sliced diagonally
2 tbsp of gochujang (Korean chilli paste)
1 tsbp of miso paste
1 tbsp of smooth peanut butter
½ tbsp of soy sauce, plus extra if needed
½ tbsp of maple syrup
1.5 litres of water
15 x 10cm piece of kombu seaweed
Handful of green beans, halved
½ head of cauliflower, broken into florets
100g of firm tofu, cut into cubes
250g of fine rice noodle nests
Sea salt flakes
Quick pickled cucumber
1 small cucumber, halved lengthways and sliced into ribbons
½ tbsp of sugar
½ tbsp of sea salt flakes
Juice of ½ lime (or lemon)
½ tbsp of Zingy Yuzu and Miso Dressing (see page 18)
1 tsp of dried chilli flakes
1 tbsp of black sesame seeds
To Serve
2 spring onions, sliced
Small handful of fresh coriander leaves, roughly chopped
1 nori seaweed sheet, shredded
Method
Step 1

To make the pickled cucumber, add the cucumber pieces to a shallow bowl, sprinkle over the sugar and salt and pour over the lime juice and yuzu dressing. Toss to combine and set aside until needed.

Step 2

Heat the coconut oil in a large heavy-based saucepan over a medium heat. Add the onion, carrot and parsnip to the pan, season with a little salt and sauté for 1–2 minutes until slightly softened.

Step 3

Add the gochujang, miso, smooth peanut butter, soy sauce and maple syrup to the pan, pour over the measured water and stir in the kombu.

Step 4

Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 5–7 minutes. Remove the kombu and finely slice, then add to the pan with the beans and cauliflower and cook for a further 10 minutes. Add the tofu and cook for five minutes to warm through. Season with salt, adding a splash of soy sauce if needed.

Step 5

Divide the rice noodle nests among four deep bowls, then ladle over the stew so that the noodles are fully submerged. Leave the noodles for 2–3 minutes to soften in the broth before using chopsticks to break them up further and mix everything together thoroughly.

Step 6

Stir the chilli flakes and sesame seeds through the quick pickled cucumber and use it to top the ramen bowls together with the spring onion, coriander and nori. Serve.

Recipe courtesy of Cook Share Eat Vegan by Aine Carlin.

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