Guide to Japan’s Ramen: Styles, Flavors, and Useful Japanese Words
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Ramen ラーメン is said to have originally been a Chinese dish, but it has evolved in a unique way in Japan and can be considered a part of Japanese cuisine.
Ramen is loved by the Japanese, and each region has its own unique style, with some ramen shops becoming tourist spots in their towns.
In this article, we will introduce the main types of ramen and their toppings, along with the Japanese words for them.
Ramen in Japanese || What is Ramen?
Ramen in Japanese || Basic Variations
Ramen in Japanese || Popular Toppings
Ramen in Japanese || How to Order and Eat Ramen
Ramen in Japanese || FAQs
Ramen in Japanese || What is Ramen?
Ramen (ラーメン、拉麺 らーめん ) is originally a Chinese word.
拉 らー means to pull
麺 めん means wheat
So ramen means wheat dough stretched into noodles.
Although there are countless variations of ramen, every ramen noodle must be made of wheat. Although they are made from wheat, the thickness and texture of the noodles vary greatly.
Furthermore, there are a wide variety of soups and ingredient combinations, which creates a rich diversity of ramen.
Ramen in Japanese || Basic Variations
Although there are many ramen that have evolved in their own unique ways, they can still be classified into a few categories.
Generally, ramen can be divided into the following categories:
醤油
しょうゆShoyu
Soy-souce based
塩
しおshio
Salt based
味噌
みそmiso
Miso based
豚骨
とんこつTonkotsu
Pork bone based
Soy sauce (醤油 しょうゆ shoyu) is a sauce made by fermenting soybeans and occupies a very important position in Japanese food culture.
Shoyu ramen is the most basic type of ramen. Ramen served at regular cafeterias and restaurants attached to supermarkets often uses soy sauce.
The soup is dark and plain, making it an easy-to-eat ramen.
Shio (塩 しお ) ramen is another category of ramen. This is, of course, a salt-based ramen as the name suggests, and it has a very light flavor. It has an even lighter taste than soy sauce ramen, and is often topped with seafood such as scallops.
Hakodate, Hokkaido is famous for its shio ramen. The soup is clear and reflects the color of the noodles, making it appear to sparkle golden.
Miso (味噌 みそ ) is a paste-like food made from fermented soybeans. I’m sure you are already familiar with miso soup. Miso is also used as a base for ramen.
Sapporo, the largest city in Hokkaido, is famous for this miso ramen. The soup is brown and has a rich miso flavor. Because it has a strong flavor, it goes well with butter and corn.
Tonkotsu (豚骨 とんこつ ) is pork bone. Tonkotsu ramen uses soup made from pork bones and is famous in the Kyushu region in southern Japan. It is very oily and has a strong flavor, so it is a ramen that may not be to everyone’s liking.
However, properly made tonkotsu ramen is not greasy, but rather has a high-quality taste that even tastes sweet. The soup is cloudy white and is topped with green onions, roasted pork slices, boiled eggs, and more.
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Ramen in Japanese || Popular Toppings
There are four main types of soup, as mentioned above. There are also a wide variety of toppings, but the most popular ones are as follows:
| JAPANESE | ROMAJI | ENGLISH MEANING |
| チャーシュー | cha-shu- | Roasted pork |
| メンマ | menma | Bamboo shoots |
| 煮卵 にたまご | nitamago | Boiled eggs |
| 味玉 あじたま | ajitama | Flavored boiled eggs |
| ネギ | negi | Leek |
| ショウガ | shouga | Ginger |
| ニンニク | ninniku | Garlic |
| 鶏肉 とりにく | toriniku | Roasted chicken |
These toppings may be included in the menu or you can purchase them separately to add to your own tastes.
チャーシュー cha-shu- is roasted pork, which is one of the most popular toppings in ramen. In ramen shops, there is quite often a menu item チャーシューメン cha-shu-men.” This is basically a shoyu ramen whose toppings are チャーシュー.
Each store has its own unique cha-shu-, ranging from thinly sliced to thick, and seasoned with the store’s own sauce.
メンマ menma is a food made by fermenting a type of bamboo shoot. This is also an ingredient that is almost always added as a topping when ordering ramen.
They are typically brown and cut into pieces about 5 cm long, but there are variations depending on the store, such as using ones that retain the original shape of the bamboo shoot.
煮卵 にたまご nitamago are boiled eggs. These are often cut in half. They come in a variety of boiled conditions, from ones with fully set yolks to ones that are only soft-boiled.
味玉 あじたま ajitama are boiled eggs, which have been marinated in soy sauce.
Ramen in Japanese || How to Order and Eat Ramen
Ramen shops are called ラーメン屋 ラーメンや ramen-ya in Japanese. At most ramen shops, the mainstream system is to buy a meal ticket from a ticket machine.
Recently, many stores have been uploading photos of their products on Instagram or X, so if you are not confident in your Japanese, it is a good idea to check out such posts beforehand.
Ticket vending machines often do not have photos, and only the product name is written on them. If you are unsure, it is okay to show the photo to the store clerk when ordering.
At some shops, the waiter may ask you about your preference of noodle firmness. Depending on your preference, you can answer:
やわらかめで。 yawarakame de
Soft.
ふつうで。
hutsuu de.
Normal.
かためで。
katame de.
Hard.
In addition, some restaurants may ask you for detailed ramen preferences. Even in Japan, people say that when you go to a restaurant for the first time and are asked such questions, you don’t really know what to answer.
A useful phrase in situations like this is:
全部ふつうで
ぜんぶふつうでzenbu hutsuu de
Everything normal
This will bring you the restaurant’s standard ramen.
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Ramen in Japanese || Things To be Aware of
As ramen occupies an important place in Japanese culture, and some people still have strange obsessions with ramen itself and how to eat it, although it is becoming less common these days.
In the past, small, privately owned ramen shops would impose their own rules, such as not talking while eating or having to drink all the soup. In rare cases, regular customers may create their own strange rules without the store’s intention.
In the age of social media, this sort of thing doesn’t happen as often, but if possible, it’s a good idea to check out information about a store beforehand via Instagram or reviews on Google Maps.
That’s all for this article. Have you ever tried Japanese ramen before? Share you experience with us in the comments!
Ramen in Japanese || FAQs
What does ramen mean?
Ramen (ラーメン、拉麺 らーめん ) is originally a Chinese word. 拉 らー ” means to pull and 麺 めん means wheat.
So ramen means wheat dough stretched into noodles.
What kinds of ramen are there?
Generally, ramen can be divided into the following categories:しょうゆ、味噌 みそ 、塩 しお 、豚骨 とんこつ .
What are popular toppings for ramen?
Popular toppings are: roasted pork, bamboo shoots, boiled eggs, ginger, garlic and roasted chicken.
How can I order ramen?
In most cases, at ramen shops you have to buy meal tickets at a vending machine.
If the waiter asks my preference for noodle hardness and I don’t have any preference, what should I say?
You can say:
ふつうでhutsuu de
Normal, please.
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