#7 Beef shoyu ramen

Unless you're in the southern hemisphere or smack in the equator, days are cool and nights are chilly. Here's a delicious way to warm up.

It’s beef noodle soup flavored with ginger and ingredients traditionally associated with Japanese teriyaki. The beef was cooked uncut and sliced after it was already tender. The rest was a matter of assembly.

This recipe serves four to six people. Cooking time is about three and a half hours.

Ingredients

• 800 grams stewing beef - uncut

• 2 tablespoons cooking oil

• 1 three-inch knob ginger - sliced

• 8 cups bone broth - you may need more

• ⅓ cup Japanese soy sauce - plus more for the bowls

• ⅓ cup sake

• ⅓ cup mirin

• fresh ramen (instant ramen may be substituted; just boil in water without overcooking, drain, refresh in iced water and drain again)

• carrot slices (optional)

• bok choy (optional)

Cooking procedure

• Pat the beef dry with a kitchen towel.

• Heat the cooking oil in a shallow pan and brown the beef on all sides.

• Scoop out the beef, transfer to a thick-bottomed pot, add the ginger, and pour in the broth, soy sauce, sake and mirin.

• Bring to the boil, set the heat to low, cover the pot and braised the beef until tender.

• Scoop out the beef, lay on a cutting board and slice.

• Reheat the broth, drop in the carrot slices. Simmer for about five minutes and scoop out.

• Drop the bok choy into the simmering broth, cook just until wilted and scoop out.

• Pour a tablespoon of soy sauce into each bowl and top with ramen, carrot, bok choy and sliced beef into bowls.

• Pour the simmering beef into the bowls.

• Serve your beef shoyu ramen at once.

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I would have sent out the newsletter earlier but I got sick. We’ve been trying products from various small home-based businesses, we ordered empanadas in eclectic flavors via Instagram, and I got sick after eating them. Stomach cramps, mostly. I am not sure if it was the nasty-tasting and nastier-smelling margarine used in making the empanada dough or the too-low temperature in which the empanadas were fried. They were just so greasy.

But, anyway, I am not up and about and able to cook, take photos and write again. In the blog, there are a few new (and updated) recipes. Check them out.

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