On 11/11/2010 6:54 PM, James Silverton wrote:
> ravenlynne wrote on Thu, 11 Nov 2010 17:25:49 -0500:
>
>> On 11/11/2010 4:30 PM, James Silverton wrote:
>>> dsi1 wrote on Thu, 11 Nov 2010 11:18:31 -1000:
>>>
>>>> On 11/11/2010 2:37 AM, ravenlynne wrote:
>>>>> On 11/10/2010 9:55 PM, dsi1 wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>> Your best bet is to try the katsu curry from a ramen shop if you
>>>>>> can find one where you live.
>>>>>
>>>>> There are days when I miss living in japan....I could
>>>>> really go for a bowl of real ramen today. With a plate of
>>>>> homemade gyoza.
>>>>>
>>>> A bowl of ramen is a great thing. It has to be made by
>>>> people that love the stuff.
>>>
>>> I don't go in for mysticism in cookery :-) There's got to be a good
>>> recipe for the ramen broth or sauce that an ordinary
>>> person can follow.
>
>> There probably is. Good luck finding it and having it be at
>> all authentic.
>
>> Might be a good project to research though.
>
>> A fun movie to watch (though full of fluff) is "The Ramen
>> Girl"
>
> It's not proving easy and it's surprisingly common to find ramen recipes
> with the words "add the sauce packet", Phooey! Did you ever see the
> Japanese movie "Tampopo"? It involved various antics in obtaining a
> secret noodle recipe and is very funny.

I've heard of it as a precursor to the ramen girl...apparently the share
a common actor.

--
Currently reading: the thirteenth tale by Diane Setterfield

dsi1 wrote on Thu, 11 Nov 2010 21:39:04 -1000:

> On 11/11/2010 11:30 AM, James Silverton wrote:
>> dsi1 wrote on Thu, 11 Nov 2010 11:18:31 -1000:
>>
>>> On 11/11/2010 2:37 AM, ravenlynne wrote:
>>>> On 11/10/2010 9:55 PM, dsi1 wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> Your best bet is to try the katsu curry from a ramen shop if you
>>>>> can find one where you live.I
>>>>
>>>> There are days when I miss living in japan....I could
>>>> really go for a bowl of real ramen today. With a plate of
>>>> homemade gyoza.
>>>>
>>> A bowl of ramen is a great thing. It has to be made by
>>> people that love the stuff.
>>
>> I don't go in for mysticism in cookery :-) There's got to be a good
>> recipe for the ramen broth or sauce that an ordinary
>> person can follow.

> The reality is that a bowl of ramen doesn't lend itself easily
> to mass production and you pretty much have to make each bowl to
> order. You can have shortcuts to a bowl of ramen but it
> just won't be right. Most ramen will be fine with people that consider
> a bowl of noodles just a bowl of noodles but I grew
> up with the stuff and I have definite ideas about good ramen
> and just another average or mediocre bowl of noodles. A guy that cares
> about making a great bowl will always make a better
> ramen - at least, that's what I'd like to believe.

This is not being asked in any spirit of sarcasm, but just what makes a
bowl of Ramen great? As far as I can tell, it's a rather simple bowl of
noodles in a reasonably good tasting sauce or soup. Commercial dried
Ramen, as sold in supermarkets, is remarkably high in sodium and fat and
is not something I am attracted to. Is making Ramen one of those
Japanese things where a seven-year apprenticeship is necessary for
mastery, like that alleged for Miso production? I'd like to know how to
make Ramen but details are surprisingly hard to find on the net.

Another question, thinking about Hawaii, what makes Ramen different from
Saimin? When I was last in Hawaii, you could get Saimin at MacDonald's.
The stuff did not reach the level of interest of Hamura's on Kauai but
wasn't bad for a quick lunch.

--

James Silverton
Potomac, Maryland

Email, with obvious alterations: not.jim.silverton.at.verizon.not

On 11/12/2010 10:53 AM, James Silverton wrote:
> dsi1 wrote on Thu, 11 Nov 2010 21:39:04 -1000:
>
>> On 11/11/2010 11:30 AM, James Silverton wrote:
>>> dsi1 wrote on Thu, 11 Nov 2010 11:18:31 -1000:
>>>
>>>> On 11/11/2010 2:37 AM, ravenlynne wrote:
>>>>> On 11/10/2010 9:55 PM, dsi1 wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>> Your best bet is to try the katsu curry from a ramen shop if you
>>>>>> can find one where you live.I
>>>>>
>>>>> There are days when I miss living in japan....I could
>>>>> really go for a bowl of real ramen today. With a plate of
>>>>> homemade gyoza.
>>>>>
>>>> A bowl of ramen is a great thing. It has to be made by
>>>> people that love the stuff.
>>>
>>> I don't go in for mysticism in cookery :-) There's got to be a good
>>> recipe for the ramen broth or sauce that an ordinary
>>> person can follow.
>
>> The reality is that a bowl of ramen doesn't lend itself easily
>> to mass production and you pretty much have to make each bowl to
>> order. You can have shortcuts to a bowl of ramen but it
>> just won't be right. Most ramen will be fine with people that consider
>> a bowl of noodles just a bowl of noodles but I grew
>> up with the stuff and I have definite ideas about good ramen
>> and just another average or mediocre bowl of noodles. A guy that cares
>> about making a great bowl will always make a better
>> ramen - at least, that's what I'd like to believe.
>
> This is not being asked in any spirit of sarcasm, but just what makes a
> bowl of Ramen great?

Combination of perfect chicken stock, perfectly made miso, seasonings,
from scratch noodles, peak vegetebles, roasted meat and topped off with
a perfectly cooked egg.

A true, classic bowl of ramen in Japan is art in cooking and arrangement.

As far as I can tell, it's a rather simple bowl of
> noodles in a reasonably good tasting sauce or soup. Commercial dried
> Ramen, as sold in supermarkets, is remarkably high in sodium and fat and
> is not something I am attracted to. Is making Ramen one of those
> Japanese things where a seven-year apprenticeship is necessary for
> mastery, like that alleged for Miso production?

Yes actually. There is a government department for this sort of thing,
believe it or not.

I'd like to know how to
> make Ramen but details are surprisingly hard to find on the net.

It's usually passed down from family to family as far as I know. Each
shop is *usually* individually owned...there are no big ramen chain
restaraunts.




--
Currently reading: the thirteenth tale by Diane Setterfield

On 11/12/2010 5:53 AM, James Silverton wrote:
>
> This is not being asked in any spirit of sarcasm, but just what makes a
> bowl of Ramen great? As far as I can tell, it's a rather simple bowl of
> noodles in a reasonably good tasting sauce or soup. Commercial dried
> Ramen, as sold in supermarkets, is remarkably high in sodium and fat and
> is not something I am attracted to. Is making Ramen one of those
> Japanese things where a seven-year apprenticeship is necessary for
> mastery, like that alleged for Miso production? I'd like to know how to
> make Ramen but details are surprisingly hard to find on the net.

The dried instant ramen is a different product than the real ramen. That
stuff is fried to make a noodle that can be stored on the shelves.
Proper ramen is made from fresh noodles which, I suppose, can be
refrigerated for a short while. I can't say how difficult it is to make
a great bowl of ramen because I mostly buy the stuff in restaurants. I'm
pretty sure that you can't make a great bowl unless you have a source of
fresh noodles.

>
> Another question, thinking about Hawaii, what makes Ramen different from
> Saimin? When I was last in Hawaii, you could get Saimin at MacDonald's.
> The stuff did not reach the level of interest of Hamura's on Kauai but
> wasn't bad for a quick lunch.
>

The saimin noodle is thicker than a ramen noodle. My guess is that
saimin is not served anywhere but Hawaii. I grew up eating saimin, not
ramen. These days I can get a pretty decent bowl of ramen from the ramen
shops but I wouldn't be able to say where to get a good bowl of saimin.
I don't care much for McDonalds saimin and haven't had any in about a
decade. Maybe I should check it out again.

dsi1 wrote on Fri, 12 Nov 2010 08:16:57 -1000:

> On 11/12/2010 5:53 AM, James Silverton wrote:
>>
>> This is not being asked in any spirit of sarcasm, but just
>> what makes a bowl of Ramen great? As far as I can tell, it's a rather
>> simple bowl of noodles in a reasonably good tasting sauce or soup.
>> Commercial dried Ramen, as sold in
>> supermarkets, is remarkably high in sodium and fat and is not
>> something I am attracted to. Is making Ramen one of
>> those Japanese things where a seven-year apprenticeship is
>> necessary for mastery, like that alleged for Miso production?
>> I'd like to know how to make Ramen but details are
>> surprisingly hard to find on the net.

> The dried instant ramen is a different product than the real
> ramen. That stuff is fried to make a noodle that can be stored
> on the shelves. Proper ramen is made from fresh noodles which,
> I suppose, can be refrigerated for a short while. I can't say how
> difficult it is to make a great bowl of ramen because I
> mostly buy the stuff in restaurants. I'm pretty sure that you can't
> make a great bowl unless you have a source of fresh
> noodles.

>> Another question, thinking about Hawaii, what makes Ramen
>> different from Saimin? When I was last in Hawaii, you could
>> get Saimin at MacDonald's. The stuff did not reach the level of
>> interest of Hamura's on Kauai but wasn't bad for a quick
>> lunch.
>>
>The saimin noodle is thicker than a ramen noodle. My guess is that
>saimin is not served anywhere but Hawaii. I grew up eating saimin, not
>ramen.
Thanks for all the information!

It may well be that ramen nooles as served in ramen shops are not fried
and I will have to look out to see if anyone opens a Ramen place around
DC. Certainly, I have just spent an interesting, if frustrating, time
inspecting the numerous packages of ramen both plain and flavored in my
favorite Kam Sam supermarket. All the servings of ramen indicate about
25% of the recommended daily fat intake and are way above my personal
limits of about 1/10 of that. The sodium levels are similar.

The same problems occur for all packages of Japanese curry and I will
not be experimenting with them for Katsu curry either.

By the way, I just had a most enjoyable low-fat lunch having Pho Ga
(Chicken) at a Pho restaurant. They use two thicknesses of (I think)
rice noodles and serve large quantities of bean sprouts, basil, sliced
jalapeno peppers and lime as well as sliced whitemeat chicken in the
soup. That's going to remain my standard noodle lunch, I guess.

--

James Silverton
Potomac, Maryland

Email, with obvious alterations: not.jim.silverton.at.verizon.not

On 11/12/2010 9:55 AM, James Silverton wrote:
> dsi1 wrote on Fri, 12 Nov 2010 08:16:57 -1000:
>
>> On 11/12/2010 5:53 AM, James Silverton wrote:
>>>
>>> This is not being asked in any spirit of sarcasm, but just
>>> what makes a bowl of Ramen great? As far as I can tell, it's a rather
>>> simple bowl of noodles in a reasonably good tasting sauce or soup.
>>> Commercial dried Ramen, as sold in
>>> supermarkets, is remarkably high in sodium and fat and is not
>>> something I am attracted to. Is making Ramen one of
>>> those Japanese things where a seven-year apprenticeship is
>>> necessary for mastery, like that alleged for Miso production?
>>> I'd like to know how to make Ramen but details are
>>> surprisingly hard to find on the net.
>
>> The dried instant ramen is a different product than the real
>> ramen. That stuff is fried to make a noodle that can be stored
>> on the shelves. Proper ramen is made from fresh noodles which,
>> I suppose, can be refrigerated for a short while. I can't say how
>> difficult it is to make a great bowl of ramen because I
>> mostly buy the stuff in restaurants. I'm pretty sure that you can't
>> make a great bowl unless you have a source of fresh
>> noodles.
>
>>> Another question, thinking about Hawaii, what makes Ramen
>>> different from Saimin? When I was last in Hawaii, you could
>>> get Saimin at MacDonald's. The stuff did not reach the level of
>>> interest of Hamura's on Kauai but wasn't bad for a quick
>>> lunch.
>>>
>> The saimin noodle is thicker than a ramen noodle. My guess is that
>> saimin is not served anywhere but Hawaii. I grew up eating saimin, not
>> ramen.
> Thanks for all the information!

I forgot to add that saimin has a funky curly look to it and is white to
light beige in color. Ramen has a destinct yellow cast to it and is
straight. My guess is that ramen is based on Chinese style noodles and
has eggs in it. I can't say why saimin appears to have no similarity to
Chinese or Japanese noodles or why it's all curly. It's an major dish in
these islands and yet it seems saimin shops have gone the way of
drive-in theaters. Years ago, there were many shops selling saimin and
nobody heard of ramen. Mostly the saimin I get these days in restaurants
are just so-so and a small part of the menu.

>
> It may well be that ramen nooles as served in ramen shops are not fried
> and I will have to look out to see if anyone opens a Ramen place around
> DC. Certainly, I have just spent an interesting, if frustrating, time
> inspecting the numerous packages of ramen both plain and flavored in my
> favorite Kam Sam supermarket. All the servings of ramen indicate about
> 25% of the recommended daily fat intake and are way above my personal
> limits of about 1/10 of that. The sodium levels are similar.

You are right about this. The instant ramen soup base pack is high in
salt. My guess is that the noodles have the fat because they're deep
fried and have a high amount of surface area. If I cook the instant
stuff, I cook it al dente and rinse the noodles in cold water which may
reduce the fat content a little. Typically I won't use the soup base
packet and instead will make the broth part using bonito flavored power
which is high in salt (and MSG) but at least tastes better than that
salty stuff that comes with the ramen. I won't use the water used to
boil the noodles for the soup because that water gets all cloudy and icky.

Strangely enough, a bowl of instant ramen will look more like a bowl of
saimin than ramen due to it's curliness and thickness.

>
> The same problems occur for all packages of Japanese curry and I will
> not be experimenting with them for Katsu curry either.
>
> By the way, I just had a most enjoyable low-fat lunch having Pho Ga
> (Chicken) at a Pho restaurant. They use two thicknesses of (I think)
> rice noodles and serve large quantities of bean sprouts, basil, sliced
> jalapeno peppers and lime as well as sliced whitemeat chicken in the
> soup. That's going to remain my standard noodle lunch, I guess.
>

The VN Pho is appealing for today's health conscientious noodle eaters -
that's my guess anyway. That stuff does have a look of freshness that
ramen noodles will lack.

dsi1 wrote:

> I forgot to add that saimin has a funky curly look to it and is white to
> light beige in color. Ramen has a destinct yellow cast to it and is
> straight.

As I know it, that's exactly backward.

Bob

On 11/12/2010 6:25 PM, Bob Terwilliger wrote:
> dsi1 wrote:
>
>> I forgot to add that saimin has a funky curly look to it and is white to
>> light beige in color. Ramen has a destinct yellow cast to it and is
>> straight.
>
> As I know it, that's exactly backward.
>
> Bob
>
>

A more careful reading of my post will probably help your confusion. :-)

dsi1 wrote:

>>> I forgot to add that saimin has a funky curly look to it and is white to
>>> light beige in color. Ramen has a destinct yellow cast to it and is
>>> straight.
>>
>> As I know it, that's exactly backward.
>>
>
> A more careful reading of my post will probably help your confusion. :-)

You're right, it's only PARTLY backward. To me, saimin is off-white/beige
and straight. Ramen is yellowish and curly.

Bob

On 11/12/2010 7:20 PM, Bob Terwilliger wrote:
> dsi1 wrote:
>
>>>> I forgot to add that saimin has a funky curly look to it and is white to
>>>> light beige in color. Ramen has a destinct yellow cast to it and is
>>>> straight.
>>>
>>> As I know it, that's exactly backward.
>>>
>>
>> A more careful reading of my post will probably help your confusion. :-)
>
> You're right, it's only PARTLY backward. To me, saimin is off-white/beige
> and straight. Ramen is yellowish and curly.

I'm talking about 3 differing types of noodles. Most people know instant
ramen which is blocks of fried noodles that sells for dirt cheap. Some
people are familiar with ramen and saimin. Mostly I'm comparing ramen,
which is yellowish and straight and skinny with saimin which is curly
and white and thicker. My comment was that instant ramen looks a lot
like saimin. However, instant ramen is not saimin or ramen. Sorry for
the confusion.

>
> Bob
>
>

On 11/13/2010 12:20 AM, Bob Terwilliger wrote:
> dsi1 wrote:
>
>>>> I forgot to add that saimin has a funky curly look to it and is white to
>>>> light beige in color. Ramen has a destinct yellow cast to it and is
>>>> straight.
>>>
>>> As I know it, that's exactly backward.
>>>
>>
>> A more careful reading of my post will probably help your confusion. :-)
>
> You're right, it's only PARTLY backward. To me, saimin is off-white/beige
> and straight. Ramen is yellowish and curly.
>
> Bob
>
>

Ramen noodles in japan are not curly. they're similar to udon but thinner.

--
Currently reading: the thirteenth tale by Diane Setterfield

On 11/12/2010 9:55 AM, James Silverton wrote:
> It may well be that ramen nooles as served in ramen shops are not fried
> and I will have to look out to see if anyone opens a Ramen place around
> DC. Certainly, I have just spent an interesting, if frustrating, time
> inspecting the numerous packages of ramen both plain and flavored in my
> favorite Kam Sam supermarket. All the servings of ramen indicate about
> 25% of the recommended daily fat intake and are way above my personal
> limits of about 1/10 of that. The sodium levels are similar.

You might like somen noodles. These are delicate, skinny noodles that
would go fine in a light soup base. It's fat free and the sodium content
is controlled by you. It takes only a few minutes to boil and you can
even serve it ice cold in a chilled broth. It might be the only noodle
dish that is served this way. It's delicious and even refreshing and
easy to make. You don't get any fat and the salt can be kept at
reasonable levels.

>
> The same problems occur for all packages of Japanese curry and I will
> not be experimenting with them for Katsu curry either.
>
> By the way, I just had a most enjoyable low-fat lunch having Pho Ga
> (Chicken) at a Pho restaurant. They use two thicknesses of (I think)
> rice noodles and serve large quantities of bean sprouts, basil, sliced
> jalapeno peppers and lime as well as sliced whitemeat chicken in the
> soup. That's going to remain my standard noodle lunch, I guess.
>

i keep a freezer bag in the freezer to throw all excess bread in.
(leftover hamburger buns, etc).
when it gets full, i grind, or roll everything into crumbs and they
stay in the freezer until i need them.

On Sun, 14 Nov 2010 16:51:48 -0800 (PST), "rosie@readandpost"
> wrote:

>i keep a freezer bag in the freezer to throw all excess bread in.
>(leftover hamburger buns, etc).
>when it gets full, i grind, or roll everything into crumbs and they
>stay in the freezer until i need them.

WTF does that have to do with panko?

On Sun, 14 Nov 2010 16:51:48 -0800 (PST), rosie@readandpost wrote:

> i keep a freezer bag in the freezer to throw all excess bread in.
> (leftover hamburger buns, etc).
> when it gets full, i grind, or roll everything into crumbs and they
> stay in the freezer until i need them.

rosie! long time, no see!

your pal,
blake

On Sun, 14 Nov 2010 22:49:10 -0600 in rec.food.cooking, Lou Decruss
> wrote,
>On Sun, 14 Nov 2010 16:51:48 -0800 (PST), "rosie@readandpost"
> wrote:
>
>>i keep a freezer bag in the freezer to throw all excess bread in.
>>(leftover hamburger buns, etc).
>>when it gets full, i grind, or roll everything into crumbs and they
>>stay in the freezer until i need them.
>
>WTF does that have to do with panko?

Panko is bread crumbs.

On Nov 5, 10:12*am, "Cheri" > wrote:
> "rosie@readandpost" > wrote in message
>
> ...
> On Nov 5, 11:01 am, Lou Decruss > wrote:
>
> > I went to make green fried tomatoes last night and Louise suggested
> > panko rather than cornmeal. I don't know why I never thought of it
> > before but it's how I do it all the time now. No problem browning or
> > sticking and delicious.
>
> > The evidence:
>
> >http://i52.tinypic.com/2vbk0sy.jpg
>
> >http://i55.tinypic.com/foqfbs.jpg
>
> > Lou
>
> ok, where do i find PANKO?
>
> ==========
>
> In the stores on the aisle where the flour , bread crumbs etc. are kept.
>
> Cheri

thanks, found it!