Super Premium Ramen

What makes ramen boxes "Super Premium"?

First of all, premium and super premium ramen are absolutely NOT "instant" ramen.  It would be an injustice to the master chefs who prepared them to classify them alongside the instant ramen that we commonly associate with startup or college food.

Some telltale signs that ramen IS NOT premium:

• The noodles are hard and fried
• Soup stock is in powdered form
• You cook and eat it in a disposable cup or bowl
• You can buy it at a convenience store or Costco
• It has a long shelf life
• It has a generic taste that doesn't stand out

 Some telltale signs your ramen IS premium:

• The noodles are soft and fresh
• Soup stock is concentrated real broth
• Included toppings, flavor packs, and oils are natural

The team at RamenTrunk enjoy our fair share of ramen (I'd like to say only premium but there's a time and a place for instant) and we feel the type of product that really stands out from the pack is what we classify as "Super Premium".

Some telltale signs that your ramen Super Premium:

• Super premium packs are usually small batch from a very specific shop
• A Master Ramen Chef associates his name to the ramen
• Very difficult to get outside of Japan
• It is freakin' absolutely delicious and unique in taste

Where do we get our Super Premium Ramen?

There's no single answer for this. RamenTrunk scours Japan to find unique ramen to include in our trunks. From going directly to Kyushu or the tiny ramen counter in Kochijoji, Tokyo we seek out the best for our subscribers.

What about the taste?

When assessing the taste and quality of any ramen, whether packaged or in person, we need to look at the three qualities of any bowl of ramen: Noodles, Soup, and Flavor.

Noodles

The goal of these ramen boxes is to fully replicate the flavor and experience of eating at the ramen shop. They use the exact same noodles and maintain the quality by immediately packaging the noodles fresh.

When cooking with these noodles at home you are in full control of the firmness you desire and we suggest sticking with a quick boiling time to ensure a firm texture.

Soup

This is the same for the soup or broth. The broth in the super premium ramen is exactly what is used in the ramen shops as if you were eating in front of the ramen chef. This broth is delicately brewed over multiple days (frequently from 2-6 days) to get the deep and rich flavor and texture in a tonkotsu broth.  But we also seek out other and more exotic broths such as Shoyu, Miso, Black Sesame, and Curry.

Flavor

This is the most subjective of the measurements and is where each ramen creator stands out. There are literally limitless flavors across Japan when it comes to ramen broth. Each one has its own unique character driven by the artisan who crafted it and only by experiencing these first hand will you truly come to appreciate Japan ramen culture.

Adding to flavor is the toppings. In Japan toppings are usually sparce and include:

• Charshiu pork (unless it's a chicken ramen)
• Green onions
• Seaweed

That's it!  But again, there are multiple variations and options. 

When cooked at home you can do whatever you like! There's no rules here.

 

It's important to understand the quality of the ramen and the time and effort a master ramen creator has spent in crafting the tastes in the box of ramen you are about to enjoy. Part of the experience is connecting with the history of the ramen you are about to enjoy.

RamenTrunk will provide a tasting guide and overview of each premium box of ramen in your personal trunk. You'll love most of them and maybe even hate some of them. But that's all part of the journey!

 

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