Japan Centre in Piccadilly is a real haven for Asian food lovers – not only can you grab a delicious donburi or sushi in the Japanese canteen and delicatessen Umai, but you can then pick up all of the ingredients to recreate dishes at home. I always gravitate towards old favourites such as gyoza, karage, koroke, katsu curry and yakisoba, but this time I wanted to try something new.
Nariaki Kanazawa, manager at Japan Centre told me that Tonkotsu ramen noodles are one of the most popular dishes in Japan and now the dish is starting to appear on menus in the UK. There are a few variations of Tonkotsu ramen noodles to choose from and because I love miso soup, I went for the Hakata Miso-Tonkotsu Ramen Noodles.
I had the chance to stand at the other side of the counter and watch as one of the chefs prepared the dish for me. All of the ingredients are super fresh and surprisingly it takes just a few minutes to prepare.
Ramen noodles are added to a rich tonkotsu pork, miso and chicken broth, which is kept piping hot in a large soup kettle, ready to serve. Then the noodle soup is topped with cold slices of bbq pork, kikurage black mushrooms, red ginger, nori seaweed, beansprouts, spring onion and sesame.
Hakata Miso-Tonkotsu Ramen Noodles is real Japanese comfort food – hearty, warming and full of flavour. The soup has a slightly creamy, oily texture, which gives taste to the fresh vegetables and the succulent slices of seasoned pork. I ordered a big bowl (£8.30), however I really struggled to finish it, so a small bowl (£7.10) for lunch is more than sufficient.
The Japan Centre is a great source of inspiration for Japanese home cooking and trying new dishes to see how they should taste before going it alone. The staff are so enthusiastic and passionate about Japanese food and are on hand to help if you need some advice. It’s definitely one of central London’s more interesting spots for a healthy, freshly-cooked lunch.
For more info, visit: www.japancentre.com
Chérie City was a guest of Japan Centre