Miso Tare - my go-to ramen base (and veggie sauce)

I always made good ramen at home, I'll say that. I also prepare thoroughly and look stuff up when I feel like I need to. That's how I ended up on the tare: most of the flavor in a bowl of ramen lives in the tare, not the broth. That concentrated seasoning makes up maybe ten percent of the bowl but does most of the work.

This is my miso tare. It keeps for weeks in the fridge, so one batch carries me through several meals. And honestly, I don't only use it for ramen. It's great brushed onto grilled or roasted vegetables, and it works as a quick stir-fry sauce too. If you cook a lot of veg, this one earns its spot in the fridge.

Want the full bowl? Pair it with my braised pork belly and this becomes a proper miso ramen. The tare does the flavor, the pork does the body.

Ingredients

• 300 g red miso paste
• 180 g white miso paste
• 1/4 cup sake
• 1/4 cup mirin
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 1 tbsp sesame oil
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1 piece of ginger (about 2 cm)
• 2 spring onions
• 1 tbsp dashi powder, dissolved in 1/4 cup water

Method

Prep everything first. Chop the garlic, ginger, and spring onions fine, and dissolve the dashi in water if you're using it.

Heat the sesame oil in a medium pot over medium heat. Add the garlic, ginger, and spring onions and sweat them for 2-3 minutes, stirring, until fragrant but not browned.

Turn the heat down and stir in the miso. Mix it well with the aromatics and keep an eye on it so it doesn't catch on the bottom.

Add the sake, mirin, and the dashi solution (if using) and stir everything together.

Let it simmer on low for 10-15 minutes, stirring now and then. The alcohol in the sake and mirin should cook off, and the tare should start to thicken.

Stir in the sugar until it's fully dissolved, then taste and adjust the seasoning if you want.

Take it off the heat and let it cool to room temperature. Store it in an airtight container in the fridge, where it'll keep for a few weeks.