Shio Ramen with Chicken Chashu

COLD BREW DASHI:--
12½ cups water
19 g kombu (about 10 x 10 cm for 4 servings)
19 g dried shiitake
19 g iriko or niboshi (dried baby sardines/anchovies)
RAMEN SOUP:--
12 cups Cold Brew Dashi
680 g ground chicken
1 knob ginger
2 spring onions
19 g katsuobushi (dried bonito flakes)
Chicken Chashu:-- (skip for vegetarian)
1 boneless, skin-on chicken breast
2 cups water
1 tbsp SIDS SALT & PEPPER
AROMA OIL:--
1 chicken skin (from one chicken breast; skip for vegetarian)
some dark green tops of the spring onions
light green leaves of the spring onions
1 clove garlic
¼ cup rice bran oil
SHIO TARE:--
½ cup Cold Brew Dashi (for vegetarian, use vegetable stock)
½ cup saké
2 tbsp mirin
2 tsp GF soy sauce
¼ tsp fish sauce (skip for vegetarian)
⅛ cup kosher salt
5 g katsuobushi (dried bonito flakes)
NOODLES & TOPPINGS:--
ramen noodles (566-680 g fresh or 360 g dry noodles for 4 servings)
outer layers of spring onion white stalk
4 Ramen Eggs (Ajitsuke Tamago)
1 Chicken Chashu (for vegetarian, grill king oyster mushrooms, eggplant, or fried tofu)
¼ cup menma (seasoned bamboo shoots)
VEGETARIAN RAMEN SOUP:-- (optional)
1 tbsp roasted sesame oil
2 tsp grated ginger
2 cloves garlic, minced
4 cups vegetable stock
4 cups water
14 g kombu, roughly 15 x 15 cm for 4 servings
28 g dried shiitake mushrooms

Before You Start…
Measure the ingredients using a kitchen scale. (click the "metric" button) For the best results, I highly recommend making the Cold Brew Dashi overnight, or at least 4 hours in advance. You simply need to add the dried ingredients to the water, then leave it to steep.
Cold Brew Dashi and Ramen Soup
Gather all the ingredients for making the Cold Brew Dashi and Ramen Soup. Keep the ground chicken in the refrigerator for now.
Shio Ramen Soup Ingredients
In a large pot, combine the water, kombu, dried shiitake mushrooms, and dried anchovies. If you use several pieces of kombu, count them so you know how many pieces to remove later.
Steep overnight (preferably) or at least 4 hours. (Do not steep longer than 12 hours or the kombu will turn slimy and the dashi will be bitter. During summertime or hot weather, keep your pot in the refrigerator for food safety)
After steeping, reserve the specified amount of this dashi (½ cup for 4 servings) for making the Shio Tare later. Set it aside.
Thinly slice the ginger. (about 3 slices for 4 servings) Cut and separate the spring onion into four sections:
1) the white stalk
2) the Y-shaped piece where the white stalk and light green leaves meet
3) the light green leaves
4) the dark green tops. Reserve the outer layers of the white stalk for the shiraga negi (white scallion topping) and the stalk's light green core for the Aroma Oil. For making the soup, use half of the dark green tops plus the Y-shaped piece.
To the pot of Cold Brew Dashi, add the ground chicken, ginger slices, half of the negi's dark green tops, and the Y-shaped negi piece.
Set the pot on the stove over medium heat. Using a wooden spatula, gently break apart the ground chicken while you heat up the stock. Do not leave any big chunks of chicken. Slowly bring the stock to a gentle boil to extract the flavour from the kombu. Right before the liquid boils, remove all the kombu pieces that you counted earlier and discard them.
Lower the heat and simmer the stock for 30 minutes. Remember to keep the stock gently simmering but not boiling. As we're using ground chicken, there is no need to skim the scum from the stock. During this time, start making the Chicken Chashu.
After 30 minutes of simmering, add the thick shavings (atsukezuri) of the katsuobushi and gently simmer for another 10-15 minutes. If you are substituting with thin shavings, (hanakatsuo) add them to the simmering stock and cook for just 30 seconds, turn off the heat, and let the katsuobushi steep for an additional 10 minutes.
Drain the stock in a fine-mesh strainer (especially if you're using thin shavings) over a large pot. Here, I'm using an 8-cup measuring cup to measure the total amount of soup.
Keep the pot of soup uncovered while prepping the other ingredients. The moisture will continue to evaporate, allowing the soup to develop more concentrated flavours.
Vegetarian Ramen Soup (Optional)
Set a large pot over medium heat. When it's hot, add the sesame oil, a dash of rice bran oil and stir-fry the minced ginger and minced garlic until fragrant.
Add the vegetable stock, water, dried kombu, and dried shiitake mushrooms. Slowly bring it to a simmer. When it almost reaches a simmer, remove the kombu from the liquid and discard it. Continue to simmer uncovered for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and set it aside. Keep the pot of soup uncovered while prepping the other ingredients. The moisture will continue to evaporate, allowing the soup to develop more concentrated flavours.
Chicken Chashu
Remove the chicken breast skin with a knife and your hands. It should come off easily by pulling and tearing. Cut the chicken skin into 2 cm pieces.
In a small pot, combine the water, salt, and freshly ground black pepper. I recommend using a small pot instead of a large one so you don't need much liquid. If you have to use a large pot, double the amount of water, salt, and pepper. Bring the liquid to a boil.
Once boiling, add the chicken breast, making sure it is covered by the liquid, and lower the heat to medium. Put an otoshibuta (drop lid) on top of the chicken so it is completely submerged in the liquid. Make sure to keep it gently simmering (not boiling) for 25-30 minutes.
Around the 25-minute mark, check the internal temperature of the thickest part of the chicken using an instant-read thermometer. If it reads 74ºC, transfer the chicken and some cooking liquid to a plate and cover with plastic so it will not dry out. Let it cool on the kitchen counter. You can discard the cooking liquid or repurpose it as a seasoning. (it's a very salty chicken stock) If you don't have a thermometer, cook the chicken for 25-30 minutes. If you have a very thick chicken breast, you may need to cook it a few minutes longer. Guessing the chicken's doneness is difficult and it is possible to overcook it, resulting in dry meat. Having a thermometer takes the guesswork out of testing the doneness of the chicken.
Aroma Oil
Cut the light green leaves of spring onions into julienned strips and finely mince them into small pieces. You can also mince the light green inner core leftover from preparing the shiraga negi. Simply score the white stalk and peel off the outer white layers to reveal the core.
Cut the remaining half of the dark green tops into pieces 5 cm long. Mince the garlic. (or use a garlic press)
In a small frying pan, add the oil, chicken skin, light and dark green parts of the spring onion, and minced garlic. Turn on the stove to medium low.
Cook for 10-15 minutes, slowly extracting the flavour from the chicken skin, garlic, and spring onion.
Drain the oil using a fine-mesh strainer set over a small bowl. Press and squeeze the oil out of the cooked ingredients using a wooden spatula. Set the Aroma Oil aside and discard the cooked mixture.
Shio Tare
In a small pot, add all the ingredients except for the katsuobushi.
Whisk the liquid and bring it to a gentle boil on medium heat, then reduce to medium low and simmer for 5 minutes.
Add the katsuobushi.
If you are using thick shavings, cook for 5 minutes and drain the Shio Tare in a fine-mesh sieve over a small bowl. If you are using thin shavings, cook for 30 seconds, turn off the heat, and steep for 10 minutes, then drain into a fine-mesh sieve over a small bowl. Set the Shio Tare aside.
Toppings
To make the shiraga negi (white scallion topping), score the white stalk of the spring onions and peel off the outer white layers. The light green inner core can be used for the Aroma Oil. Cut the outer white layers into pieces about 5 cm long.
Finely julienne these outer white layers. Soak in cold water for 5 minutes to remove the bitterness. Drain and set aside.
Thinly slice a spring onion and set it aside.
Slice the Ramen Eggs in half using a fishing wire or cheese cutter. (that's what I use) A knife doesn't give a clean cut, but you can use it. Top each bowl with 2 halves of ramen egg.
Cut the Chicken Chashu into thin slices, about 6 mm thick. Optionally, if you have a kitchen butane torch, you can sear the surface of the Chicken Chashu for a nice charred flavour and to warm it up a little bit.
Assemble the Shio Ramen
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Meanwhile, bring the ramen soup back up to a simmer over the stove. Lastly, set up all the ramen toppings on the kitchen counter so you're ready to serve when the noodles are finished cooking.
In each ramen bowl, (the typical size is 850-1000 ml) add 2 tbsp of Shio Tare and 1 tbsp of Aroma Oil. As I explained in "To Make the Shio Tare" section, the saltiness in the Shio Tare may vary. You will need to test the perfect ratio of your soup, tare, and oil a few times. My formula is 2 tbsp shio tare, 1 tbsp aroma oil, and 350 ml soup. (using the ramen bowl I have)
Loosen up the fresh ramen noodles with your hands before adding them to the boiling water. Cook the noodles, stirring once in a while, according to the package instructions. Tip: I usually undercook my ramen noodles a bit so they are firm and toothsome, to my liking.
When it's almost time to drain the noodles, pour the hot soup into each of the ramen bowls. I place a kitchen scale underneath the bowl so I can measure the exact amount of soup (350 g) for each bowl.
Drain the noodles, shake off the excess water, and transfer to the individual bowls filled with hot soup.
Arrange the noodles in the bowl for an attractive presentation. First, lift the soup-soaked noodles high and straighten them. Then, when the noodles are neatly aligned, fold the noodles from the edge of the bowl and place them over the noodles in the soup. This is an optional step, but ramen shops typically do this so the ramen looks pretty.
Quickly and neatly arrange the ramen toppings. Serve immediately.
To Store
You can keep the leftovers in separate containers and store them in the refrigerator for up to 3 days and a month in the freezer. Boil the noodles right before serving.