This Soy-Miso Marinated Ramen Egg recipe transforms a bowl of humble ramen into something sublime.
There are few things in this world better than a marinated egg floating in a bowl of Asian soup. Read on for easy steps and top tips detailing how to make ramen eggs.
I had my first experience with ramen eggs at a local Asian restaurant that, sadly, has since gone out of business.
I remembered how the ramen egg marinade permeated deep into the white of the egg.
And when I bit in, whew! What flavor. It was full of umami and salty goodness.
Plus, the texture of the custardy yolk was fabulous.
I absolutely had to develop a ramen egg recipe—STAT!
You might be wondering...
What is a ramen egg?
In the most basic form, a ramen egg is simply a soft boiled egg that you float in the hot broth of ramen soup.
But it can be so much more.
When you marinate an egg for a few hours in something as basic as soy sauce and miso, it becomes something magical.
It essentially transforms into a salty umami bomb. It takes your humble bowl of ramen soup to the level of the sublime.
These days, it's just not a bowl of ramen soup to me anymore unless a ramen egg is floating in it.
How to make ramen eggs
First, soft boil the eggs (see my recipe card for cooking to your preference).
Second, make the marinade.
Third, peel the eggs and marinate (overnight is best).
Last, add egg to your ramen soup.
Soft boil the eggs
Soft boiling eggs produces a jammy yolk that is perfect for ramen. The yolk spills into the broth, creating added flavor and creaminess.
To soft boil eggs, first bring water to a soft boil in a saucepan over a burner set to medium-high heat.
Next, gently add eggs and cook about 6 ½ minutes.
I use a skimmer to slowly lower the eggs into the boiling water, then gently roll them out onto the bottom of the pan. If an egg cracks, don't sweat it—you'll still have some egg left to marinate (unless you really pulverized it, that is).
Once cooked, immediately add the eggs to a bowl of ice water. We want immediately stop the cooking process.
Now just gently, carefully peel: this takes patience. Soft boiled eggs are very delicate. I find that holding them under cold running water as I carefully peel away the shell helps.
When the eggs are peeled, add them to a ziploc bag.
Make the Ramen Egg Marinade
I use a mixture of soy sauce, rice vinegar, and miso paste: thoroughly mix these in a bowl, then add to a ziploc bag. Feel free to substitute mirin for the rice vinegar if you like.
Allow ramen eggs to marinate
Add the soft boiled eggs to the ramen egg marinade. Make sure to squeeze out as much as air as possible before sealing the bag.
Then, put the marinated egg bag into a tall narrow container.
This serves two purposes. One, should a leak occur in the bag, it won't run all over the refrigerator.
Two, when you use a narrow container, it ensures the eggs are entirely submerged in the soy miso marinade.
For example, four eggs fit well into a quart-sized ziploc set inside a 2-cup Pyrex measuring cup.
The longer you marinate the ramen eggs, the deeper the marinade penetration into the egg white. Which, of course, means more flavor.
I suggest a minimum of 4 hours, but I have marinated ramen eggs up to 24 hours with awesome results.
After marinating it is finally time to...
Add the egg to the ramen
The best way to add eggs to ramen soup is to first slice them in half, lengthwise. The yolks should be creamy and runny (unless you like them completely set—I have directions for that too!).
Finally, rest them on top of your ramen soup, yolk side up. It makes for a beautiful presentation.
That's all there is to it! I hope you love these soy-miso marinated ramen eggs as much as we do!
Be sure to try them out with my Pork-Miso Ramen Soup or Grown-Up Ramen Noodle Soup!
For more exotic soup recipes, check out:
Instant Pot Vegetable Pho Noodle Soup
Caldillo: Green Chile Pork Stew
Moroccan Lamb Stew
—or check out my entire collection of soups and stews.
—xoxo Michelle
Linkies
I'm linking my marinated egg recipe up with #CookBlogShare, a fantastic food blogger recipe-share hosted this week at Lost In Food. (P.S. I'll be guest-hosting next week, so stay tuned!)
Soy-Miso Marinated Ramen Eggs
Soy-Miso Marinated Ramen Eggs transform a bowl of humble ramen soup into something sublime.
Ingredients
- 4 eggs (large; boiled according to preference and peeled; see Recipe Note #1)
- 1 cup soy sauce (see Recipe Note #2)
- 1 tbsp miso (see Recipe Note #3)
- ¼ cup rice vinegar (unseasoned)
Instructions
- Mix the ingredients for the marinade in a zip-top bag. Add the eggs to the marinade and close the bag, being careful to remove as much air as possible. Place the bag in a steep-sided container (e.g., a pyrex 2-cup measuring cup) and refrigerate until needed, at least 4 hours and up to 1 day. Drain the eggs and keep in a refrigerated airtight container for up to 3 days.
Notes
- To boil the eggs: use a slotted spoon or skimmer to very gently add eggs to the bottom of a pan with enough gently boiling water to cover completely. For a custardy (not set) yolk, cook 6 ½ minutes. For a completely set yolk, cook 8 minutes. Transfer to an ice bath until completely cooled. Gently peel the eggs under running water before adding to the marinade. (Note that the eggs are very fragile, so you do have to be patient while peeling)
- If you are sensitive to salt or have dietary restrictions on sodium intake, use lower-sodium soy sauce.
- I like Awase miso, which is a combination of red and white miso.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 4 Serving Size: 1 eggAmount Per Serving: Unsaturated Fat: 0gSodium: 800mg
Don't miss a thing!
Follow me on Twitter, Pinterest, Facebook, and Instagram. PLUS, get easy dinner ideas and cooking hacks delivered straight to your inbox when you subscribe to the Flipped-Out Food Newsletter!
About Michelle F, PhD
Hi there! I'm Michelle, a former scientist turned food blogger and consultant. Throughout my career, I have run up against the challenge of cooking food in as little time as possible during stressful times. I have learned strategies that help me cook good food without the stress, and I'd like to share them with you! Plus, I draw upon my science background (PhD in Physiology, with lots of lab-rat work in biochemistry and microbiology) to inject my writing with nutritional/ biochemical geekery.
SEp says
Never done this, so just want to clarify - marinade first, then boil?
SEp says
Ok. So I'm a recipe skimmer, but after careful re-read... boil, peel and then marinade!
RIGHT?
Michelle says
Bingo!! 😀
Michelle says
Hi there! Thanks for the question. The recipe begins with already-boiled eggs: the recipe notes detail how to do this according to your preference. Once the eggs are boiled, carefully peel them (this is especially delicate for soft-boiled eggs), and then add them to the marinade. Have a great day!
Chloe Edges says
Ramen isn't ramen without a good marinated egg! Love these!
Michelle says
I SO agree with you, Chloe!! Thank you for stopping by!!
Jo Allison /Jo's Kitchen Larder says
I cannot believe how easy they are! Absolutely love the recipe and these babies are going to be made very soon. I can only image how delicious they are after few hours of bathing in a delicious marinade! I would go for soft boiled ones any day as well! Cannot wait to try them!
Michelle says
Thank you so much, Jo! I really hope you love them! 🙂
Michelle Rolfe says
Wow, love these! I always love them when I have them in a asian restaurant. I didn't realise they were so simple. I keep my own hens so now I have another great idea for eggs! Thanks for sharing with #CookBlogShare. Michelle x
Michelle says
Thank you, Michelle! Oh, wow, you have your own hens? How cool! 😀