// UMAIDO ramen //

Tonkotsu ramen

Honey Miso ramen

You know what a good boyfriend means to an Asian girl?  Someone who drives 45 minutes because you are craving a good bowl of ramen (or Korean fried chicken, but that's another post). In Atlanta I wish there were more options in-town, but it seems all the legit places are up on Buford Highway, which is still a good 20 minute drive at least from downtown/midtown. It'll be another 20 minutes from Buford to get up to Duluth/Suwanee area where most of the home-cooked Korean restaurants are. For me, it's not really a big deal because I grew up in Orlando, FL which means everything is really spread out and you usually drive far anyway. Atlantans get spoiled, though and HATE having to drive outside their 5-10 minute bubble. Anyway, getting off topic here. Ramen is just one of the ultimate Asian comfort foods. Growing up, we always had a case of the instant ramen in all of my family's households. Everyone adds in their extra  fresh ingredients or eats it plain, but it was always a staple. It ends up being something you just crave either late night or during a hangover the next day. My Japanese friends like Umaido's for ramen so I feel it's that much more legit. The owners are Korean but have lived in Japan for over 10 years. Check out their site: http://www.umaidos.com/.

// cheesy ramen //

Ok. I know this isn't a fancy meal or anything, but it has got to be one of the BEST things to eat after a long night of drinking/partying or if you're in need of some comfort food. Now, most Asians just know what this is because...well, we're Asian and we know how to use our resources. Kinda like Iron Chef when you're a poor college kid or after you've had one too many drinks and come home to a fridge with only the bare necessities. Just wanted to post this recipe since some non-AZN friends of mine were wondering how to make this.

I have used all kinds of Asian instant ramen. The best flavors to use are the beef or chicken. I particularly favor this one right now - Shirakiku Tokusen Sio Ramen.

You can basically tweak it with whatever spices you have in your pantry, but I just use half the packet of the ramen seasoning (not the soup base, just the spice) and sprinkle a lil bit of Krazy Jane salt on top.

1. Boil water as you normally would to cook instant ramen.
2. Cook noodles w/out any of the packets.
3. Drain noodles.
4. Add a pat of butter to the same pot (make sure it's dry).
5. On low heat, add drained noodles back in pot. Stir w/the butter.
6. Break up cheese (I use this brand, but you can use whatever cheese you have in the fridge) and mix w/the noodles until melted (over low - med heat).
7. Stir in half of the spice packet that came w/the ramen and some ground pepper. Turn off heat.
8. Nom nom nom!
   

// Black Cod w/Miso //

My boss recommended this recipe to me awhile back. I left out the sake and used regular cod b/c they didn't have any at the market that I happened to be shopping in that day. The end result came out a lil sweeter than I would've liked, so DEF try and use all ingredients listed in the recipe for the best results. This is from Chef Nobuyuki Matsuhisa. On the side I made miso soup and used soba noodles instead of rice. My boss eats it pretty much by itself b/c he loves it so much...so ninja.