Chicken Paitan Ramen

The uniqueness of Chicken Paitan Ramen is the milky white broth (paitan broth) made from chicken bones and chicken feet. Some chicken paitan broths are very thick and rich but my broth is thin and not too rich. The topping of chicken slices goes well with the chicken-based ramen soup.

Paitan (白湯) is the word that originated from the Chinese word for white soup. The Chinese pronunciation (Mandarin) is more like ‘baitan’.

The most famous paitan soup in Japan is the thick milky tonkotsu ramen soup, that is made from pork marrow bones. I have yet to publish a tonkotsu ramen recipe, but today, I made Chicken Paitan Ramen which takes less time to make.

My Chicken Paitan Broth

My broth for Chicken Paitan Ramen is not thick and sticky as I did not want the soup to be too rich. But it is cloudy and white as the name ‘paitan’ suggests.

The ingredients to make the broth for 2 servings of ramen are:

• 1kg chicken carcasses, cut into smaller pieces
• 500g chicken feet
• 2 shallots (Aussie)/scallions, cut into 10cm long pieces
• 1 onion cut into large pieces
• 1 bulb of garlic, halved
• 30g ginger, crushed
• 3L water
• 2 tbsp milk (optional)

Instead of chicken feet, you can use chicken wings but the soup becomes a bit oilier. You might be puzzled by the addition of milk but it adds a richness to the broth and makes the broth whiter.

In the case of clear soup stock, you need to simmer the broth gently for many hours to prevent the broth from getting cloudy. But for paitan broth, it is the opposite. You need to vigorously cook the ingredients to make the broth cloudy.

I used a pressure cooker to speed up the process. It took me 40 minutes to pressure cook. But you can of course cook it in a large pot. You will need to cook for about 4 hours over high heat.

What goes into Chicken Paitan Ramen

As is always the case, ramen consists of a ramen flavour base, broth, noodles and toppings. To maintain the whiteness of the broth, I used the flavour base for Shio Ramen (salt-flavoured ramen).

Here are the ingredients for my Chicken Paitan Ramen.

• Egg noodles
• Shio Ramen flavour base (salt flavouring base)
• Chicken Paitan Broth
• Slices of Salt Chicken Rolls
• Blanched bok choy
• Boiled egg
• Chopped shallots (Aussie)/scallions

For the toppings, I thought a chicken-based soup would go well with slices of chicken rather than Yakibuta (Braised Pork) or char siu.

The vivid green of bok choy makes the Chicken Paitan Ramen stimulate your appetite. Instead of bok choy, you can add spinach, mizuna, or varieties of Chinese greens. If you don’t have these green leaves, add plenty of the green part of the chopped shallots (Aussie)/scallions.

Making the broth for Chicken Paitan Ramen is easier and faster than my Home-made Ramen Broth. It perhaps lacks the dimension of the flavour in the broth compared to the broth made with chicken and pork bones. But you can enjoy quite a different ramen broth with full of chicken flavour.

Chicken Paitan Broth can keep in the fridge for few days. If you need to keep it longer, freeze it.

I hope you can add Chicken Paitan Ramen to your ramen collection.

Yumiko

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Chicken Paitan Ramen

Prep Time

15 mins

Cook Time

1 hr 10 mins

Total Time

1 hr 15 mins

 

The uniqueness of Chicken Paitan Ramenis the milky white broth (paitan broth) made from chicken. Some chicken paitan broths are very thick and rich but my broth is thin and not too rich. The chicken slices as a topping go well with the chicken-based ramen soup.

Total Time does not include the time to make the Salt Flavouring Base.

Don't forget to see the section 'MEAL IDEAS' below the recipe card! It gives you a list of dishes that I have already posted and this recipe so you can make up a complete meal. I hope it is of help to you.

Recipe Type: Main Course

Cuisine: Japanese

Keyword: paitan ramen, paitan soup, ramen

Serves: 1

Author: Yumiko

Ingredients (tbsp=15ml, cup=250ml)

• 400ml / 0.8pt Chicken Paitan Broth
• 80-100g / 2.8-3.5oz fresh egg noodles (note 1)
• 2 tbsp Salt Flavouring Base (note 2)

Toppings

• 4 slices Salt Chicken Rolls (note 3)
• 1 bunch bok choy halved vertically (note 4) and blanched
• 1 boiled egg halved
• Finley chopped shallots(Aussie)/scallions

Chicken Paitan Broth (makes 800-1000ml / 1.7-2.1pt, note 5)

• 1kg / 2.2lb chicken carcasses
• 500g / 1.1lb chicken feet (note 6)
• 1 onion peeled and cut into large pieces
• 1 bulb of garlic horizontally halved
• 2 stems shallots(Aussie)/scallions cut into 10cm long pieces
• 30g / 1.1oz ginger cut in half and bruised
• 3L / 6.3pt water (note 5)
• 2 tbsp milk (optional, note 7)

Instructions

Making Chicken Paitan Broth (note 8)

1. Chop each chicken carcass into about 8 small pieces. Clean each piece thoroughly, removing the guts attached to the backbones.

2. Put chicken bones and feet into a pressure cooker, add water to the maximum level that the pressure cooker can handle and bring it to a boil.

3. Remove the scum while boiling until only a small amount of white foam surfaces in a couple of places. Using a wooden spatula, occasionally mix the bones as if you are crushing them. This makes the broth cloudier.

4. Add the vegetables to the pot. When it starts boiling again, remove the scums for the last time and put the lid on.
5. Pressure cook for 40 minutes, then let the steam out.
6. Put the broth through a sieve and collect only the whitish liquid in a saucepan.

7. Add milk (if using) and bring it to a boil, then turn the heat off.

Making Chicken Paitan Ramen

1. Add the Salt Flavouring Base to a serving bowl.

2. Boil water in a saucepan, cook noodles and drain.

3. Add hot Chicken Paitan Broth to the bowl and mix. Taste test the soup and adjust with salt.

4. Add the noodles to the bowl.
5. Place the toppings and serve immediately.

Recipe Notes

1. Time to cook the noodles varies depending on the type of noodles as well as your preference for the firmness. Follow the instructions on the pack as a guideline.

Please also refer to Easy Japanese Ramen Noodles where it talks about different types of egg noodles suitable for Ramen.

2. Please refer to the Salt Flavouring Base section of the Home-made Shio Ramen recipe.

3. I used a chicken breast fillet to make Salt Chicken Rolls for this ramen topping but you can of course use thigh
fillets.

4. If the cluster is thick, you may quarter it. You only need to blanch 1 minute or so until the white part of the leaves becomes soft.

5. 800ml is just the right amount for 2 servings of ramen.
If your pressure cooker cannot take 3L water with the ingredients, reduce the amount of water. After making the Paitan Soup, add water to make it to 800ml, then bring it to a boil.

6. If you cannot find chicken feet, you can use 2-3 chicken wings instead. But the soup becomes a bit oilier.

7. Milk adds a richness to the broth and makes the broth whiter.

8. You can make Chicken Paitan Broth without using a pressure cooker. It just takes much longer. Follow the same process per the instructions for Making Chicken Paitan Broth. Instead of pressure cook 40 minutes, cook over high heat for 4 hours. Mix the ingredients occasionally to make the broth cloudier.

9. Chicken Paitan Broth can keep in the fridge for few days. If you need to keep it longer, freeze it.

10. It is extremely difficult to work out the nutrition details for this Chicken Paitan Ramen. So I am not going to even attempt to do it.