The best Homemade Ramen Broth has two criteria: it tastes great and gels beautifully when cooled. To achieve this, we use meaty bones for flavor and gelatinous cuts like neck bones or knuckles for silky texture. Yet, great ramen broths also have nourishing bonuses – like mineral-rich seaweed and ferments like soy sauce or miso that support gut health. This simple and nourishing Homemade Ramen Broth is must have in any broth rotation.
Keys to a Gelatinous Broth
For a broth that gels, the secret is in the bone-to-water ratio. Use about 1 pound of bones per quart of water, just enough to cover the bones by no more than 2 inches. Too much water results in a thin broth that won’t gel.
For the best texture and flavor, use a combination of:
- Knuckle bones (rich in gelatin for a silky finish)
- Femur bones (packed with marrow for deep umami)
- Meaty neck bones (for extra flavor)
- Skin-on cuts like ham hocks, trotters, or even pig heads (for additional gelatin)
Gelatin matters because it adds a great silky texture to the soup. In the end, it’s so much more than that. It supports gut health, joint mobility, and skin elasticity.
Nourishing Boosts
For extra nutrition, I love adding seaweed and ferments to my broth. Bones provide plenty of minerals, but kombu gives an extra boost—I always add a piece to broth (and sometimes to rice or other grains, too).
Traditional ferments like miso and soy sauce support digestion and gut health. I stir them in at the end to preserve their benefits—Eden miso and Nama Shoyu soy sauce are my go-to choices. If you prefer, simply season with mineral-rich salt (about 1 teaspoon per quart of broth, less if using soy or miso).
For even more nourishment, marrow bones are next level. Add roasted marrow to a finished bowl or use pork femur/marrow bones from the start for an ultra-rich broth.
Homemade Ramen Broth
Some broths are known for clarity, but Homemade Ramen Broth works even when thick and milky. The key difference is technique. A consommé is carefully clarified for a crystal-clear finish. Ramen broth, on the other hand, embraces emulsification—where gelatin, fat, and minerals blend into a rich, opaque liquid. This is especially true for tonkotsu broth from Japan, with it’s signature creamy texture.
For pork bones, I start by boiling them for 10 minutes, then draining and rinsing to remove impurities. Then, I add filtered water to cover along with aromatics for making the broth.
Sliced ginger, shiitakes and kombu are my three essentials for ramen broth. I typically add the kombu at the start, but it can make the broth a bit greenish and intensify in flavor if it cooks all day. In the recipe, I suggest just adding it to the finished broth for 10 minutes at the end to extract minerals. I sometimes include onion, garlic, carrot or celery to different batches.
I simmer this broth for 4 hours (minimum), ideally all day, or 90 minutes in an instapot. Since a cloudy broth is acceptable, even preferable, I don’t worry about the simmer going too high. If it’s been on low all day, I’ll cover it for the last hour to help it emulsify.
Making Ramen
To build the perfect bowl, add salt, soy sauce or miso to your gelatin-rich broth. Add noodles. Layer on proteins like pork belly, braised beef, shredded chicken, soft-boiled or poached eggs, or even seafood like shrimp or scallops. Finish with garnishes for beauty, flavor and texture—green onions, sesame seeds, nori, pickled ginger, chili threads, crispy shallots, or bamboo shoots. If I lived in a restaurant, I’d probably add a final drizzle of garlic or chili oil to take it to the next level.
More often then not, we keep it simple. This broth works as a sipping broth and makes a great foundation to a beautiful meal.
Simple & Nourishing Homemade Ramen Broth with Pork Bones
Ingredients
- 3–4 lbs pork bones (knuckles, femurs, trotters, or neck bones)
- ~12 cups water (or enough to cover the bones)
- 1 onion, halved
- 1 head garlic, halved
- thumb-sized piece ginger, sliced
- 2 dried shiitake mushrooms (or 8 fresh)
- 1 piece kombu
Instructions
- Blanch the Bones. Place bones in a pot, cover with cold water, and bring to a boil for 5–10 minutes. Drain, rinse the bones, and clean the pot.
- Make the Broth. Return bones to the pot, add fresh water (just enough to cover bones), onion, garlic, ginger, and shiitakes. (Reserve kombu for end.) Bring to a boil, then reduce to a gentle simmer for 6–18 hours, partially covered. Skim impurities in the first 30 minutes.
- In the last 1–2 hours, cover the broth so that it becomes a rolling boil (without losing too much water) to break down collagen and fats into the broth. Stir occasionally.
- Strain the broth through a fine-mesh sieve. Add kombu to the hot broth and steep for 10 minutes, then remove. Season with salt, soy sauce or miso before serving.
ARE YOU LOCAL ? I LIVE IN SONOMA COUNTY ,CA. SO YOU HAVE SOME OF THIS RAMEN PRK BROTH TO SELL ? IF NOT DO YOU KNOW OF ANYONE WHO DOES SELL IT . THANK YOU FROM NYLA
Hi Nyla, Thank you so much for reaching out! I hear you, this is one of our top three favorite broths ever and I wish I could buy it out of our home, but I’ve never found it. I would gift you some, but I am actually live in rural Colorado! (Even though I grew up in the East Bay, in Pleasanton :). I wish I had a different answer for you, but in the meantime, I hope I can inspire you to make some! Kombu, shiitakes, and ginger (along with the pork bones) are really all you need for the perfect base. Everything else in the recipe is gravy. 🤞
xo
Janine