Whole chicken shoyu ramen

Step 1

Put the eggs into a small pan of boiling water for 7 minutes then drain and run under cold water until completely cold, drain again and shell. Mix together the soy, miring and sugar in a bowl and add the eggs. Marinate for 5 hours or overnight, turning every now and again.

Step 2

Heat the oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas Remove the legs from the chicken by cutting down either side of the main body part of the chicken, popping out the joint and removing the legs. Split the legs into two by cutting through the joint between drumstick and thigh. Remove but keep the skin from the thigh. Put the chicken onto a large baking tray, and the skin onto a small one. Remove both wings from the chicken and add to the large baking tray.

Step 3

Next, carefully remove both breasts by cutting down either side of the breast bone, until you have two separate pieces. Remove the skins, add to the small tray, and put the meat into a container, cover and chill. Put the chicken carcass onto the large tray and drizzle with 1 tbsp oil and season. Roast for 1 hour, turning everything halfway through, until caramelised. Put the skins in the oven to crisp for the final 30 minutes.

Step 4

Put the kombu into a large pan and pour over 3 litres of just-boiled water. Leave to infuse for 50 minutes, then add the bonito flakes to infuse for 10 minutes, if using. The resulting broth is known as a dashi. Use a sieve to fish out the bonito and kombu (it doesn’t matter if you don’t get it all).

Step 5

Remove the chicken pieces from the oven and put the thighs and drumsticks onto a plate to cool. Lower the main carcass into the pan containing the dashi and add the remaining stock ingredients. Strip the meat from the thighs and drumsticks, cover and chill, and add the bones to the stock. Simmer the stock gently for 2 1 /2 hours. Strain and tip back into a large pan. Add 6 tbsp of the cured egg marinade to the stock and season. Bring back to a simmer and add the chicken breasts to poach for 15-20 minutes or until cooked through. Remove, rest for 10 minutes, then slice.

Step 6

Meanwhile, for the crispy chicken, heat the vegetable oil in a pan and add the shredded thigh and drumstick meat. Fry for 5 minutes, tossing regularly, until caramelised. Stir in the miso, ginger and garlic, and cook for 1 minute. Keep warm.

Step 7

To serve, cook the ramen in a large pan of boiling salted water following pack instructions and divide between four bowls. Spoon over the stock, add slices of chicken breast, piles of sweetcorn, nori squares and the crispy miso shredded chicken. Finish with spring onion greens, sesame seeds, chilli oil, a shard of the chicken skin, and the soy-marinated eggs cut in half.