A Delicious Guide to Creating Your Own Ramen at Ramen Factory Kyoto
One of our favorite experiences we had during our three months in Japan was hands down, Ramen Factory Kyoto. It is the currently only restaurant where you can make your own ramen from scratch! But, not only will you learn to make a bowl of fresh, delicious ramen, but you’ll also get to enjoy it in-store and take home the recipe so you can make it again and again! Here we’ll be sharing our ramen adventures from our time at Ramen Factory Kyoto.
Where is Ramen Factory Kyoto?
Currently, Ramen Factory Kyoto is hosting special ramen classes at Menbakachidai, the infamous restaurant known for fire ramen!
What To Expect At Ramen Factory Kyoto
As I said before, Ramen Factory Kyoto is an establishment that offers the unique experience to make a bowl of ramen from scratch with the assistance of a trained instructor. They will provide you with an apron and bandana to wear, but make sure you wear casual clothes as splashing can occur when making ramen. As another added bonus to your session, selfie sticks are located all over so you can record your cooking process and take a ton of fun photos and videos!
Food Restrictions
If you have any food restrictions, Ramen Factory Kyoto does an exceptional job of accommodating dietary needs. They are also a Halal-certified establishment so Muslim guests can enjoy making ramen too! Be sure to make a note of any restrictions when making your reservation.
Our Experience At Ramen Factory Kyoto
Getting Prepped
When walking inside Ramen Factory Kyoto we were instantly greeted by two friendly instructors. They checked us in and showed us to a table where we would be making our ramen and laid out the equipment and ingredients we would need.
Don’t worry about struggling to remember directions or steps, they have a step-by-step guidebook at each table and your instructor will check in on you frequently in case you have questions or need assistance (I know I needed some!).
Preparing The Protein
After putting on our bandana and apron, we settled in and started preparing our protein garnish. Most bowls of ramen have a pork belly garnish, but since Ramen Factory Kyoto is a Halal-certified establishment they typically use chicken thigh. However, if you are vegetarian or vegan, you can have the option of using tofu instead.
We rolled and folded our chicken thigh and used a string to tie it up then placed it in a pot to cook. After cooking, we cut off the strings and sliced thin pieces to later add to our bowl of ramen. Then we got to use a blowtorch to charbroil the meat as little or as much as we wanted. Not gonna lie, this was one of my favorite parts. 🙂
Noodle Making Process
While our protein was cooking, we were given flour to sift into a large mixing bowl. We then made a hole in the middle where we added a small amount of water, little by little, and mixed the ingredients together until they combined into a soft dough.
After, we kneaded the dough a few times to get out any lumps and began to pound the dough until a ball was formed (be sure to punch the dough, not the table like we did a few times LOL).
Next, we flattened the dough with a rolling pin and put it through a pasta maker to create fresh, ramen noodles. It was so satisfying to see the noodles come out of the press. I wanted to do it at least 100 more times!
Creating A Broth
Because broth is a bit more time-consuming than the other steps of the ramen-making process, the broth at Ramen Factory Kyoto is made ahead of time from a family recipe. However, you get to pick the style of broth you want and can customize the flavors by following the recipe menu provided or by creating your own.
The options are a chicken or fish broth that is enhanced by adding shoyu (soy sauce), miso, or salt stock. After combining to your liking and heating your broth on the stove you’re almost ready to pour it into your bowl! Remember, if you need a vegetarian or vegan broth be sure to note that in your reservation.
Cooking The Noodles
After we prepared our broth we then finished our cooking process by flash boiling the noodles and draining them from the water. Since the noodles are fresh, they only have to be cooked for a few minutes. At this point, we were both salivating because we couldn’t wait to dig into our very own handmade ramen!
Combining Ingredients
Before we ravenously scarfed down our ramen, we had to combine all the ingredients from the steps above. We picked one of the fun ramen bowls from a shelf and added our noodles, broth, and protein. Then we chose to garnish with egg, green onion, sesame oil, and a few other toppings.
After getting everything set up, our hard work was finished. We were ready to dig in and enjoy – which we did!
Ramen Factory Kyoto Courses and Cost
Ramen Factory Kyoto offers three different ramen experiences to choose from. You can look at each of their courses on their website but here is the main idea of each. We suggest you book in advance and consider planning your lunch or dinner here because ramen can be very filling!
| Express | Ramen Making | Ramen Making & Souvenir |
|---|---|---|
| If you are short on time this experience allows you to make your own noodles and add to a pre-mixed broth to eat. No protein is added. | This is the experience we had while at Ramen Factory Kyoto. You’ll make your own bowl of ramen from scratch from start to finish. | The same as the ramen-making experience but with an added souvenir apron or t-shirt. |
| Time: 45 Minutes | Time: 90 Minutes | Time: 90 Minutes |
| Cost: 3,500 yen/adult, 2,500 yen/child | Cost: 4,500 yen/adult, 3,500 yen/child | Cost: 7,300 yen/adult, 6,300 yen/child |
BOOK YOUR RAMEN FACTORY KYOTO EXPERIENCE
This hands-on cooking experience is a must-do for anyone visiting Kyoto! It’s the perfect activity to enjoy any time of the year, but especially on a really hot or cold day. Now go enjoy this fun and yummy activity!
Comments & Reviews
Alex Howell says
This tutorial has it all, ramen, a very charismatic couple and even a blowtorch! good post, I love ramen, and eating it in Japan must be one of the most rewarding experiences, very good trip and hope for more adventures!