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RISE OF RAMEN
A Q&A on One of the Hottest Trends in the U.S.

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Recently, the culinary team at Symrise held their first ever
“Ramen Invitational” at the Symrise North American
headquarters in Teterboro, NJ. The event served as both an
educational event for the Symrise team as well as a fun
tasting event featuring two different types of ramen prepared
by the culinary team.
Leading the event, were Chef Noah Michaels, John Selser,
and Brenda Waite, all of the Symrise culinary team. After the
event, Dylan Thompson of the Marketing, Sensory &
Consumer Insights team interviewed Chef Noah Michaels and
John Selser on some of the latest Ramen trends and
applications for Symrise customers.
The interview follows…
RISE OF RAMEN
Ramen Invitational @ Symrise NA

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Noah Michaels: I think 2 things are driving the current ramen
trend. First, it’s being driven by younger people (millennials
and younger gen X‘ers) who are living in cities and are still in
more entry level careers. They have a little more money than
they did in college but are still looking to purchase the
maximum amount of food for their money. They wind up
eating more upscale versions of the foods they ate in college
like pizza and ramen. The other factor driving the trend are
the new wave of innovative Asian chefs who use Ramen as a
platform to showcase their specific culinary voices.
John Selser: I believe the recent ramen trend is being driven
by this new era of high-end authentic Japanese ramen that
Americans have not seen before. Who doesn't love a bowl of
pork fat and hand made noodles?
What do you think is driving the recent ramen trend in
the United States?
Ramen @ Momofuku Noodle Bar in NYC

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NM: Unlike the five for a dollar packaged ramen Americans are
used to, Japan produces packaged Ramen at various price
points. These higher end ramen packages often contain
multiple pouches including premium noodles, a liquid sauce
pouch, a dried vegetable pouch and a flavored oil pouch. Sun
Noodle, the company that produces the fresh ramen noodles
for most of the best ramen restaurants in the country, just
released a premium refrigerated ramen kit including fresh
noodles and a liquid soup concentrate. I think this type of kit is
just the tip of the iceberg. I suspect grab and go type frozen
Ramen kits would appeal to busy millennials.
JS: I do see this trend being incorporated into packaged
goods, especially into frozen ramen noodle kits, and to the dry
"Top-Ramen" type of noodles.
Do you see the trend moving into packaged foods? If
so, how would it translate (frozen aisle, meal kits, etc.)?
Symrise Chef Noah Michaels

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NM: The typical components of ramen are noodles, broth,
garnishes/toppings and Tare, a concentrated flavor sauce
which differentiates the different styles of ramen. A typical
ramen restaurant will make a mother broth or Dashi and then
make multiple Tares which are mixed into the broth when the
Ramen is served. Some of the interesting ramens being
served now are the Momofuku style bacon Ramen, Kim Chi
Ramens, and Mazemen, a brothless Ramen which is treated
like pasta and tossed with rich flavorful sauces.
JS: Ramen is traditionally wheat noodles in a meat based
broth served with different condiments and meats depending
on where in Japan you are. The broth is the real centerpiece
of the soup and is often flavored with miso, soy sauce, and hot
chili paste. Every region of Japan has a different variation of
ramen. It is like how in the US we have different styles of
BBQ, Japan has different styles of ramen depending on the
location.
What are the main ingredients in traditional ramen? What are
some interesting twists to tradition that you've seen?
Red chili Mazemen ramen

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NM: I suggest checking out Eater.com’s Ramen Heat Map:
ny.eater.com/archives/2013/09/sietsemas_top12_ramen_heat
map.php
JS: One of the most popular restaurants in NYC is Ippudo
Ramen. Ippudo has several locations around the world. The
restaurant has a great up-beat vibe and offers many different
kinds of ramen.
Can you name some interesting ramen restaurants in
the U.S.?

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NM: The key flavors for Ramen are soy, miso, togarashi, green
onion, dashi, bonito, roasted pork, boiled pork belly and very
concentrated boiled meat broth.
JS: The broth holds the rich deep flavor of pork or chicken and
sometimes seafood. The deep fatty pork flavor is key to
having a good bowl of ramen. Togarashi is a very popular
seasoning that is served with ramen and is a spicy red pepper
seasoning. Future ramen bowls may have flavored noodles,
more seafood/curry broths coming into play.
What sort of flavors/seasonings are a key part of ramen
dishes, or may be in the future?

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NM: I think the great thing about Ramen is that it plays in that
space of familiar but exotic. We all ate Ramen in college so
it’s a comfort food at some level. At the same time it’s a
platform to bring in very traditional Asian flavors.
JS: I believe that the new era of ramen in the U.S. will become
more and more popular as more ramen shops open up. The
deep rich broth of ramen is very unique and offers a flavor
explosion in every bite.
Any other thoughts on ramen that may be valuable to
Symrise customers?
For more information visit http://in-sight.symrise.com

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