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Over the past few years, we’ve seen an uptick in hawkers selling ramen in Singapore. Despite the dish’s famed difficulty and lengthy preparation time, many have bravely taken on the challenge of bringing the world’s most famous noodle dish to our heartland hawker centres.
One of these stalls is Mugiwara Tonkotsu Ramen in Pasir Panjang Food Centre, which opens for only 3 days a week.
To be more specific, Mugiwara Tonkotsu Ramen is only open from Fridays to Sundays, operating from 12pm to 2pm. I was bewildered when I first read about it. How does the stall manage to stay afloat, despite rental costs soaring higher every year? I had to find out.
I arrived at around 12.15pm, just as the stall opened. Mugiwara Tonkotsu Ramen is run by a single man, who told me this was just 1 of 2 jobs he has. He works his regular job on weekdays and comes here to serve customers on weekends. I shudder trying to comprehend how disciplined and dedicated this man is.
I would have loved to dig into his brain to understand why he chose to open the stall and his inspiration for the recipe, but I observed him handling up to 5 baskets of steaming ramen noodles, so I didn’t want to disturb him.
What I tried at Mugiwara Tonkotsu Ramen
My order took around 15 minutes to arrive, which is consistent with the reviews of the stall I read online. They only serve a single dish, which is, of course, their Tonkotsu Ramen (S$6.50). You have the option to add Half Ajitama Egg (S$0.70), Nori Seaweed (S$0.90), and Aburibara Meat (pork) (S$1).
The bowl of ramen is pure eye candy, with the milky broth appearing especially thick. It was so thick that it hid the strands of ramen quite well. Another thing that pops out to ramen lovers is the lack of chashu, the meat being substituted by paper-thin yakiniku.
The broth’s thickness is actually quite deceptive, as its consistency is a little less than what you’d expect for a tonkotsu. Normally, the broth would be rich, thick, and with a bit of oil on the top layer. While this broth nailed most of the signature traits, it fell a bit flat on the thickness.
I don’t think this compromises the flavour, though. There’s a soy-like milkiness to it, with a bit of savoury pork flavour that likely comes from the yakiniku strips simmering in the broth. It’s warm and calming, and quite shiok to sip on a blistering hot day like when I visited.
I was a little on edge upon pulling the ramen up. First impressions doom or destinate a dish for greatness, and the first impression I got of the ramen wasn’t great. The way each strand cascaded down from my chopsticks made it feel like spaghetti noodles instead.
Thankfully, tasting the ramen noodles told a different story. They lean on the chewier side, with low starch content, which makes it less filling. It makes me wonder if the ramen noodles were handmade or store-bought, as I saw the owner taking bundles of noodles out of a box when cooking.
Kazutake Ramen: 24-hr eatery with yakiniku, truffle ramen & black sesame pearl BBT
Ramen purists may swear off this tonkotsu ramen purely because they replace the chashu with yakiniku, but I’m not one of them. Each strip is soft and easy to chew, bursting with milky broth and a bit of umami.
My only complaint was that the strips were packed too closely together, making it appear almost like a ball of yakiniku. Separating the strips will make it easier to consume, while also making the bowl more presentable.
Finally, the ajitama egg. It has a very strong orange hue with the yolk, but it tasted pretty average. There is a hint of a stronger soy sauce flavour I got after swallowing, but that’s about it. I just wish they gave the whole egg instead of just half; it almost feels like I’m getting short-changed.
Final thoughts
The greatest compliment you can give a chef is handing them back an empty plate or bowl, and I did just that. Mugiwara Tonkotsu Ramen does its best to serve quality tonkotsu ramen at a low price point. As such, compromises have to be made, such as the chashu and broth. But I think they work around these limitations well enough to deliver a bowl of ramen worth trying.
Expected damage: S$6.50 per pax
Order Delivery: deliveroo
En Ramen: Family-run eatery with $8.90 ramen, $9.90 Japanese Mapo Tofu & big karaage pieces
