Chicken Chashu for Ramen

Chicken Chashu is a spin on the popular Pork Belly Chashu ramen topping. Rolled chicken thighs are pan-fried, braised in a sweet soy sauce, then left to marinade to soak in the delicious seasoning.

This is Part 2 of the Ramen at Home series for Traditional Shoyu Ramen.

Chashu is a highly popular ramen topping. It is the Japanese version of the Chinese Char Siu but with a very different cooking technique. Most of the time, you’ll see Pork Belly Chashu in ramen shops all over the world, but Chicken Chashu has been rising in popularity over the past few years.

Many ramen shops in Japan now serve both chicken and pork chashu for variety. It can be enjoyed as a ramen topping, with a bowl of rice, or by itself as a snack.

This Chicken Chashu recipe is from the “Ramen at Home” cookbook by Brian MacDuckston of ramenadventures.com, and Part Two of a six-part series featuring his Traditional Shoyu Ramen recipe.

Here are the links to the rest of the posts in this series:

• Shoyu Tare
• Menma (Seasoned Bamboo Shoots)
• Half-Boiled Ajitama (Seasoned Eggs)
• Basic Clear Chicken Soup
• TRADITIONAL SHOYU RAMEN

How to Make Chicken Chashu

You will need 1 pound of boneless, skin-on chicken thighs for this recipe. Roll the chicken thighs, skin side out, into tight rolls, and secure with cooking twine. I found it helpful to start with tying the middle first, then one on each side.

Heat a large skillet over medium heat. When it is hot, add the chicken and brown the meat on all sides.

In a large stockpot or saucepan, combine 2 1/2 cups of water, 2 cups of soy sauce, 1/2 cup of dry white wine, and 3/4 cup of sugar.

Stir to dissolve the sugar completely, then add the chicken.

Bring the liquid to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to medium and let it simmer, uncovered, for 25 minutes.

This may seem like a lot of seasoning liquid but do NOT discard it as you will be using this liquid for the Menma (Seasoned Bamboo Shoots) as well as the Half-Boiled Ajitama (Seasoned Eggs). You’ll want to marinade and season everything in this liquid once you taste how delicious it is!

Remove the saucepan from the heat and let it cool to room temperature. To let the flavors soak in evenly, rotate the chicken in the seasoning liquid every 10 minutes or so while it is cooling.

Alternatively, cover the top of the chicken with a heavy-duty paper towel to help the liquid evenly soak into the meat.

Allow the chicken to cool to room temperature. Discard the paper towel and remove the chicken from the seasoning liquid. Don’t forget to save the seasoning liquid to use in other recipes!

Remove and discard the cooking twine. Cut the Chicken Chashu into approximately 5 mm slices.

If you won’t be using the Chicken Chashu right away, keep them stored (un-sliced) in plastic wrap in the refrigerator for up to a few days.

Enjoy the Chicken Chashu as a ramen topping, in a bowl of rice, or by itself as a delicious snack.

Chicken Chashu

Char Ferrara

Chicken Chashu is a spin on the popular Pork Belly Chashu ramen topping. Rolled chicken thighs are pan-fried, braised in a sweet soy sauce, then left to marinade to soak in the delicious seasoning. 

4.78 from 18 votes

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Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 35 minutes mins

Total Time 55 minutes mins

Cuisine Japanese

Servings 6 bowls of ramen

Ingredients

 

US CustomaryMetric

 

1x2x3x

• 1 lb chicken thighs boneless, skin-on
• 2 1/2 cups water
• 2 cups dark soy sauce Japanese
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 3/4 cup sugar

US Customary – Metric

Instructions

 

• Roll the chicken thighs, skin-side out, into tight rolls, and secure with cooking twine.
• Heat a large skillet over medium heat. When it’s hot, add the chicken and brown the meat on all sides.
• In a large stockpot, combine the water, soy sauce, white wine, and sugar. Stir to dissolve the sugar completely, then add the chicken. 
• Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to medium and simmer, uncovered, for 25 minutes.
• Remove from the heat and let cool to room temperature. To let the flavors soak in evenly, rotate the chicken in the seasoning liquid every 10 minutes or so while it’s cooling. To make this easier, cover the top of the chicken with a heavy-duty paper towel; the paper will help the liquid evenly soak into the meat.
• Once the chicken is cooled to room temperature, remove it from the seasoning liquid and discard the paper towels. The chicken can be cut and used immediately, or wrapped in plastic wrap and stored in the refrigerator for a few days.

Nutrition

Calories: 278kcalCarbohydrates: 25gProtein: 12gSaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 74mgSodium: 64mgSugar: 25g

Keyword chicken, ramen

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