Ganko Style Shoyu Ramen with Extra Pork Back Fat (Kikuchi Hiroki, Kumagaya)

2 comments

1. [Kikuchi Hiroki (きくちひろき)](https://youtu.be/bq1OmMj_O6E) is the best ramen shop in Kumagaya if all the locals I talked to are to be believed. It is a direct descendant shop from the infamous Ichijyoryu Ganko Ramen, or just Ganko in short. Even without this information here, the ramen nerds in the know might deduce it from the big beef femur bone at the entrance, which is a telltale sign of shops with a relationship to Ganko.

   While there are many similarities between Ganko and Kikuchi Hiroki, it is not a simple copy, which would be hard to do anyway. Rather, Kikuchi Hiroki builds upon its Ganko heritage and creates a new interesting style that Ganko fans can surely appreciate as well.

   The soup is a wild mix of a hard to pin down broth and an almost violently strong and salty soy sauce tare. If I had to guess, I would say that there are at least in some amounts pork, chicken, beef and dried fish elements in the broth. The noodles look basically like the yellow eggy noodles of Ganko, they might possibly even be the same. The most obvious visual topping is the copious amount of “abura” pork back fat that covers the whole surface of the bowl, if you order the “kotteri” option (こってり), but there are also “assari” (あっさり) options on the menu with much less pork back fat. The negi green onion and menma bamboo shoots offer a welcome zing and crunch to distract a bit from the heaviness and saltiness of the bowl. The chashu is very well seasoned and basically falls apart if you try to pick it up.

   If you would like to know more about this bowl and this ramen shop, check out this short video: https://youtu.be/bq1OmMj_O6E

2. Mmmmm