Of all the ramen toppings, ajitsuke tamago has to be in the top three! It's a must for every ramen lover and one of the most popular toppings of all time.
It's perfect both as a topping and as a snack. It can be really tasty, and if you're precise it's also easy to make.
What is ajitsuke tamago?
Ajitsuke tamago is a boiled egg (a soft-boiled one!) traditionally marinated overnight in a soy sauce base. It's cut in half and served on top of ramen, usually with other toppings.
Translated straight from Japanese, ajitsuke tamago means marinated/seasoned egg (ajitsuke = marinated, tamago = egg). You'll very likely hear it called ajitama too: same thing, just shortened.
Some versions of ajitsuke tamago are made by marinating the egg in a miso mix instead of Japanese soy sauce. That gives an even deeper umami hit and helps boost the flavour of the ramen or whatever dish you add it to.
You can also enjoy it on its own as a snack or use it as a topping for other things, like salads, rice, soups and all kinds of noodles.
History of the topping
They say ajitsuke tamago took off as a topping when a restaurant owner called Kenji Chiba started serving it with street ramen. According to local Tokyo legend, Chiba-san brought his skills as a washoku chef (the traditional Japanese way of cooking, which also covers the etiquette and ceremonies around food) into the world of ramen.
The idea of a marinated boiled egg comes from China, like many other elements of Japanese cooking.
The main difference between the classic Chinese marinated egg and Japanese ajitsuke tamago lies in the sauces used for the marinade. Both use soy sauce, but the Japanese one is sweeter and has a deeper flavour, while Chinese soy sauce is mainly salty.
Either way, both versions started out as a snack before being used as a topping.
Why does ajitsuke go well with ramen?
Ajitsuke tamago has a unique mix of flavour and texture that goes really well with ramen. Soft-boiled eggs are naturally softer than the hard-boiled ones we usually know. Add the already creamy yolk and you get a soft texture that almost melts as you bite into it.
In a ramen restaurant, soft-boiled ajitama is usually served with the noodles. The eggs sit on top of the hot ramen broth, and when they break, the creamy yolk mixes into the broth, making it richer.
The flavour and the mix of textures may be the main reason ajitama goes so perfectly with ramen, but each has its own merits too.
Depending on the marinade you use, the egg can have a delicate blend of sweet, sour and salty on the surface. Then there's the strong touch of umami that fills your mouth as you chew. The marinade has a particular effect on the texture of the egg. The sodium in the soy sauce draws some of the moisture out through the outside of the egg, concentrating the flavour and firming it up slightly.
Marinate the egg for no less than 8 hours, but if you decide to go as far as 48 hours it'll definitely develop a very bold flavour.
Which ramen broth goes best with ajitsuke, and which toppings go with it
Since ajitsuke tamago is marinated in a soy sauce-based mix, you'd think it goes best with shoyu ramen. But there's more to it.
Remember ajitsuke's creamy texture? That very texture is what makes it a great match for every main ramen flavour.
Ajitsuke tamago is a great topping for shoyu ramen, thanks to their shared flavour profile. It also goes well with tonkotsu, thanks to the broth's already creamy texture. It's a great topping for miso ramen too, because of the way the "earthy" flavour of miso paste goes with the creamy, barely cooked yolk.
Shio ramen is an interesting one because its overall intensity of flavour is similar to an egg marinated for 24 hours. What ajitsuke does for shio ramen is add a bit of texture to the whole. For shio, though, you'll want eggs marinated for at least 48 hours, as shio is a "lighter" broth.
As for other toppings that go well with ajitsuke, here are our 5 main suggestions:
Narutomaki: these cute little slices of fish paste have a nice chew that contrasts beautifully with the easily broken ajitsuke. If you like different textures in your ramen, narutomaki is the one to go for.
Chashu: braised pork has just the right amount of flavour not to overpower the ajitsuke. It's delicate, falls apart easily when you bite it, and since it's braised in a liquid similar to the ajitsuke marinade, it doesn't change the flavour too much.
Niku soboro: minced meat seasoned with soy sauce and sugar, then fried until crisp. It adds a gorgeous crunch to balance the creaminess of the ajitsuke, and boosts the umami of the whole dish too.
Nori: the tasty, flavour-packed dried seaweed soaks up the ramen broth and softens, almost like the outer layer of the ajitsuke. If you prefer to marinate your egg in soy sauce only, the seaweed gives the salty egg white an extra lift of flavour.
Benishoga: the bold flavours of pickled ginger are a mix of sour and sweet. Paired with ajitsuke tamago, especially in tonkotsu ramen, you get a creamy broth, an umami egg and tangy strips of ginger. All in one bowl!
