A pile of thin and curly noodles surrounded by delicious and nutritious broth? Yes, please!
Ramen noodles are one of the most famous dishes to come out of Japanese culture, and now they are embraced in all corners of the world.
National Ramen Day succeeds in getting everyone’s taste buds excited for this robust and versatile food!
National Ramen Day Timeline
First Ramen Specialty Shop Opens in Tokyo
Rairaiken opens in Tokyo’s Asakusa neighborhood and is widely regarded as Japan’s first dedicated ramen restaurant, helping establish ramen as a distinct noodle dish.
Postwar Conditions Spur Ramen’s Popularity
In the years after World War II, food shortages and the influx of cheap imported wheat flour from the United States encourage the spread of wheat noodles and ramen as affordable, filling street food in Japan.
Instant Ramen Is Introduced by Momofuku Ando
Momofuku Ando of Nissin Foods develops Chicken Ramen, the first commercially successful instant ramen, turning ramen into a quick, shelf‑stable meal that can be prepared at home with hot water.
Cup Noodles Launches a New Way to Eat Ramen
Nissin releases Cup Noodles in Japan, combining instant noodles, flavoring and toppings in a disposable cup so that consumers can cook and eat ramen with just boiling water and no separate cookware.
Shin-Yokohama Ramen Museum Opens to the Public
The Shin-Yokohama Ramen Museum opens in Yokohama as a food-themed museum, recreating a 1958-style streetscape and highlighting regional ramen styles to showcase the dish’s cultural history.
How to Celebrate National Ramen Day
All sorts of tummies, and also hearts, will be deeply happy when National Ramen Day is observed and enjoyed with the whole family.
Have a delicious time with this day by celebrating in some of these ways:
Enjoy Eating Some Ramen
Obviously, it isn’t necessary to wait until National Ramen Day to cave into that deep craving for this bowl of noodly goodness.
But, this special day does offer a delightful opportunity to show some appreciation for and raise awareness about this delicious, comforting food that so many people all around the world are in love with!
Get Creative with Ramen
Forget a boring bowl of ramen with standard flavors and no color. National Ramen Day is the time to get a bit creative and push the flavor limits of this dish to upgrade it to something amazing!
Check out some of these ideas for enjoying ramen to the fullest:
- Pesto Ramen. Keep the same noodles but slather it with pesto made from olive oil, pine nuts and baby spinach. Then top with parmesan cheese and roasted red peppers.
- Breakfast Ramen. In a hurry for breakfast? No problem! This ramen is supported by cheesy eggs, bacon, and a topping of sliced green onions.
- Ramen Burgers. Ever thought that those ramen packets could be made into a crunchy fried hamburger bun? This is the time to try it!
- Zoodle Ramen. Go traditional with the toppings, but exchange the noodles for a gluten-free healthy alternative by using zucchini noodles.
Facts About National Ramen Day
Chinese Wheat Noodles Laid the Groundwork for Ramen
Ramen did not begin as a Japanese dish at all; it grew out of Chinese wheat noodles brought by immigrants and traders to port cities such as Yokohama, Kobe, and Nagasaki in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, where they were adapted with Japanese broths and seasonings into what was first known as “Chinese soba.”
Rai Rai Ken Helped Turn Ramen Into Urban Fast Food
In 1910, the restaurant Rai Rai Ken opened in Tokyo’s Asakusa district serving “shina soba,” a noodle soup that blended Chinese-style noodles with Japanese toppings like roast pork, fish cake, and nori; contemporary accounts say it became so popular that it sometimes sold as many as 3,000 bowls in a single day, anchoring ramen as a quick, filling meal for city workers.
An Alkaline ‘Secret Ingredient’ Gives Ramen Noodles Their Bite
What sets ramen noodles apart from most other wheat noodles is the addition of kansui, an alkaline mineral water traditionally containing sodium carbonate and potassium carbonate; by raising the dough’s pH, kansui strengthens the gluten network, producing a chewy, springy texture and a characteristic yellow color without using egg.
Postwar Wheat Aid Turned Ramen Into a Recovery Food
After World War II, Japan faced severe food shortages, and U.S. occupation authorities shipped large quantities of surplus wheat flour into the country; entrepreneurs turned that cheap wheat into noodle soups sold from stalls and carts, and these inexpensive bowls of ramen became a crucial source of calories for urban residents during the difficult postwar reconstruction years.
Instant Ramen Was Born From a Backyard Experiment
In 1958, Nissin founder Momofuku Ando developed the first instant ramen, Chicken Ramen, in a shed behind his home by perfecting a method of flash‑frying seasoned noodles so they could be quickly rehydrated with hot water, an innovation that transformed ramen from a shop food into a global pantry staple.
Instant Noodles Became a Global Staple on a Massive Scale
Since their commercial debut in 1958, instant noodles have grown into one of the world’s most ubiquitous convenience foods; Japan’s research institute for instant noodles has estimated average global consumption at around 100 billion servings per year, with particularly high intake in East and Southeast Asia.
Ramen Has Evolved Into a Museum‑Worthy Cultural Icon
Japan’s fascination with ramen has led to dedicated institutions such as the Shin‑Yokohama Ramen Museum, which presents ramen’s history, recreates a 1950s Tokyo streetscape, and gathers multiple regional ramen shops under one roof, highlighting how a once-humble workers’ meal has become a celebrated part of national food culture.
National Ramen Day FAQs
History of National Ramen Day
Ramen has a background that can be traced back to China in the 1800s. The dish seems to have originated when soupy broth was combined with noodles and some flavorings.
This warming dish seems to have traveled with immigrants into Japan in the late 19th or early 20th century where it popped up in busy ports and then gained popularity throughout the entire country.
Of course, it didn’t originally come in those little packages with the powdered soup flavors. This is a modern version that has become popular mostly based on the convenience factor.
But there are still certain restaurants that serve fresh dishes of ramen noodles that are nutritious and also delicious. These establishments typically serve house-made noodles with slow cooked broth and locally sourced ingredients that are tantalizing to the tongue.
National Ramen Day seems to have gotten its start in 2017 with the purpose of creating an excuse to eat ramen – not that one is really needed. So grab a friend or family member and get ready to enjoy this delicious day!
