Tonkotsu Ramen Style

Tonkotsu is a lineage of opaque paitan ramen made by boiling pork bones at high heat for an extended period to emulsify their collagen and fat. Originating in Kyushu, it developed regional branches in places such as Hakata, Nagahama, Kurume, and Kumamoto in Fukuoka, and today it has become the most globally widespread style of Japanese ramen.

The style originated in 1937 at Nankin Senryo (난킨센료), a food stall in Kurume (구루메), Fukuoka Prefecture. Its founder created ramen with a pork-bone broth, drawing inspiration from Nagasaki champon and Yokohama-style Chinese noodles; initially, however, it was a clear chintan broth. The milky-white broth known today is said to have been created by accident in 1947 at Sankyu (산큐), also in Kurume, when the broth was mistakenly boiled too vigorously. This apparent failure was instead well received, establishing paitan tonkotsu as the standard, and the style spread from Kurume throughout Kyushu.

• Broth: A paitan broth made by boiling pork skulls, backbones, and other bones over high heat until emulsified. Its broad spectrum of thickness and aroma serves as a basis for distinguishing different branches of the style.

• Noodles: Extra-thin, straight noodles with low water content. Because they cook and soften quickly, a culture developed around specifying noodle firmness, such as kata (firm) and barikata (very firm).

• Kaedama: A system of ordering an additional serving of noodles while retaining the remaining broth. It originated as a method devised to allow workers at the Nagahama fish market to finish their meals quickly.

• Toppings: Chashu, scallions, and wood ear mushrooms are standard, while beni shoga (red pickled ginger), sesame seeds, and spicy dressed mustard greens provided at the table may be added as desired.

• Kurume (구루메): The original form of tonkotsu. It uses the yobimodoshi method, in which the broth is never fully emptied and fresh broth is continuously added, producing a deep, pungent aroma.

• Hakata (하카타): A style centered in Fukuoka city. It uses extra-thin noodles with a smoother, more refined broth than the Kurume style. Ippudo (잇푸도), Ichiran (이치란), and other chains emerged from this tradition and led the global spread of tonkotsu.

• Nagahama (나가하마): A practical style that developed beside a fish market. It is the birthplace of kaedama culture.

• Kumamoto (구마모토): Chicken bones are blended into the broth to give it a milder character, and black mayu oil made with scorched garlic is added. The noodles are also slightly thicker than those used in the Hakata style.

A tonkotsu boom emerged in Tokyo in the late 1980s, turning it into a nationwide genre. Since the 2000s, chains expanding overseas have established a global association between ramen and tonkotsu. Most first-generation ramen shops in Korea also began with tonkotsu.