Hiroko Shimbo is an authority on Japanese cuisine with world-wide recognition. She is a chef-consultant for restaurants and food companies, trained sushi chef, cookbook author, media performer and chef-instructor. Hiroko teaches Basics of Sushi, Ramen and Gyoza, and Essentials of Japanese Cuisine courses at ICC.
The lesson began with a conversation about ramen history, basic ingredients, essential techniques, and everything about stock, chashu pork and noodles. Students quickly got to work by rolling and tying pork belly, kneading dough and cutting it in pasta machines. Meanwhile Joshua was working on his own secret plan, trying to guess just the right moment to reveal a special “dessert”.
One of the highlights of the class was making and eating sizzling hot Japanese potstickers — “gyoza” — filled with pork and cabbage. Everyone had an opportunity to experiment with folding round dough wrappers and flipping ready appetizers from steaming pans into plates while being cheered on by the rest of the class.
When the noodles were cooked, it was time to assemble the ramen bowls. Here’s the recipe for delicious success: a few tablespoons of shoyu or miso sauce at the bottom of the bowl, followed by hot broth and drained noodles, topped with tender chashu pork, ramen egg, Japanese mushroom, nori and chopped scallions.
The class was slowly coming to its end and everyone was enjoying their handcrafted ramen dinners and culinary conversations, when something completely unexpected happened. Joshua got down on one knee, pulled a ring out of his apron, and popped the question! Watch this ramen-tic moment:
Congratulations to Joshua and Diana! Thank you for making us a part of the celebration!
A surprise engagement cake was made by Chef Michael Zebrowski for this occasion:
This blog post was originally published by the International Culinary Center (ICC), founded as The French Culinary Institute (FCI). In 2020, ICE and ICC came together on one strong and dynamic national platform at ICE's campuses in New York City and Los Angeles. Explore your culinary education where the legacy lives on.
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