Chilled Ramen Soup with fresh Tomatoes, Inari & Wakame

A riff on Eric Kim's chilled ramen noodles with tomatoes — the broth starts with salted cherry tomatoes (his genius move), deepened with wakame steeped right in the liquid for a dashi-like umami, then served over ramen noodles with sweet-savory inari tofu strips, radishes, and scallions. Light, bright, and perfect for a hot day.

This dish is the antidote to "it's too hot to cook" plus a killer place to riff on what glorious fresh veg you might have from the farmers market

Two servings ... more or less.

Ingredients

• 2 cups ripe cherry tomatoes, mixed colors, halved

• 1 teaspoons kosher salt

• 1 tablespoon dried wakame seaweed bits

• 2 cups cold filtered water

• 2 tablespoons rice vinegar

• 1 tablespoons soy sauce

• 1 tablespoons granulated sugar

• 1 large garlic clove, finely grated

• 0.3 teaspoons Dijon mustard

• 0.3 teaspoons toasted sesame oil

• 2 dried ramen noodles (packet noodles, seasoning discarded)

• 4 Hime Inarizushi-No-Moto seasoned fried bean curd pockets

• 4 radishes, thinly sliced

• 2 scallions, thinly sliced on the bias

• 1 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds, or Furikake rice seasoning

• 1 cup crushed or cubed ice

• 0.5 cups snap peas or snow peas, sliced on the bias (optional)

Steps

Salt the tomatoes: In a large bowl, toss 2 cups ripe cherry tomatoes, mixed colors, halved with 1 teaspoons kosher salt. Let sit about 10 minutes until the tomatoes release their juices — this liquid becomes the heart of the broth.

Steep the wakame: Add 1 tablespoons dried wakame seaweed directly to the tomatoes and their juice. Pour in 2 cups cold filtered water. Let the wakame rehydrate and steep for 5–10 minutes — it will release a subtle umami and turn a beautiful dark green. Leave it in for visual contrast and texture, or strain it out for a cleaner broth.

Build the broth: Add 2 tablespoons rice vinegar, 1 tablespoons soy sauce, 1 tablespoons granulated sugar, 1 large garlic clove, finely grated, 0.3 teaspoons Dijon mustard, and 0.3 teaspoons toasted sesame oil to the tomato-wakame mixture. Stir well to combine. Taste and adjust — it should be savory, bright, and just slightly sweet. Set aside or refrigerate while you prep everything else.

Cook and shock the noodles: Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cook 2 dried ramen noodles (packet noodles, seasoning discarded) according to package directions (usually 2–3 minutes). Drain and rinse immediately under cold running water until fully chilled and no longer starchy. Divide between two bowls.

Prep the inari: Remove about 4 Hime Inarizushi-No-Moto seasoned fried bean curd pockets from the can (reserve the liquid!), gently flatten them out and stack. Slice into strips about 1/4 inch +/- wide. They're ready to go as-is — sweet, savory, and lightly caramelized. And, very 'snackable'. Just sayin', not judging.

Assemble and serve: Right before serving, add 1 cup crushed or cubed ice to the broth. Ladle the broth and tomatoes over the noodles — make sure each bowl gets a good share of tomatoes and wakame. Top with inari strips, 4 radishes, thinly sliced, 2 scallions, thinly sliced on the bias, snap peas if using, and finish with 1 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds.

Notes

The key technique (from Eric Kim): This is the 'genius' move. Salting the tomatoes first draws out their juices, which become the base of the broth. Don't skip the resting time — those 10 minutes are where the flavor comes from.

The wakame addition: Steeping it directly in the tomato water mirrors how dashi works. The tomato acidity and the seaweed umami are a genuinely great pairing.

On the Inari strips and liquid: The canned Inari in their own sweet brine are a 'must have' item in my Asian pantry. The 'pockets' are for the rice stuffed sushi (which I make occasionally) but simply slicing the pockets into strips is perfect in soups (like this one) or tossed into stir-fry dishes (think stir fried snap peas, shallots and the Inari strips) or Asian salads (with cucumber!). The sweet brine left in the can is free flavor — a small splash stirred into the broth ties the protein to the broth beautifully. Oh, and I won't judge if you find yourself popping these slices into your mouth before they ever get into the recipe ... the flavor is addictive.

Additions: Snap peas or snow peas would add a fresh crunch that plays well against the tomato acidity. Snow peas stay more delicate; snap peas hold up better. Thinly sliced baby bok choy or other Asian greens. The Furikake rice seasoning (sprinkles) can be found at any Asian market, online and at some grocery stores. They're great to sprinkle on any Asian dish with rice, any noodle bowl and more. Have a couple flavors on hand.

Serve immediately: Once the ice goes in, the clock is ticking. Have everything prepped and ready before you assemble.

Shopping Notes

Asian Mart (115 East Moana Lane, Reno), or 168 Asia Mart (3090 South Virginia at Gentry Way) will have the Japanese Furikake sprinkles (they come in a lot of different flavors). I buy the Ajishima Furikake Nori sprinkles to use either on ramen or rice. For the Wakame, I prefer the Ocean's Halo brand and buy it at Walmart or Whole Foods. They also make a really good ramen noodle.