Miso-Curry-Milk Ramen!?

Like Tsunami and Karaoke, Ramen is well taken in the western vocabulary and foreign tourists know what it is and how it tastes. Ramen comes in infinite variations and you can even ask for your own.

Now, here's a new entry in Ramen culture and some say it's cool and others claim one ingredient too many. Well, it's up to you to decide, really, because you have to try it for yourself - meaning you just have to come to Japan just for the heck of it. Come to Japan - this time to Aomori, the northernmost prefecture south of Hokkaido across the Tsugaru Straits.

Here's a Ramen fan, a Japanese who normally wouldn't go for milk. He gave it a try and this is what he said:

"I've heard so much about this new variation and thought I should try it at a place it originated, Aomori. I took a trip to Aomori and found a Ramen shop near the station. The Miso-Curry-Milk Ramen came  in a whitish soup. Honestly, I don't like milk as it is, so I wondered if I could manage it.

"I took a sip and, well, it wasn't too bad. I took another and felt spiciness. Curry, of course. The chef told me the taste of curry powder would fade in a minute. So it did. The mellow taste of milk came forward and blended with Miso and curry. Pretty good!.
Miso Ramen has already been everywhere, so have Curry Ramen and Miso Ramen, but never so far a combination of all three. Somebody must have released a rumor somewhere that the three ingredients match well; the Blessed Trinity made it in the main menu in 1975 or thereabouts.

Lately, Ramen-loving foreigners are awakening to its miraculous taste. A British youth in Aomori, Eleen Conan, 23, says, unlike only salty variations, Miso-Curry-Milk Ramen is creamy and tasteful.

So, Japan has another charm to attract tourists from abroad.

News Source: Nikkei Shimbun