Noodle Journey Episode 56: Marutai Hokkaido Asahikawa Soybean Ramen

This installment in the Marutai Local Series line features their Hokkaido Asahikawa Soybean Ramen. It’s one of two flavors in the lineup based on Hokkaido ramen styles, the other being the red miso variety reviewed earlier. Unlike that one, which leaned heavily on fermented miso flavor, this version uses soy paste and seafood extract in a shoyu-style broth. That means a cleaner, more direct soy profile without the funk of fermentation, but with a unique flavor all its own.

Each pack contains two servings of noodles and broth. Inside are two bundles of yellow Hokkaido-style straight noodles, which cook in five minutes and are already known to be excellent based on the other Marutai Sapporo Miso review. The soup packet includes no oil or garnish, and unfortunately, the broth contains both pork and chicken, so it’s not vegetarian-friendly. The sodium content is substantial, clocking in at 2,150mg per serving.

Noodles:
These are the same thick, chewy straight noodles from the Sapporo Miso variety, and they’re just as fantastic here.
• 10/10

Spiciness:
No heat at all in this one.
• 0/10

Overall:
This broth offers much more than a standard soy sauce profile. It starts with a deep salty umami punch from the soy, but then layers in clam extract and bonito for a sweet, savory seafood background that adds noticeable complexity. Unlike other Marutai flavors where those seafood notes fade into the background, here the clam sweetness is front and center in a really pleasant way. There’s also a hint of sesame oil, fatty richness from the pork and chicken extract, and a faint alcohol aroma likely from sake. Altogether, it’s a truly unique take on shoyu ramen. The only thing missing is some garnish; green onions or bamboo shoots would’ve rounded this out nicely. Even so, this is the best soy sauce broth I’ve reviewed so far.
• 9.5/10

Notes since filming:

Fun fact: This is one of the few times where I had to go back and reshoot almost the entire review. I still don’t know exactly what I did (maybe it was a defective liquid sachet?), but something got messed up when I cooked this variety and it came out bland and almost flavorless. I thought, based on the stellar experiences I had with the previous varieties, that something wasn’t quite right. Turns out I was right to second-guess myself, and on the second attempt this flavor turned out absolutely delicious.