Impress your friends with Natalie Homan's stylish, delicious – and deceptively simple – ramen eggs.

Recipe and Styling Natalie Homan | Photograph Brendan Homan

Ramen egg with soba noodle, zucchini flower and ruby grapefruit salad
serves 4

The ramen eggs need to be made in advance. The texture of the egg white becomes firmer the longer they marinate and the yolk becomes more curd-like. I feel overnight is ample for this recipe, however, 2 days is considered optimal for ramen soup.

for ramen egg
6 large eggs
¼ cup tamari (Japanese soy sauce)
¼ cup mirin
¼ cup sake
2 tbsp sugar
½ cup water

Place tamari, mirin, sake, sugar and water into a small saucepan and simmer to dissolve the sugar. Put aside to cool to room temperature. Bring a medium-sized saucepan of water to the boil. Meanwhile, prick the base of the eggs with a large needle or skewer – this allows the shell to be removed with ease. Prepare an ice bath by pouring 2L of water into a large bowl and adding a tray of ice cubes. Boil the eggs for six minutes and plunge into the ice bath to arrest the cooking process. Peel eggs and place in a sealable container. Pour over cooled marinade, cover and place in the refrigerator to marinate overnight.

for salad
360g soba noodle
8 zucchini flowers
2 ruby grapefruit
8 garlic chives
½ bunch coriander
½ bunch mint
½ cup roasted peanuts,
roughly chopped

for dressing
2 tbsp tamari
1 tbsp mirin
1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
juice from ruby grapefruit
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tbsp grated ginger
1 garlic clove, grated

Cook soba noodles according to packet instructions and refresh under cold running water. Place in a large mixing bowl. Remove zucchini flowers from their stems, pinch out the inner stamen, roughly tear and add to the bowl. Thinly slice the small zucchinis and add to the bowl. Remove the skin of the grapefruit and portion into segments, catching the juices in a bowl underneath to use in the dressing. Cut the garlic chives into 2cm lengths, add to the bowl. Whisk together the dressing ingredients in a small bowl, pour over the salad and gently toss. 

To serve, divide the noodle mixture amongst 4 plates, arrange 3 ramen egg halves on top and scatter with a generous amount of coriander, mint and peanuts. Alternatively, serve as a large salad on a platter to share.

This recipe first appeared in the October 2019 issue of SALIFE magazine.