- ajitsuke-tamago味付け玉子ajitsuke tamago/ad͡ʑitsɯke tamago/
- The soy-marinated soft-boiled egg sliced on top of ramen. A premium topping in any ramen shop.
- chashu叉焼chashu/t͡ɕaːɕɯː/
- Japanese-style braised pork belly, sliced thin, used as a ramen topping. From Chinese char siu.
- dashi出汁dashi/daɕi/
- Japanese soup stock made from kombu (kelp) and katsuobushi (bonito flakes). The foundation of nearly every Japanese broth.
- kansui鹸水kansui/kaɴsɯi/
- Alkaline mineral water added to ramen dough to create the springy yellow texture. Without kansui, you have lo mein, not ramen.
- katsuobushi鰹節katsuobushi/katsɯoboɕi/
- Dried, smoked, fermented bonito flakes used in dashi. The brown shavings you see floating on takoyaki.
- menmaメンマmenma/memma/
- Fermented bamboo shoots, a classic ramen topping. Yellow-brown, slightly tangy, with bouncy texture.
- miso味噌miso/miso/
- Fermented soybean paste. Red, white, or mixed (awase). Foundation of miso ramen and miso soup.
- narutomaki鳴門巻narutomaki/naɾɯtomaki/
- Pink-and-white spiral fish cake sliced into rounds. Classic ramen topping; the pink-spiral cartoon design.
- negi葱negi/ɲeɡi/
- Japanese long onion / scallion. Sliced thinly as a topping for ramen, udon, soba.
- shoyu醤油shoyu/ɕoːjɯ/
- Japanese soy sauce. Naturally brewed, less salty than Chinese soy. Standard table seasoning.
- tareタレtare/taɾe/
- The seasoning concentrate added to ramen broth — shoyu, shio, or miso based. Defines the ramen's classical category.
- tonkotsu豚骨tonkotsu/toŋkotsɯ/
- Pork bone. As a ramen style, refers to the fast-boiled milky-white pork bone broth associated with Hakata.
- tsuyuつゆtsuyu/tsɯjɯ/
- Dipping sauce for cold noodles. Dashi + soy + mirin, chilled. Standard with zaru soba and sōmen.