This Cheese Deserves A Place In Your Bowl Of Ramen - Tasting Table

"In the gentle hum of the late-night kitchen, the boundaries between cultures and flavors can melt into something unexpectedly copacetic. Meet two icons of twentieth-century invention, born from scarcity, designed for speed, each a testament to the ordinary miracle of making something out of almost nothing. From the cupboard, ramen. In the fridge, American cheese. On the surface, they're unlikely companions - born in different countries, but raised in the same spirit."

"It wasn't until chef Roy Choi started dropping slices of American cheese into ramen on TV and in his recipes that the combination became a cult classic in the United States. What started as a homegrown Korean-American trick spread fast, picking up fans from college dorms to food magazines. The method is as unfussy and satisfyingly gooey. Everywhere you go, across cultures and eras, you'll find the combination of hot noodles and gooey cheese."

"American cheese isn't actually cheese, not exactly. It's a pasteurized processed cheese food, an edible amalgamation. To purists, it's a sacrilege wrapped in a plastic envelope. But there's genius in its mutability. Unlike cheddar, which sweats, splits, and demands a grater and a roux, American cheese comes pre-portioned and submits to heat with perfect grace. When it melts, it vanishes, going into the broth like velvet."

Ramen and American cheese combine as a fast, comfort-food fusion originating from scarcity-driven, twentieth-century inventions. Chef Roy Choi popularized placing American cheese slices into ramen, which turned into a cult favorite across college dorms and food media. Hot noodles and gooey cheese appear in many culinary traditions, such as Alfredo and Korean tteokbokki with mozzarella. American cheese is a pasteurized processed cheese food that melts uniformly, pre-portioned for convenience and lending a velvet texture to broths. Preparation involves boiling noodles, stirring in seasoning, turning off the heat, and laying slices of American cheese atop the noodles to melt into the broth.

Read at Tasting Table