The Persistence of Memory

Who is the Artist?

The artist, Salvador Dali, is a Spanish artist who creates surrealist artwork. He was born in May 11, 1904 and sadly passed away in January 23, 1989. He created “The Persistence of Memory” in 1931, when he was only 27.

In the painting below, I notice 4 clocks that are bent in a weird and unusual way. In the real world, clocks are solid and stay in a round circle. However, the clocks seems like it could be made out of fabric. One of the clocks is facing downwards and has many ants on it. It is also the only clock that is solid and normal looking. It also seems like there is a blanket with blonde hair on it laying on top of a pile or rocks. The background is a sunset that just begun with a river and a small mountain of rocks. There is also a small tree branch on the left.

What does it mean?

This painting is a memory for the artist from the time he was kicked out of his home by his father at just 25 years old. Him and his wife eventually found a place to stay, which was a fishing settlement. They had to live in damp walls and cold mountain wind, hence the mountains on the painting. This art piece displayed his technical proficiency and his way of surrealism.

Why I liked this Painting

I liked this painting because I think that the clocks being bent is unique and it’s a simple yet intriguing piece. I also like the random items in the painting because it can mean anything and have a different meaning for everyone.

Tonkotsu Ramen

Tonkotsu is a ramen dish that usually contains these ingredients: broth, noodles, pork and egg. There are many more toppings you could add to make it more appetizing. This dish is a time consuming recipe that can take up to 1-4 days to make. The word "tonkotsu" in Japanese means pork bone broth. The soup base is boiled for at least 18 hours before it's finally served. The broth has a thick texture with a hearty, meaty taste to it. The noodles that are commonly used for tonkotsu are Chinese wheat noodles. The noodles should be slightly hard in the center.

Tonkotsu originated from a city in Japan called Fukuoka which is located on an island called Kyushu. It is often referred to as "Hakata Ramen" on the island. The creation of this dish is actually a mistake, but a rather good one. In 1937, someone accidentally put the heat up way too high and created the creamy broth. It was first made in a noodle stall called "Nankin Senryo".

I personally have never had an authentic tonkotsu ramen dish before but it's something I would like to try in the future. Noodles are one of my favorite kind of food so when I found out about tonkotsu, I couldn't wait to try it.

Tonkotsu Recipe

8 cups tonkotsu pork broth
12 oz good quality dried ramen noodles
4 large or extra large eggs
2-3 oz enoki or other mushrooms
thinly sliced green onions

Chashu pork belly

2 lb pork belly – rolled and tied
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup sake
1/2 cup mirin – sweet Japanese wine
1/4 cup sugar
2-3 cloves garlic – left whole
2 green onions – coarsely chopped

Soy bacon tare

2 slices bacon – use good quality bacon here
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 Tbsp mirin
2 Tbsp sake
4 Tbsp shiro miso

Miso Tare

1/2 cup shiro miso
1/4 cup sake
1/4 cup mirin
pinch shichimi togarashi (optional)
1-2 tsp kosher salt

Instructions

Chashu pork belly

Combine the soy, sake, mirin, sugar, garlic and green onions in a ziploc bag large enough to hold the pork belly. Stick a straw in the bag and seal the ziploc bag up against it (so the straw is the only opening). Suck as much of the air out as you can and seal.
Sous vide the pork for 10-11 hours at 170F.
Remove pork from the ziploc bag. Discard the bag and marinade.
Let the chashu pork belly cool completely.
Slice across the chashu pork (so you get bacon like slices) – into 8-12 slices about 1/8 to 3/16 inches thick. Reserve. You won’t need all the pork for 4 servings.

Soy bacon tare

Combine all the ingredients in a small sauce pan. Simmer at the lowest setting for about an hour. Top up with a bit of chicken stock if needed.
Remove the bacon.

Miso tare

Combine all ingredients in a small sauce pan and simmer at the lowest setting for about 5 minutes.

Medium boiled eggs

Bring enough water to cover the eggs to a boil. If you have a way to prick the eggshell do it. Boil large eggs for 6 minutes 30 seconds. If using extra large eggs boil them for 7 minutes 30 seconds. You may have to adjust your times slightly depending on the exact size of your eggs but this should get you pretty close.
Submerge the eggs in cold or ice water to chill. This stops the egg yolks from continuing to set up. Peel. Cut in half right before you serve your tonkotsu ramen.

Assemble the Tonkotsu Ramen

Boil the ramen noodles in plenty of water as directed by the packaging. If there’s no translation on the packaging usually its 4 minutes. You don’t need to salt the water.
Cook the mushrooms along side the noodles – you just want them softened.
Gently fry the chashu pork in a non-stick skillet until lightly browned.
Place 1/4 of whichever tare you are using in the bottom of four bowls.
Ladle in about 1/2 cup of the tonkotsu broth into each of the bowls and stir to mix.
Add the noodles. Pour in another 1 1/2 cups of the tonkotsu broth per bowl.
Top with the egg, mushrooms, pork and green onions.