2024-09-13 Noodle Culture in Japan
①Various Noodles
Noodles have become one of the top choices for Japanese daily meals besides of rice and bread. Ramen, udon, soba, pasta, somen noodles, and yakisoba… Most of them can choose hot or cold, so noodles are popular in all seasons.
Various noodle dishes and noodle-making styles have been handed down from region to region, and are familiar to people as local delicacies. "Inaniwa Udon" from Akita prefecture is thin, flat, transparent, and has a strong texture. "Wanko Soba" from Iwate Prefecture is a style in which you eat hot soba from a small bowl, divided into bite-size portions and you call for another refill each time. "Okinawa Soba" is a type of ramen with a sticky texture and thick pork soup.
Kagawa prefecture is famous for "Sanuki Udon" and is Japan's No.1 in both udon consumption and number of udon restaurants. Nagasaki Prefecture has “Nagasaki Champon,” ramen noodles with lots of vegetables and seafood, and “Sara Udon,” thin, crispy fried noodles topped with the same ingredients as champon.
Japanese people often slurp when eating noodles, and make some special noise. In my personal opinion as a Japanese, it was surprising to know that making noise while eating noodles makes foreign people uncomfortable. Of course, it is important to respect manners, but slurping noodles is already a daily habit for us, and what really matters is whether we enjoy the meal.