Somen are Japanese dried vermicelli noodles that are usually eaten cold during summer. Japanese summer is so hot and humid that you often loose your appetite by the end of the day. When you don’t want to eat anything, cold Somen is very nice and easy to eat. We adults like it, but our kids like it even more because not only is it tasty but also because it’s fun to eat… noodles in ice water… they like that kind of thing.
Like cold Soba (buckwheat noodle), you dip Somen in the soy sauce-based sauce (men-tsuyu) along with grated ginger and chopped green onions. Somen by itself has a very mild flavor, so it needs strong flavored dipping sauce. If the dish is too light, eat with thinly sliced vegetables and pan fried rolled eggs. That makes it more like a complete meal.
Somen is not something you normally eat at restaurants. It is truly home cooking… easy one too! You can find dried Somen noodle along with noodle sauce at many supermarkets in the US. However, we also have a very easy Mentsuyu (Multipurpose sauce) recipe for dipping sauce that is better than one in a bottle. Mix one part sauce and two parts water, or adjust to your liking.
Try this recipe in hot weather. I’m sure you’ll enjoy the coolness of the noodles. Even if you’re not a kid.
Somen (cold noodle) Recipe
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Ingredients
- 2 bunches somen noodles
- ice water
- 1 green onion thinly sliced
- ginger root grated
- 1/4 cup Men-Tsuyu dipping sauce
- 1/2 cup water
Instructions
- Boil water and add Somen to the boiling water.
- Cook for a minute and strain.
- Wash Somen in running water, rubbing.
- Put ice water in a serving bowl and add Somen.
Kristine Margolf
January 25, 2014 at 3:26 amSounds wonderful! Sometimes in summer, i find it hard to eat anything and this will help me greatly. Do you mix the onion and ginger into the dipping sauce?
Noriko
February 1, 2014 at 11:28 amKristine,
yes, you can use ginger and green onions in your sauce if you like.
Tessa
August 11, 2014 at 9:02 pmJust made this tonight, and my one year old and I absolutely loved it! It was the perfect ending to an extra hot day. I didn’t have the ingredients to make the sauce, so I made my own using soy sauce, some hoisen sauce, a touch of rice vinegar, powdered ginger, and a drizzle of honey. Turned out deliciously well! Thank you for this post!
Noriko
September 12, 2014 at 1:44 amTessa,
what an interesting sauce! Try our Mentsuyu recipe too!
Kim
October 2, 2016 at 2:01 pmI made my own sauce too, soy sauce with white vinegar and a little apple vinegar, red pepper Korean flakes, pepper, and sliced green onions and thin slices Serrano chilies, with half a lime. I added a little water to lighten it up as it makes a strong sauce even more delicious with a bit of added chili oil. This sauce also goes well with Gyoza.