Tanuki Soba (たぬき蕎麦) is hot Soba noodles in soup with Tenkasu fried Tempura batter bits. It is a Soba dish with a pretty simple topping, but that addition gives the dish richer flavor. “Tanuki” literally means raccoon dog which is an animal found in Japan and a popular character in stories and culture there. One…
Summer Vegetable Somen is cold Somen noodles with summer vegetables like okra and tomato. The sauce is also cold, simple Mentsuyu poured over the noodles. This easy to make cold noodle dish is perfect on hot summer days. Even when you don’t have much appetite on a hot day, this will cool you down and…
Curry Udon is hot Udon noodles in a curry soup and is one of the popular items on menus at Udon restaurants in Japan. These hearty noodles are loved by a lot of Japanese people even though it is not really like the more traditional clear Udon soup. From time to time, especially in colder…
Bihun is fried rice vermicelli with meat and vegetables. It is very much a home cooked dish in Japan, not something you can get at restaurants. Although rice vermicelli is not originally part of Japanese cuisine nor used in much other than Bihun, this fried Bihun has become one of the ordinary dishes that people…
Instant Ramen (インスタントラーメン) with Vegetables is an easy and tasty noodle soup absolutely anybody can make. Instant Ramen has such a distinct flavor of its own, and it is hard to recreate it from scratch, so we don’t even try. And it’s funny how we all have cravings for various foods, but this is the…
Hiyashi Tanuki Udon is cold Udon noodles with a cold sauce and Tenkasu, fried Tempura batter crumbs. It is very refreshing but also satisfyingly rich from the Tempura crumbs. Hiyashi Tanuki Udon is a great dish during summer when you don’t want to make complicated dishes in a hot kitchen. If you have your Mentsuyu…
Ramen is a very popular noodle soup in Japan. Ramen noodles are originally Chinese style noodles, but they have changed and evolved to become a favorite Japanese food over many years. There are millions of Ramen restaurants in Japan, from old neighborhood Chinese restaurants, to Ramen street carts open late at night, to slick and modern Ramen specialty shops…
Shippoku Soba is hot soba noodle dish with various toppings. It is often on the menu at Soba noodle restaurants in Japan, but not seen as much at Japanese restaurants in the US, since it is a more regional Japanese food. Shippoku Soba can be eaten at any time of the year, but you can try…
Yakisoba is stir-fried egg noodles with roots in Chinese Chow Mien, although it has evolved on its own path over a long time. Japanese Yakisoba is better known to be seasoned with a Worcestershire Sauce-like Yakisoba sauce. However, there is another popular kind: Shio Yakisoba. “Shio” means salt in Japanese, and salt is of course used…
Nabeyaki Udon is an Udon soup dish that is cooked and served in an individual clay pot. It is this signature clay pot (nabe) that gives this dish its name – Nabeyaki.