Tasty soba!
Tina really loves soba, doesn't she?
Yes, Japanese food is all so delicious that I can't stop chopping up the food!
That's right, Japanese food has been registered as an intangible cultural heritage by UNESCO.
In December 2013, "Japanese Food: Traditional Japanese Food Culture" was registered as an intangible cultural heritage by UNESCO. Japanese food contains the Japanese spirit of "respecting nature" and has four main characteristics.
1. Respect for diverse, fresh ingredients and their unique flavors
2. Nutritional balance to support a healthy diet
3. Expression of the beauty of nature and the changing of the seasons
4. close relationship with the New Year and other annual events
In the fact, soba has a very long history. It is said to have existed before the Nara period (710-794).
It's been that long!
The process of making soba has changed a lot over the years.
In the olden days, soba was not made in the shape of noodles.
I see.
Come to think of it, how is soba made?
Soba is made like this.
‣ Ingredients....buckwheat flour, binder, water
→Since buckwheat flour, which is low in starch, tends to be shredded when stretched thin, wheat flour, which is high in starch, is usually mixed in as a binder.
In addition to flour, chicken eggs, yam, yam, Nori (seaweed), Konnyaku, and Oyamabokuchi are often used as binders, which give soba noodles their unique texture and firmness. When chicken eggs are used, it is called "egg cutter soba" and when cloth nori is used, it is called "Hegi-soba".
Methods
There are two ways of making buckwheat noodles: hand-rolling or using a noodle making machine.
(1) Water spinning and mixing: Soba flour and binds are mixed together and water is added while mixing to make a round buckwheat ball.
(2) Wooden bowl and press: The buckwheat noodles are repeatedly crushed to make them sticky.
(3) Rolls and rolls: The dough is beaten to prevent it from sticking, and then rolled for a long time to form a flat rectangular shape. If the dough is hand-rolled, it is placed on a wooden rolling pin and rolled using a wooden rolling pin.
(4) Cutting, cutting: The rolled dough is cut into 1 to 2 mm wide strands and shaped into noodles. If the dough is handmade, it is placed on a cutting board, folded in several layers, and cut with a knife while holding a ruler called a "Komaita".
Wow, this is how soba is made!
Yes, this kind of noodle is called "Nama Soba", and we eat it after boiling it. The hot water that you boil the noodle becomes a thin gruel. This is called sobayu. When you finish eating the soba, pour some sobayu with the dipping sauce and drink it.
Oh, this tastes so good!
Tina always eats zaru-soba, but there are many other types of soba.
Tori Soba and Zaru Soba
Boiled buckwheat noodles are placed in a wooden or bamboo square bowl with a steaming basket or colander lined with slatted bamboo slats at the bottom. They put tsuyu in another small bowl called "Soba-okochi" and eat it while dipping a mouthful in the sauce with chopsticks.
Sliced wasabi and green onions are most commonly used as condiments for dipping in the dipping sauce.
Kake Soba
Boiled Soba is reheated in boiling water before adding it to the hot sauce.
Small chopped leeks and shichimi pepper are often used as condiments.
There are many kinds of soba noodles, including foxballs, tanuki soba, tempura soba, tsukimi soba, tororo soba, and nanban soba.
Bukkake Soba
You can put it in a bowl or a wider bowl and pour some dipping sauce in another bowl over it when you eat it. In addition, it is widely allowed to make a slurping sound when you eat it.
Wow, let's try some of these next time. By the way, I often see the word "100 percent（十割）" on the signboards of soba restaurants.
I'm referring to the percentage of buckwheat flour. The "100 percent" refers to the ratio of buckwheat flour to 100 percent. Other famous buckwheat noodles with 8:2 flour and 10:2 wheat flour are called "Soto nihachi soba".
I didn't know that was the ratio of buckwheat flour!
Actually, there's also the term "reverse two-eight buckwheat noodles（逆二八そば）", do you know what that is?
I don't know.
I'm referring to standing noodle shops and dry noodles. It's not really a 2:8 ratio, but a self-deprecating way of saying that they're of poor quality.
I didn't know there was such a word (laughs).
By the way, what kind of place does soba noodles come from?
Well, I think Hokkaido and Nagano Prefecture are famous for this.
Famous for soba noodles
Hokkaido prefecture:
Boasts an extraordinary production volume among soba producing regions. More than 40% of the soba produced in Japan comes from Hokkaido. Among them, Horokanai Soba from Horokanai Town is the most produced in Hokkaido and its original variety "Horomnori" is used. It is said to have sweetness and elegant taste.
Nagano Prefecture:
Nagano is also known as a buckwheat noodle producing area, but it is famous for Shinshu-soba.
Ibaraki Prefecture:
Ibaraki has been known as a soba (buckwheat noodles) producer since the Edo period. The city of Hitachi-Ota City in the northern part of the prefecture is famous for its "Hitachi autumn soba". The soba has a rich flavor, sweetness and aroma.
Fukui Prefecture :
The soba is secretly very popular in the region. Echizen soba is famous for its buckwheat noodles. The buckwheat noodles are ground together with buckwheat flour and buckwheat noodles, which gives the buckwheat noodles a strong flavor and a dark color.
Yamagata Prefecture:
A hidden specialty. Due to the difference in temperature between day and night in inland and mountainous areas, buckwheat noodles with a strong sweetness can be produced. Yamagata's buckwheat noodles are ground with their hulls, making them darker in color and thicker in cut.
Really? Well, let's go on a soba tour next time!
Yeah, I guess so!
