Japanese Soul Food! Let’s Try Udon Noodles!

We will talk about the famous food of Kagawa Prefecture, home of Ohanashi Kagawa.

In Japan, Kagawa Prefecture is best known for its udon!

People in Kagawa eat udon for lunch two or three times a week.

Kagawa is also known as Udon prefecture because of its many delicious and reasonably priced udon restaurants.

Isn’t it amazing?

Of course, you can eat udon not only in Kagawa Prefecture, but anywhere in Japan.

Udon has been around for a long time and can be called Japan’s soul food.

Sushi, tempura, and ramen are not the only delicious foods in Japan!

Today, we will explain what kind of food udon is and why it is popular among Japanese people.

What kind of food is Udon?

Udon are white, thick noodles made of wheat flour.

There are two types of udon: hot and cold.

Both are eaten with Japanese soup stock.

Types of Udon

Udon can be found anywhere in Japan.

There are various types of udon, depending on the region.

Here are some of the common types of udon found in every region.

かけうどん”Kake Udon” is a simple udon consisting only of noodles and soup stock.

きつねうどん”Kitsune Udon” is udon topped with fried bean curd cooked in a sweet and spicy sauce.

ぶっかけうどん”Bukkake Udon” is udon with boiled noodles and thick broth poured over them.

にくうどん”Niku Udon” is udon topped with seasoned meat.

てんぷらうどん”Tempura udon” is udon topped with shrimp and vegetable tempura.

カレーうどん”Curry Udon” is udon with curry and broth.

Where udon can be eaten

• Udon specialty restaurant
• Japanese restaurants
• Self-service restaurants in food court

What do you mean by こしがある”firm” udon?

When describing the texture of udon noodles, people use the word “koshi (firm).”

Udon with “koshi (firmness)” are noodles that are chewy and firm.

This is an important point for udon.

It is similar to the al dente pasta that Italians value.

Sanuki udon from Kagawa Prefecture is a typical example of udon with “koshi (firmness).”

In Japanese udon culture, there are also udon without “koshi (firmness).”

In the Kansai and Kyushu regions, soft and chewy udon is popular.

The fact that each region from Hokkaido to Okinawa has its own particular udon culture means that udon culture is widespread in Japan.

What do you mean by udon that “slide down the throat.”

のどごしがいい “Good nodogoshi” is another word used to describe the taste of udon.

It is used to describe how smoothly the noodles slide down the throat.

This term is used for noodles that are eaten by slurping, such as soba and ramen.

Udon are a great way to end a sukiyaki meal.

The fun part of nabe dishes is to add your favorite shime ingredients and eat them at the end.

There are three types of shime ingredients: udon, rice, and ramen.

Udon is recommended as a shime ingredient for sukiyaki.

Udon goes perfectly with the sweet and spicy broth with dashi.

If you have a chance to eat sukiyaki, try saying, “I’ll have udon for shime.”

You will be recognized as a foreigner who understands Japan!

Become an udon expert and join Ohanashi Kagawa!