Food World Cuisines East Asian Cuisines Japanese Cuisine Chefs’ Secrets to Slurp-Worthy Ramen, Soba, and Udon Slurp your way through the three ubiquitous types of Japanese noodles with intel from the experts. By Ashley Day Ashley Day Ashley Day is Food & Wine's senior editor of operations. She's edited and directed food and travel content at USA TODAY, the Institute of Culinary Education, and Chef & Restaurant magazine, and contributed to The Food Institute, The Daily Meal, and the recipe app meez. Food & Wine's Editorial Guidelines Published on September 20, 2023 Photo: Hetty McKinnon Noodles are a pillar of Japanese cuisine and culture and the base of some of Japan’s essential dishes. Japanese noodle dishes are ever more available in major cities around the world. Among the most popular types of Japanese noodles, ramen’s reputation has gone from a perception of the cheap, microwaveable college meal in the U.S. to rightful international reverence for the craft that’s earned the noodle and bowl so much recognition in pop culture. It even has an emoji. In the last decade, Netflix released Ramen Heads in 2017, the same year Ivan Orkin of Ivan Ramen in New York City was featured on the streaming service’s Chef’s Table. And on No Reservations, Anthony Bourdain explored soba in Hokkaido and udon in Atami, equally significant Japanese noodle dishes that represent a rich legacy of ritual and regional influence. Ramen’s popularity on U.S. restaurant menus grew by more than 30% from 2017 to 2022, reported Restaurant Business, and the Michelin Guide recognizes more than 40 ramen restaurants with a Bib Gourmand designation — three in Tokyo with a Michelin star. Juu-go, a soba restaurant in Kyoto, earned a Michelin Green Star for cultivating its own buckwheat field and returning food waste to the soil. And at Los Angeles’ Marugame Monzo, the legendary late Jonathan Gold said udon noodles were “elevated to cult status” as early as 2013. I gained my reverence for the triad of Japanese noodles using Roads & Kingdoms’ Rice, Noodle, Fish as a guide on my first trip to Japan, and I recently returned to taste more. To me, you can’t experience Japan without slurping the main three types of Japanese noodles: ramen, soba, and udon. Merely smelling the steam at New York City noodle spots, like Raku, can transport me back. I’ve called on Japanese noodle authorities from Tokyo and New York to articulate the art of each specialty as only they can and then curated Food & Wine recipes for Japanese noodle dishes from experts like Sonoko Sakai, Mutsuko Soma, and Takashi Yagihashi, to name a few. Here’s a brief primer on how to make Japanese noodles before or after your next trip to Japan. Ramen In Japan, ramen is as ubiquitous as burgers or pizza are in the U.S., with more than 30,000 restaurants specializing in ramen. The riffable bowl that originated in China in the 1800s comprises wheat noodles, broth, miso, salt, and a base broth, called tare. Alkaline kansui mineral water is the key to the noodles’ distinct chewiness, color, and flavor, while their thickness, texture, and shape can vary. Ramen shops and menus distinguish styles of ramen by the tare, from pork bone-based tonkotsu broth to shoyu ramen flavored with a soy sauce blend. The warmth and umami of these components coming together is what makes ramen so craveable. “It is amazing to see one of my native dishes become such an international sensation,” says chef Masaharu Morimoto, of Momosan in New York and Seattle and Atelier Morimoto XEX in Tokyo. “Ramen is so customizable that anyone can enjoy it and give it their own twist. My process in making ramen is of course treating each ingredient with respect and passion.” Morimoto has three pointers for preparing ramen: “Let the noodle dough rest before cutting so that gluten can form and give the ramen a springy texture and chewiness it is known for. The heavier the broth the thicker the noodle should be. [And] eat your ramen as soon as it is ready because the noodles are best devoured piping hot.” Steven Pursely Studied in Japan to Make the Most Tender, Bouncy, Delectably Slurpable Ramen Noodles Soba Japan’s beloved buckwheat noodle evolved from an ancient buckwheat paste similar to the country's modern sobagaki dish, says soba chef Furukawa Takashi of Ryan in Tokyo, where you can watch cooks make noodles live. “There are records of people consuming soba as early as the 1500s, possibly even earlier,” says soba chef Shuichi Kotani of Brooklyn’s new Uzuki. “Soba has always been a part of Japanese culture and history, no matter your class throughout all the years,” though styles range from approachable tachigui, or standing, soba to the elite Edo-style soba-kiri. “The method of making and eating soba noodles varies from region to region,” chef Furukawa explains. “These differences, such as adding grated yam as a binder or mixing tea with buckwheat noodles to make chasoba (tea buckwheat noodles) creates soba noodle culture distinct to each region.” The keys to making spot-on soba are fresh and high-quality buckwheat flour, a water ratio that works with the weather, accuracy, and speed, Furukawa advises. “There is a ratio we often talk about called ‘kyuu wari soba,’ which defines the recipe for creating the perfectly thin and smooth soba noodle,” he says. “This means having a 9:1 ratio of buckwheat flour to binder. For us at Ryan, we don’t just fixate on this style. Instead, we monitor the taste, fragrance, and texture balance to create our own soba noodles.” We Tasted 17 Store-Bought Soba Noodles, and This Was Our Favorite Kotani believes “good soba is only possible when in a meditative state” and advises against using too much force. “Don't try to control the soba,” he says. “Listen to the soba and the frequency it emits, feel it with all your five senses, and blend them together like Aikido [a Japanese martial art]. My ritual involves closing eyes while making soba. I also drink soba tea throughout the day to increase serotonin secretion.” Soba can be served hot or cold with a dashi stock dipping sauce and soba-yu, the hot water leftover from boiling the noodles. The water has antioxidants and nutrients and can be mixed with the dipping sauce or sipped like soup to conclude the meal. Udon Udon emerged during the Kamakura period in the 14th century when wheat flour was also called udon flour, explains chef Naoyuki Yanagihara, Ph.D., of the Japanese culinary school Kinsaryu Yanagihara. He says travelers to Japan will find udon eateries in the Kansai region and Kagawa prefecture, which is even called the "udon prefecture," on Shikoku island. Southwest of Osaka and Tokyo, the island is where Elizabeth Andoh, of culinary program A Taste of Culture, associates the noodle with Sanuki: “Udon-eating there is a way of life,” she says. Udon varies in style from Kyoto to Tokyo to Yamanashi based on dashi and seasonings. “Kyoto Kansai style uses a thicker dashi broth, flavored with light soy sauce and mirin,” says Yanagihara. “Tokyo style uses ‘kaeshi,’ a combination of dark soy sauce, mirin, and sugar, in combination with dashi made from thickly shaved bonito flakes. The Yamanashi style uses dashi broth made mainly from dried bonito flakes and flavored with miso (soybean paste).” His guidance for making your own udon: Rinse the noodles in cold water after boiling to make them firm and crunchy, then reheat and add to warm dashi broth. As for the dashi: “It is important to extract only the umami from each of the ingredients that will produce the dashi without producing any off-flavor,” he says. 01 of 08 Tonkotsu Ramen Frederick Hardy II / Food Styling by Torie Cox / Prop Styling by Claire Spollen The keys to the best tonkotsu ramen broth are time and using the best possible ingredients. This recipe adapted from Hugh Amano's book Let’s Make Ramen! is a labor of love. You’ll need a couple of days to prepare all the components. But trust us when we say the results are well worth it. Get the Recipe 02 of 08 Mapo Tofu- and "Wok-Style"-Inspired Ramen Emily Kordovich MasterChef Junior competitor Josh Reisner marries Japanese ramen and mapo tofu, the spicy tongue-numbing Sichuan dish. It calls for chicken and tofu; use just tofu if you want to create a vegetarian version, and have chile oil on hand for the finishing touch. Get the Recipe 03 of 08 Chile-Eggplant Mazemen Ramen with Pork Belly © John Kernick This flavor-packed ramen from expert Ivan Orkin features incredibly springy homemade noodles with an eggplant-chipotle sofrito and just a bit of broth. Get the Recipe 04 of 08 Homemade Soba Noodles Photo by Greg DuPree / Food Styling by Paige Grandjean and Chelsea Zimmer / Prop Styling by Christine Keely Sonoku Sakai is a Japanese American cooking teacher, recipe developer, and food writer. Her from-scratch buckwheat soba noodles are tender and supple with the perfect chewy texture. Get the Recipe 05 of 08 Soba Noodles with Crispy Duck and Hot Dipping Sauce Photo by Greg DuPree / Food Styling by Paige Grandjean and Chelsea Zimmer / Prop Styling by Christine Keely Timing is key when making this dish — work ahead by steeping the dashi and seasoning the duck the night before or the morning of cooking. Cook the soba just before you serve. Get the Recipe 06 of 08 Soba Bukkake with Chashu Pork and Sesame Vinaigrette Greg DuPree 2019 F&W Best New Chef Mutsuko Soma features chilled soba noodles with just a splash of rich broth, called mentsuyu, in the bottom of the bowl. Topped with pork chashu and marinated eggs, the dish comes together quickly using dried soba and easily scales up for a crowd. Get the Recipe 07 of 08 Life-Changing Udon with Soft-Boiled Egg, Hot Soy, and Black Pepper Hetty McKinnon Butter, egg yolk, and starch enrich the soy broth, dressing chewy udon noodles in a silky sauce inspired by Hetty McKinnon's visit to Udon Shin, a restaurant in Tokyo's bustling Shinjuku ward. Get the Recipe 08 of 08 Stir-Fried Udon Noodles © Lucy Schaeffer A 2000 F&W Best New Chef from Chicago, Takashi Yagihashi divulges his best recipes for ramen, soba, udon, rice noodles, and more in his book Takashi's Noodles. Here, he thaws frozen precooked udon noodles to stir-fry with mushrooms and shrimp. Get the Recipe Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit