Noodles
Handa Somen
Tokushima's thicker, chewier take on hand-pulled noodles
River-boat pilots of the Edo period are said to have carried the technique from Miwa in Nara through Awaji and Naruto into Handa. Because they made it quickly for themselves rather than by strict method, the noodles came out thicker and chewier than standard somen; dry winds off the Tsurugi mountains and the clear water of the Yoshino River give the area conditions suited to the craft.
- Origin: Tokushima Tsurugi
- About 550 km west of Tokyo
Lineage
What it's made of
A hand-pulled noodle noticeably thicker and chewier than standard somen, built for bite rather than fineness — the opposite instinct from Miwa or Banshu, which compete on thinness. Boiled, the strands come out white and plump, sturdy enough not to go soft even after soaking up broth. Even served hot in a soup, the noodle keeps its presence and returns a wheaty sweetness with every bite.
How it's made
River-boat pilots are said to have simplified the method to make the noodles quickly for themselves, which is why they came out thicker. The dough is stretched in the dry wind off the Tsurugi mountains and the clear water of the Yoshino River, then dried in the sun. Skipping the extra work of drawing it out fine let thickness and chew come to the front — a hand-pulled noodle with the girth of udon.
Why it took this shape
Edo-period river pilots are said to have carried the technique from Miwa in Nara through Awaji and Naruto into Handa. Dry mountain wind and clear river water gave the area conditions suited to somen-making, and a thick, sturdy noodle that could be made in the limited time between piloting runs became this area's own distinct type — its strength reads as a mark of the practical lives that shaped it.
Before you go
- How to read a ticket machineShops that use a ticket machine (shokken-ki) often place their most popular items in a similar spot.
- Foods to look for in summerA guide to foods often seen in Japan around summer — eel on the Day of the Ox, hiyashi chuka, somen, shaved ice, edamame with beer, and hamo — with rough pointers for finding them.
- What staff say, and how to respondCommon set phrases you'll hear at restaurants, with what they mean and what to do when you hear them. You don't need to memorize them — just recognizing them is enough.
Dishes in the same style
- Abura SobaNo broth is poured at all — noodles are tossed in a soy-and-sesame-oil tare pooled at the bottom of the bowl, said to have started at shops in the Musashino area in the late 1950s, with vinegar and chili oil stirred in partway through.
- Abura ZomenPork and somen are fried together with a splash of broth, the oil and stock emulsifying into a silky coat on the noodles. Just how somen took root in wheat-free Amami isn't clear, but the dish is a fixture whenever people gather, not least for the August Dance festival.
Ingredients and dishes from this land
Also from Tokushima
- Amego no HirarayakiA flat stone is heated over a hearth for hours, then a border of miso is built on it to grill amego trout, stone tofu, and konjac — an outdoor dish from the Iya valley. Its name comes from hirara, a local word for a flat stone, and it is said to have long served as a dish for entertaining guests.
- Awa BanchaA post-fermented tea from Naka and Kamikatsu towns in Tokushima, fermented by lactic acid bacteria. Coarser leaves picked from midsummer on are boiled, packed into wooden barrels, fermented for roughly 10 days to two weeks, then sun-dried — said to give a refreshing sourness.
- Awa BitonRaised in the mountains of Awa City, Tokushima, at about 400 meters, on a feed centered on rice. Handlers are said to adjust the feed mix daily and avoid genetically modified crops where possible.
- Awa GyuPedigreed Japanese Black fattened in Tokushima, which gained recognition after being shown at a Tokyo meat market competition in 1962 — said to have a moist, fine-grained texture and modest fat.
- Awa no ItokoniSweet potato that has been boiled then dried — yude-boshi style — is rehydrated and simmered slowly with red beans for about two hours over low heat. Fitting for a region where drying vegetables is common in winter, it is said to be a warming side dish built on the concentrated flavor of dried sweet potato.
- Awa UiroRed bean paste mixed with rice flour and Awa wasanbon sugar is poured into a mold and steamed into a chewy cake. Said to have first been made to celebrate the completion of Awa wasanbon sugar in the Edo period, with related uiro cakes also found in Nagoya and Yamaguchi.