Noodles ── Ramen
Aizu Ramen
Aizu Ramen — flat, curly hand-pulled noodles in clear soy broth
Flat, thick hand-made noodles in a clear soy broth. Said to trace back to a Aizuwakamatsu diner owner bringing home a taste learned in Yokohama — a second soy ramen lineage that grew up apart from Kitakata's, in the same Aizu region.
- Origin: Fukushima Aizuwakamatsu
- Shoyu — soy sauce
- About 200 km north of Tokyo
Lineage
What it's made of
What catches the eye in the bowl is the noodle — flat, thick, and curly. Noodle-makers cluster in Aizuwakamatsu and Kitakata, and some shops use their own hand-made noodles. The broth runs a clear soy base, though the range is wide — some shops add pork bone for weight, others lean Japanese-style with dried sardine — pulled together with simple toppings of char siu, scallion, and bamboo shoots. Even within the same Aizu region, each shop keeps a character distinct from Kitakata's heavier soy.
How it's made
The noodle is a flat, hand-kneaded style built for a smooth slide down the throat, and how much alkaline water goes in, and how thick it's cut, shows each shop's own touch. The broth is typically pork bone or chicken frame finished with soy tare, though some shops build their name on a miso-based 'miso tanmen,' loaded with vegetables, bean sprouts, and meat. Rather than converging on a single type the way Kitakata ramen has, Aizuwakamatsu still seems to be in an ongoing stage of shops each trying their own noodle-and-broth combination.
Why it took this shape
The story goes that a diner owner in Aizuwakamatsu brought home a taste for Chinese-style noodles learned in Yokohama sometime between the Taishō era and early Shōwa. Some people are said to have balked at the use of pork at first, but as word spread, it took root locally. Where Kitakata converged on a single type starting from the shop Genraiken, Aizuwakamatsu is said to have several lineages standing side by side to this day.
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.
- Cash-only shops are commonEspecially at ramen shops, it's common to find places that only accept cash — often through a ticket machine.
- 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.
Dishes in the same style
- Edokei RamenA soy ramen topped with a knob of bright red chili miso built on garlic and garlic chives. Stirred in gradually as you eat, it turns a mild bowl steadily richer and spicier — a specialty of Akita City.
- Akita Tempura ChukaA round disc of fried tempura batter floated whole on a soy ramen. As it soaks, the broth gains richness from the oil — a local way of eating that survives around Gojōme and Daisen near Akita City.
Ingredients and dishes from this land
Also from Fukushima
- Aizu Curry YakisobaA dish from Aizuwakamatsu, Fukushima: sauce yakisoba topped with curry roux. It's said to trace to a diner called Tommy Food, which began ladling curry over its yakisoba, catching on especially among young diners for its low price and filling size.
- Aizu GyuSteers and heifers of Japanese Black raised in the Aizu basin, fed mainly local rice straw — the basin's sharp seasonal swings are said to suit fattening, making it Fukushima's leading brand.
- Aizu JidoriA lineage said to have been brought to Aizu by Heike clan refugees, saved from near-extinction and re-established through crossbreeding by Fukushima prefecture; reportedly fattened for 90 to 170 days.
- Aizu Sōsu KatsudonAizu's sauce katsudon, doused in a thick sweet-savory sauce. Its origin has several competing accounts, none settled, but all point to it being refined through everyday improvisation on Taisho-era Western food.
- Aizu Yamajio RamenSalt ramen seasoned with mountain salt drawn from hot-spring water — rounder than sea salt.
- Anko no TomoaeMonkfish liver is pan-fried and worked with miso and sugar into a paste, then tossed with boiled monkfish meat and dried daikon strips — a dish of Soma. It is said to have started as a feast served in May to thank neighbors who helped with rice planting.