Noodles ── Udon
Tenobe Udon
Tenobe udon — a hand-stretched dried noodle, twisted and pulled thin instead of cut
A dried noodle made by coating the dough in edible oil or starch and stretching it thin while twisting it, then drying it, rather than cutting it with a knife as teuchi does. The twisting is said to leave the noodle's cross-section rounded, giving it a notably smooth slide down the throat. Japan's agricultural standard is said to require a resting, maturing stage partway through the process.
What it's made of
Dough kneaded from wheat flour and salt water is coated with edible oil or starch and stretched thin while being twisted, then dried. Because the noodle is stretched and twisted rather than cut with a knife as in teuchi udon, its cross-section stays rounded, said to give it a notably smooth slide. Being dried also means it keeps well.
How it's made
A thin coat of edible oil or starch is worked over the dough, which is then stretched a little at a time while being twisted. Japan's agricultural standard for hand-stretched dried noodles is said to require a resting, maturing stage partway through the process, and letting the dough rest is said to be what allows it to be pulled thin and long without much force.
Why it took this shape
Stretching the dough instead of cutting it is said to have taken root in various places as a way to thin the noodle without pressing it flat by hand. Inaniwa udon is one example where this technique itself became a region's own signature, and the two techniques — cutting in teuchi, stretching in tenobe — are said to produce entirely different textures from the very same wheat dough.
Before you go
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- 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
- Bukkake UdonUdon boiled and chilled in cold water, then doused directly with a concentrated sauce. Scallion and grated daikon go on top, and mixing everything together boldly is said to be the standard way of eating it. A hot version, using warm broth instead, is also said to exist.
- Chikara UdonKake udon topped with a piece of grilled mochi. The name is said to trace to mochi's reputation as a food that "gives you strength," carrying more calories than plain rice. In the Kinki region it is also called kachin udon, from okachin, an old courtly word for mochi.