Make Yourself To Be A Great Sobatician

[snousle]

Something I'd like to do? How about a month long course in making soba noodles!



That is a remarkably accelerated curriculum compared to the traditional apprenticeship.

Gods, I wonder what those noodles are like? I had soba noodles at the Narita airport once (my only experience in Japan) and they were far and away the best I'd ever had, including those I'd made myself. The stuff from dedicated soba restaurants must be incredible.

Comments

[bbearseviltwin.livejournal.com]

The stuff from dedicated soba restaurants must be incredible.
So I hear, there have reviews in some of the local papers about them in recent months. Not that Portland has any as yet. Mostly it was wishing on the part of local foodies.

[twobraids.livejournal.com]

I had the same experience working in Japan. Having gotten though college on Top Raman had never realized how incredibly good most Japanese noodles were. There was little five table restaurant half way between my hotel and my client's office building that captured nearly every one of my lunch breaks.

I've been largely unsuccessful trying to find equivalent quality here. Of course, Oregon has probably not been the best place to look.

I'm going to be in Silicon Valley during the second week of November. Got any suggestions as to a place to continue my quest in the Bay Area?

[snousle.livejournal.com]

If you're after ramen, Maru Ichi on Castro St. in Mountain View is excellent. I went there specifically because I saw their ramen machine in the window and knew they too noodles seriously. Their specialty, kuro ramen ("black" ramen, so called because of the color of the roasted garlic oil), is as good as any I've ever had.

Unfortunately, good soba does not seem to exist here; I've never had anything in a restaurant that's as good as I can make myself. Obviously, it's very labor intensive and there are few soba connoisseurs here. But if you come up here I'd be happy to whip some up. I have a grain mill and have been meaning to try my hand at making my own buckwheat flour, and that would offer an excellent excuse!

[twobraids.livejournal.com]

> ...But if you come up here I'd be happy to whip some up...

Thanks for the offer, but since I'm traveling by Amtrak, I'm not as mobile as I would be if I had ridden the bike. I haven't figured out how to get the Coast Starlight to do scenic detours.

Thanks for the recommendation, I'll check out Maru Ichi while I'm in Mountain View.

ASIAN NOODLES

[darkphuque.livejournal.com]

Mifune in Japan Town makes their own Udon & Soba, and you can order fresh noodles from them, although I have never done so. My Tea Teacher orders his "end of the year" Udon from them. My Mochi machine also has instructions for making Udon, but not soba. Udon requires a whole lot of work. No matter how you look at it.. from an Asian perspective, noodle making is an art.

Re: ASIAN NOODLES

[snousle.livejournal.com]

Hm, I think I had soba at Mifune once and was underwhelmed... maybe it was just my mood at the time, or maybe I'm misremembering. Now that I know they make their own, I'll give it another try!