It is almost miracle what a handful of flour and water can create.
It creates so much that noodle chefs get offended for calling their noodle-lookalike noddles such as Udon and Spaghetti.
Not quite sure of what defines noodles and where the borderlines are, but I happily submit to their claims.
But I was quite surprised when my favourite traditional cuisine Houtou was not Udon! Endless branches to the flour-made-slurpy-sticks-families!
Technicality aside, I love the heartiness that noddles (oh please, let me just call them all noodles) offer, in soup or creamy sauce or fried or chilled!
Almost on a daily basis I have inner fights where mini-mes are arguing about the fattening and satisfaction factors.
But what is life all about if you ain’t got no satisfaction! My favourite author and well of inspiration says that people take action or not take action primarily for two reason; motivation to gain pleasure or to avoid pain.
How well said… and this is exactly why the argument is endless! I want to eat (pleasure) but I don’t want to put on weight (super painful), with the exception of one thing. when I am in a location where I can only enjoy that food there, traditional cuisine!!!
Yes, internet and super infrastructure and mega-smart logistics have enabled us to acquire almost anything we want today, but it is just not the same if you can’t have Herring in a fishshop in Holland or Durian on the streets in South East Asia or mum’s cooking at home!
So, always, always I have what I want to have when I get a chance to eat something in season or locationally restricted.
Coming back to Houtou it is a wonderous dish, noodle so thick and bouncy and soup so earthy and flavour-bomb, and chunky vegetables wipes away the anxiety of having something naughty.
If you have not had it, I strongly suggest you visit the province Yamanashi when or if you are in Japan, the infamous land of hot springs and Mount Fuji! If you just look at the picture you know it is perfect for cold winter. But actually it’s perfect for summer as well! And a glass of beer on your side!!!! We visited 4 Houtou restaurant in 3 days, but the best one by far was this one. http://www.navi-city.com/iine/ganko/ And the environment is so dreamy… You eat it underneath grapevine! You can eat them too. They had several types of grapes but strangly yummy was a kind of grapes they call banana. If I haven’t confused you enough it is sweet like banana too! So what is this actually!?
I apologise for being overly excited. I must admit that I am very ecstatic to write on my blog again. Anway, back to Houtou, I miss it so much that sometimes I just look at the picture and reminisce… at the end of the day it is not the most accessible place! It is 6,000km away from Kuala Lumpur. So I was just browsing through the internet, and found out that I can make Houtou, quite easily!
Reading that, I gained a bit of confidence in noodle making at home, so my noodle pilgrimage begins….