Soba

is a type of thin Japanese noodle. It is made from buckwheat flour. It is served either chilled with a dipping sauce, or in hot broth as a noodle soup. Moreover, it is not uncommon in Japan to refer to any thin noodle as _soba_ in contrast to udon which are thick noodles made from wheat.

Because noodles made out of pure buckwheat can easily fall apart when boiled, the buckwheat flour is usually mixed with binders - often wheat flour. Under the Japan Agricultural Standards regulations, the noodles must contain at least 30% buckwheat in order to be called _soba_ but noodles with a high buckwheat content are seen as more desirable. The raw noodles are made by making a dough out of buckwheat flour and binder. The dough is then spread out flat. After that, strands of noodles are sliced off with a special knife. The quality of noodles is highly dependent on the skill of the maker, especially for soba noodles with high buckwheat content. The raw noodles are boiled before being served hot or cold.

In Japan, soba noodles are served in a variety of situations. They are a popular inexpensive fast food at train stations throughout Japan, they are served by exclusive and expensive specialty restaurants, and they are also made at home. Markets sell dried noodles and _men-tsuyu_, or instant noodle broth, to make home preparation easy.

Some establishments, especially cheaper and more casual ones, may serve both soba and udon (thick wheat noodles) as they are often served in a similar manner. However, soba is traditionally the noodle of choice for Tokyoites. This tradition originates from the Edo period. At that time, the population of Edo (Tokyo) was much richer than the rural poor, were more susceptible to beriberi because of  their high consumption of white rice which is low in thiamine. They are thought to have made up for this by regularly eating thiamine-rich soba. Every neighbourhood had one or two soba establishments, many also serving sake, which functioned much like modern cafes where locals would drop by casually.

## Serving soba

Soba is almost always eaten with chopsticks, and in Japan, it is traditionally considered polite to slurp the noodles noisily. This is especially common with hot noodles, as drawing up the noodles quickly into the mouth acts to cool them down.

### Common soba dishes

Like many Japanese noodles, soba noodles are often served drained and chilled in the summer, and hot in the winter with a soy-based dashi broth. Extra toppings can be added onto both hot and cold soba. Toppings are chosen to reflect the seasons and to balance with other ingredients. Most toppings are added without much cooking, although some are deep-fried. Most of these dishes may also be prepared with udon. Soba noodles often have a witdh of around 1.5 mm.

#### Cold

Chilled soba is often served on a sieve-like bamboo tray called a zaru, sometimes garnished with bits of dried _nori_ seaweed, with a dipping sauce known as _soba tsuyu_ on the side. The _tsuyu_ is made of a strong mixture of dashi, sweetened soy sauce and mirin. Using chopsticks, the diner picks up a small amount of soba from the tray and swirls it in the cold _tsuyu_ before eating it.  Wasabi, scallions, and grated ginger are often mixed into the _tsuyu_.

- _Mori soba_  – Basic chilled soba noodles served on a flat basket or a plate.
- _Zaru soba_  – _Mori soba_ topped with shredded seaweed.
- _furikake soba_– Cold soba served with various toppings sprinkled on top, after which the broth is poured on by the diner.  It may include:
    - tororo – puree of _yamaimo_ (a Japanese yam with a slimy texture)
    - oroshi – grated daikon radish
    - natto – sticky fermented soybeans
    - okra – fresh sliced okra
- _Soba maki_ – Cold soba wrapped in nori and prepared as makizushi.

#### Hot

Soba is also often served as a noodle soup in a bowl of hot _tsuyu_. The hot _tsuyu_ in this instance is thinner than that used as a dipping sauce for chilled soba. Popular garnishes are sliced scallion and shichimi toragashi (mixed chili powder).

- _Kake soba_  – Hot soba in broth topped with thinly sliced scallion, and perhaps a slice of kamaboko (fish cake).
- _Kitsune soba_ (in Kanto) or _Tanuki soba_ (in Kansai) – Topped with _abura age_ (deep-fried tofu).
- _Tanuki soba_ (in Kanto) or _Haikara soba_ (in Kansai) – Topped with _tenkasu_ (bits of deep-fried tempura batter).
- _Tempura soba_  – Topped with tempura, usually a large shrimp.
- _Tsukimi soba_ ("moon-viewing soba") – Topped with raw egg, which poaches in the hot soup.
- _Tororo soba_ – Topped with _tororo_, the puree of _yamaimo_ (a potato-like vegetable with a slimy texture).
- _Wakame soba_ – Topped with wakame seaweed

### Soba served on special occasions

Soba is traditionally eaten on New Years Eve in most areas of Japan, a tradition which survives to this day. In the Tokyo area, there is also a tradition of giving out soba to new neighbours after a house move, although this practice is now rare.

## Varieties of soba noodles

The most famous Japanese soba noodles come from Nagano. Soba from Nagano is called _Shinano Soba_ or _Shinshu soba_. Ni-hachi (_two-eight_) soba, consists of two parts of wheat and eight of buckwheat.

- _Sarashina soba_ – thin, light-colored soba, made with refined  buckwheat
- _Inaka soba_ – "country soba", thick soba made with whole buckwheat

### By location

- _Shinshu soba_ – named after the old name of Nagano Prefecture. Also known as Shinano soba. (Shinano=Shinshu)
- _Etanbetsu soba_ – named after the central region of Hokkaidō (Asahikawacity)
- _Izumo soba_ – named after Izumo in Shimane
- _Izushi soba_ – named after Izushi in Hyogo
- _Miyako soba_ - named after the Miyako Island in Okinawa

### By ingredients

- _Tororo soba_ or _Jinenjo soba_ – flavored with wild yam flour
- _Cha soba_ – flavored with green tea powder
- _Mugi soba_ – flavored with mugwort
- _Hegi soba_ – flavored with seaweed
- _Ni-hachi soba_ – soba containing 20% wheat and 80% buckwheat
- _Towari soba_ or _Juwari soba_ – 100% buckwheat soba

## Other uses of the word _soba_

_Soba_ is also the Japanese word for buckwheat. Roasted buckwheat kernels may be made into a grain tea called _sobacha_, which may be served hot or cold. Buckwheat hulls, or _sobakawa_, are used to fill pillows.

_Soba_ is occasionally used to refer to noodles in general.  In Japan, ramen is sometimes called _chūka soba_ or _shina soba_ (both mean _Chinese noodles_).  Parboiled chūka soba is stir-fried to make yakisoba. Note that these noodles do not contain buckwheat.

In Okinawa, _soba_ usually refers to Okinawa soba, a completely different dish of noodles made out of flour, not buckwheat. Okinawa soba is also quite popular in the city of Campo Grande (Brazil), due to influence of Japanese (Okinawan) immigrants. It is eaten at street markets or in special restaurants called "sobarias".

## Related pages

- Ramen
- Udon
- Japanese cuisine
- Chinese cuisine

## Other websites

- Tokyo soba chef making noodles by hand from scratch - illustrated article in English
- A Soba and Tofu recipe  (with photo)