Tsugaru Ramen (中華そば つし馬 - Chuka Soba Tsushima in Asakusa)

I keep a running list of Ramen shops to check out. One that has been on my list for years has been Tsushima in Asakusa. This is run by the same group that operates Tanaka Shoten, the legendary Hakata Tonkotsu shop deep in Adachi-ku. Finally had a chance to visit, and now understand what Tsugaru style Ramen is. Tsugaru (津軽) is the western region of Aomori-ken, way up at the tip of Honshu. As with many parts of Japan, Tsugaru claims to have great fish. Niboshi (dried small fish) are relatively cheap to process, and are in much supply there. Niboshi could refer to dried sardines, herring, mackerel, or flying fish.

Typical fish are placed in racks and sun-dried to produce Niboshi.

In Aomori, the fish are slow roasted to dry them. Is it always cloudy there?? This is called Yaki Niboshi (焼き煮干し)

Tsuguru style Ramen means that ALOTTA Yaki Niboshi is boiled to produce a pungent soup.  It is uncommon to blend the Niboshi soup with other soups (tonkotsu, chicken, etc.). This results in a fishy (in a good way) soup that is not oily. Standard toppings are menma, negi, and chashu. The chashu is thicker than most places to add a meaty punch.

When looking for Tsushima I could smell it before even turning the corner to their stretch of the shotengai. Being a stones throw from Kaminarimon, Tsushima makes a big effort to be tourist friendly. Many of the signs are in English EXCEPT the ticket machine. At least they tried ;-)

Here's what I ate...

Just for good measure, here is the Tsukemen they serve...

Some might find it a bit salty. One thing I do appreciate is that Tsushima used Niboshi with the intestines cleaned out. When the intestines are left in, the soup often has a bitter taste. Any of you who've been to Nagi in Shinjuku Golden Gai may know what I'm talking about.

All in all worth a try if you're in Asakusa!

Supleks Database



View Larger Map

Tantan Men (麻布 ラーメン - Azabu Ramen in Azabu Juban)

If you are a Ramen lover, at some point or another you've eaten Tantan Men. I think we all know what it looks and tastes like, but have you ever thoughts about what it is? Never put much deep thought into it beyond "I'm in the mood for something a little spicy", which is when I realized its time to educate myself.

Tantan Men has its roots in the Shichuan area of China, famous for their spicy dishes. One of the most popular is Dandan Mein. Dandan refers to the pole balanced on the shoulder by street peddlers with baskets hanging on each end holding the noodles and soup. Noodles are mixed in a sauce consisting of soy sauce, chili oil, ya cai (pickles mustard green), and black Chinese vinegar. The dish is topped with ground pork flavored in soy sauce, rice wine, and Tianmianjiang.

A chef named Chin Kenmin is often credited as the first person to bring Shichuan cooking to Japan. He was born and raised in Shichuan the youngest of 10 children. Chin learned his craft in restaurants across China before moving to Japan in 1952. He was the first to introduce Japanese people to Shichuan dishes like Dandan Mein and Mabo Tofu. Chin started a restaurant in 1958 called "Schezuan Restaurant" (四川飯店) in Akasaka that is currently run by his son

As with many foreign dishes, Dandan Mein was "localized" for Japanese tastes. Ra-yu and sesame paste is added to reduce the spiciness. The noodles are served in a Ramen-like soup to water down the spice into a drinkable medium. Since there is no strictly defined definition for Tantan Men, shops freely use different kinds of ground meat (beef, pork, chicken), and toppings like chingensai, spinach, snap peas, and bean sprouts.

The other day, I wandered into a local shop and tried their Tantan Men. It was a classic example of typical Tantan Men.

This bowl was full of sesame paste which added a slightly heavy and oily flavor. This also masked the Chinese spice. Once the ground meat mixed into the soup, there was a perforated spoon to help scoop it up. This is a perfectly mediocre bowl that can be found across Japan. No need to go this specific shop.

There are sub-styles of Tantan that are gaining popularity, and hope to write about those in the future.

Supleks Database


View Larger Map

Sano Ramen (万里 - Banri in Sano City, Tochigi)

It's getting cold in Tokyo so I want to bring up warm happy thoughts. Last summer I made the trek to Tochigi to try Sano style Ramen. Sano is a city in central Tochigi prefecture, north of Tokyo. There's not a whole lot going on in this town, so the local tourism center decided to promote this Ramen back in the mid-80's to attract visitors.

Most Ramen focuses on the soup, with the noodles made to match. In the case of Sano, the noodles are the main attraction. Typically noodles are processed through a machine, much like pasta. In the case of Sano, the dough is pounded by a bamboo pole and cut by hand. This method is referred to as Aotakeuchi (青竹打ち) and is displayed prominently outside shops in the area. Here's a short clip:

I'd probably fall on my butt, or hurt something dear to me in the crotch region. Don't try this at home ;-)

During my visit I checked out Banri, one of the standard bearers for Sano Ramen. It was highly recommended by the locals I spoke with so I took their advice.

Here is the finished bowl. The hydrolytic (?) rate is high in the noodles, resulting in a chewier texture. The soup is Shoyu base mixed with a light Doubutsu-kei (probably tonkotsu or chicken). For Ramen eaters who crave more of a punch, they might find this a bit lacking.

Supleks Database



View My Ramen Map in a larger map

Takeoka Ramen (竹岡らーめん 梅乃家 - Umenoya in Onarimon)

Today I want to explore a style called Takeoka Ramen. Takeoka is a fishing port section of Futtsu City in Chiba Prefecture, just south of Kisarazu. This style has roots going back over fifty years, and Umenoya is the shop credited with popularizing this style.

Since I'm a poor salary man living in Tokyo, I don't have time to go deep into the wilds of Chiba. Instead, I stumbled across an Umenoya on one of my client visits. This shop is on a back street between Onarimon and Shimbashi stations.

Looks like Shoyu Ramen, right? So what makes this bowl unique to Takeoka? Your typical Shoyu Ramen is made wtih Shoyu tare mixed with a separately prepared soup. For Takeoka style, the Shoyu tare is mixed with the water the noodles are boiled in. This results in a very light and simple taste (NOT to be mistaken for bland). Ever had a really tasty bowl of Tonkotsu or Miso, only to feel sick and bloated afterwards? You won't have that problem here. I rarely drink all the soup at Ramen shops, but finished this one with ease. The bowl is also topped with chopped onions which sweeten the soup. At Umenoya, they recommend adding sansho and vinegar which is available on the counter.

For those of you sick of all the heavy Ramen out there, Takeoka style Ramen is a refreshing blast from the past. Check out Umenoya if you have the chance!

Supleks Database



View Larger Map

Why another Ramen blog?

Hello world! Just another Ramen eater trying to make sense of what I’m slurping on. Briefly about myself, I’m a native Californian who’s been living in Japan since 2005. Never cared much for ramen before coming to Japan, but now am hooked. As of 2012 been to over 300 different shops and counting…

There are a select few English language blogs that thoroughly cover the Ramen experience. They are all great and have been reference points in my own explorations of Ramen. So why do we need another blog? In short… we probably don’t.

The mission of this blog is explore the traditional styles of Ramen, and also introduce ever changing trends in the Ramen World. This place is basically a forum for me to compartmentalize and make sense of everything I’ve eaten so far. We all know Sapporo Miso or Hakata Tonkotsu.There is more out there that needs to be exposed in the English language. Hope you guys have fun following my exploration! Thanks for checking this out.