A Classic Soft Noodle Inaka Udon

1-pound bag - Japan

These noodles are different from an Italian pasta noodle, and make a nice change.

Udon noodles are a staple food in northern Japan, and a wonderfully versatile food to have on hand for adding new flavor to your everyday meals. These wheat-based noodles differ from their Italian cousins with their slightly denser texture and wheatier taste.

They are chewy, soft, and fat, and make for a wonderful carrier for something green and a little protein.

A hot soup somehow can make a cold day seem just about right. Greens cooked quickly in a hot pot along with mushrooms and protein, like super thin uncooked chicken, or BBQ pork. It's a delectable meal that takes all of about ten minutes, the time to cook Inaka udon.

Japanese Inaka udon noodles are eaten both hot and cold, kept simple or transformed when tossed with ingredients like soy sauce, sesame oils, or oyster sauce. And, whether you fry them or soup’em, the softer, plumped up udon noodle is fabulous.