The LC NewsLine guide to… Morioka noodles

LCWS 2016 is one and half month away. LC NewsLine received a welcome message from Morioka to invite you to LCWS. If you have not registered yet, sign up now!

Message from Kunihisa Yamura, Chairman, Councilfor Realizing the ILC:

“It’s such a pleasure to have LCWS 2016 in Morioka-Iwate. We are delighted to have an opportunity to welcome you to Morioka. I hope this conference will be successful. Discover our beautiful nature changing with the seasons, our rich history and diverse local food. Meet people in Iwate who are known for their hospitality. We are really looking forward to seeing you in Morioka-Iwate.”

The conference venue, Morioka, is a city famous for a variety of foods, ranging from meat and vegetables to sweets, and especially for noodles. For information for LCWS attendees, LC NewsLine introduces some of Morioka’s delicacies in this issue.

The Three Great Noodles of Morioka

1. Wanko-soba

If you want to have delicious noodles and fun at once, try Wanko soba. Wanko means a bowl in Iwate dialect, and Soba is Buckwheat noodles. So, “Wanko Soba” is “Buckwheat noodle in a bowl”. Well, nothing special? Yes, it is very special kind of cuisine.

What makes it very special is the way they served. The noodle will be served in small portion. As soon as you finish eating the first portion, the server, who is waiting next to you, adds another serving of noodles to the bowl, very quickly. This series of movements continues until you give up. But be careful, the server won’t let you give up so easily. You need to move very quick to close the lid of the bowl before the server gives you another portion. The official record now 559 servings. Give it a try to see how many cups you can eat!

Morioka Reimen

Morioka Reimen

Reimen is originally a Korean dish called Naengmyeon, which means “cold noodles” in both languages. It was introduced by Korean immigrants, and evolved into its own unique style, different from original Korean dish.

The most unique characteristic of Morioka Reimen Noodles is the texture of the noodles. Korean original noodle is made of buckwheat flour, while the Morioka version uses wheat flour, making a semi-transparent rubbery texture.  Morioka reimens are served in a cold soup with beef, kimchi, cucumber, boiled egg, and a piece of fruit such as apple, pear, or watermelon. You may find the fruit on the noodle strange, but actually the fruit helps soothe your mouth from spicy soup. You can try Morioka Reimen Noodles at basically any yakiniku barbecue restaurant in Morioka.

Jaja-men

Jajamen was developed from a Chinese noodle dish called “jia jiang mein.” Like Reimen, it is different from the original Chinese version. Jaja-men’s flat noodles have a texture similar to udon wheat noodles. They are served with a special meat-miso sauce, cucumber, and green onion, and commonly served with condiments such as grated ginger, garlic, vinegar, and/or hot pepper oil. Make sure to combine everything very well before eat. It  has a unique taste, and some get addicted after trying Jaja-men a couple of times: the oldest Jaja-men restaurant in Morioka city usually always has a line of people waiting outside.

Jaja-men