The return of Ru.  It has been a while.  So you’ve been hanging out in a place called Kawamata (川又), Kamibun doing lots of work and processing an old house (more about this later) and you’ve had no time to write anything for InKamiyama?  It’s not good enough ‘ru-san’.  I know, I know.  Things have been piling up on my back like little crab-shaped pebbles and it’s been difficult to break away from the cleaning, cleaning, cooking, cleaning, design, cleaning type schedule that I’ve been working with for the past month.  But I’m here now and typing this is surely a step in the right direction? Whatever, just get on with it.

Udon Meister Hachimitsu san

A long time ago Hachimitsu san visited Kamiyama and decided to make udon.  It was fun but frankly the udon were poor (tasted fine to me).  He visited Kamiyama a few weeks ago and decided to do udon revenge @ Iwamaru san’s house.  This time he was prepared and everyone was hungry.  First the ingredients for udon:

700g medium flour (not strong and not plain, in between)
40g salt (approximately, it depends on the season.  Less in winter, more in summer)
280ml water

True Udon making is a very skillful process and people train for many many years to be an udon chef.  This method below is a simplified and less stressful method.  In order then:

First you mix all the ingredients and pull it all together into a very dry dough.  This has to be kneaded now.  The correct form is a circular pushing motion not a folding motion like bread cause you don’t want air in the dough.  I guess if you do a lot of work with clay or you are a potter then you’d know all about this.  So udon is edible clay then?  Nope.

After a good 10 minutes kneeding (which is tough since the dough is very dense) you’ll start to feel the dough loosening up a little.  It’s time to bash it flat and do the awa odori on it.  This is the best way to flatten the dough because it preserves its elasticity and this is vital for udon.  It’s also better to have warm feet so take them out of the kotatsu please (and have you washed your feet recently?)  You have to repeat this stage a couple of times.

Next, you roll the dough into a tube and fold this tube in on itself like so:

This neat little dough package then goes in some plastic wrap and put it somewhere warm – the kotatsu is perfect.

Leave it in here until it begins to get soft and springy.

It’s ready to roll flat.  Use lots of starch powder to stop it sticking.

Fold it in half then in half again.  Do not roll it.  It’s ready to slice.

It’s important to be precise when slicing so that all the noodles cook at the same time.  They should be a uniform half a centimeter thick.  Having the correct hardware makes this job easier – udon chefs have large choppers with handles and they slice almost straight up and down rather than in a rocking style.  It’s ok to use a regular knife, just be prepared mentally and make sure your knife has an edge like a razor.

Eat them quickly after you make them.  Sprinkle lots of starch and keep them in an airtight container.  Boil water and cook them.  Eat.  Cheers.