It's easy to say Noodles
Remember C’era's once-American gangster David Aaronson was called Noodles, like noodles, spaghetti. But apart from the decidedly evocative shape, Japanese noodles are conceptually very different from our own. First difference: the pasta is made of durum wheat flour and is drawn, while the noodles do not use durum wheat flour and are cut directly from the pastry dough with little humidity.

THE Soba in particular they are made of buckwheat, have a brown color and can be served hot or cold (for example with hard-boiled eggs, pickled radish, seaweed, cucumbers, Korean pears or tomatoes as in Korean Bibim-guksu). The Udon they are made of wheat flour and are offered in the same way as Soba, while i Somen they are usually eaten cold. THE ramen they are the ones that stand out better, yellow because of the egg, they are more full-bodied. Finally, Shirataki they are the finest and also the lightest.

Fast and adaptable food
The first merit of noodles is to be a very food versatile, suitable to be proposed with meat, fish vegetables, it lends itself particularly to be created with the noble leftovers of our fridge. The second merit is instead that of being a fast food ante litteram, precisely because the preparation time is a few minutes. And in a rope company, where time is the real resource, preparation speed is almost a pre-requisite.

Fried or boiled?
Noodles can indeed be boiled in salted water, or fried or scalded in boiling water and then jumped into a wok. But in all cases the preparation times are fast. Furthermore, the fact of blending well with any ingredient also means that they can be remedied without an ad hoc expense.

Benefits
Their history is very ancient and it seems that their chronological age is around 4000 years, when in the distant China already full of property were born. The last (but not least) reason that leads us to appreciate and consume noodles lies in their nutritional properties. Depending on the sub-category to which they belong they can benefit our body on many fronts. They range from fibers and minerals such as iron, potassium, phosphorus, zinc and calcium (which we find especially in soba), to antioxidant properties and to the prevention of heart disease. They promote intestinal motility, are light and digestible, but at the same time they can enter into all the effects of comfort food. Ramen in particular then normally associate in the soup with ingredients that are particularly beneficial: kombu seaweed, rich in iodine (which stimulates the metabolism and burn more calories) and katsuobushi (tuna fillets that are left to ferment with a laborious and ancient technique), decidedly generous in benefits of all kinds (especially for the intestine).

A photo full of joy
Finally, like the Italian spaghetti, they are photogenic and aesthetically cheerful. Which for food is no small thing. Not by chance in this edition of the Pink Lady Food Photographer, also dedicated to food, this year wins just one shot dedicated to noodles, with an image of a party that sees them as protagonists in China.

Emanuela Di Pasqua
May 20, 2019

Credits images:

Edward Guk / Unsplash

The Creative Exchange / Unsplash

Miguel Maldonado / Unsplash