Takashi's Noodles

297 Pages·2009·6.67 MB·English

by  Takashi Yagihashi

Copyright © 2009 by Takashi Yagihashi
Photography © 2009 by Tyllie Barbosa
All rights reserved.
Published in the United States by Ten Speed Press, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a
division of Random House, Inc., New York.
www.crownpublishing.com
www.tenspeed.com
Ten Speed Press and the Ten Speed Press colophon are registered trademarks of Random House,
Inc.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Yagihashi, Takashi.
Takashi’s noodles / Takashi Yagihashi with Harris Salat; photography by Tyllie Barbosa.
p. cm.
Includes index.
Summary: “A collection of 75 recipes from James Beard Award–winning chef Takashi Yagihashi
for both traditional and inventive hot and cold Japanese noodle dishes”
—Provided by publisher.
1. Cookery (Pasta) 2. Noodles—Japan. 3. Cookery,
Japanese. I. Salat, Harris. II. Title.
TX809.M17Y34 2009
641.8′22—dc22
2008041473
eISBN: 978-1-60774201-2
Cover design: Toni Tajima
Recipe testing: Jaclyn Kolber
Food styling: Christina Zerkis
Food stylist assistance: Jaclyn Kolber
Prop styling: Kelly McKaig
Photography assistance: Melissa Romito and
Christy Schmid
v3.1

Contents
Acknowledgments
Introduction
Chapter One: Ramen
Chapter Two: Soba
Chapter Three: Udon
Chapter Four: Somen
Chapter Five: Asian Noodles
Chapter Six: Pasta
Chapter Seven: Appetizers
Ingredients Glossary
Index

Acknowledgments
From the time I was a child growing up in Mito, Japan, noodles have
been close to my heart, like my family and friends. Thank you to all of
them for making this book happen.
My heartfelt thanks and gratitude to my father, Sakae, my mother,
Tamiko, and my sister, Masumi. And thanks to my wife, Kathy, and my
children, Brandon, Emily, and Bridget.
And many thanks to the following people, whose contributions also
helped to make this book a reality: the staff at Takashi Restaurant and
Takashi’s Noodles at Macy’s; the Yamasho staff; and Courtney Kaplan,
Ken Kido, Reiko Sagioka, and Atsuko Uchida.
Thanks to my brother-in-law, Norio, for inspiring me, and to Jun-san
for allowing me to work in your amazing noodle shop.

Introduction
From hand-cut soba to a hearty bowl of ramen, Japanese love their
noodles.
I’m no exception. This book will introduce you to my country’s comfort
food, from traditional preparations to modern twists, including Italian
pasta, Japanese style. It will explain the varieties and flavors of these
versatile dishes, and guide you to vibrant—sometimes surprising—
ingredients. And in the pages that follow, I’ll share personal recipes
inspired by my two decades cooking here in America. All the recipes in
this book are delicious dishes you can cook at home. Just ask my family.
I grew up in Mito, Japan, a small city 100 miles northeast of Tokyo
near the Pacific Ocean. Back then, in the 1960s, my hometown was
surrounded by rice fields and vegetable plots—and the farmers
personally delivered their bounty by motorcycle. The rumble of engines
announced their arrival to my house each morning, with a crate lashed
to the rear rack overflowing with just-picked eggplant, daikon, carrots,
and greens. These deliveries—fish and handmade tofu, too—were so
frequent that my mother didn’t own a refrigerator!
My passion for noodles started early. We were lucky enough to live on
a block with two family-run noodle restaurants, both a 5-minute walk
from my house. This was a godsend to my hardworking parents, both
busy accountants—so we ate plenty of fresh noodles during the week. I
attended elementary school with the kids from one of those places, the
Azuma-an soba shop, which cultivated my taste for noodles even more.
Playing at their house after class meant stepping into the noodle version
of the Willy Wonka Chocolate Factory, since their living quarters were
attached to the restaurant in the traditional Japanese style. I still
remember staring awestruck at cooks portioning long sheets of fresh
soba dough with monstrous knives and tossing the strands into gurgling
pots large enough for me to bathe in.
As I got older I started cooking for myself after my studies. The very
first dish I ever prepared was noodles—but I have to admit they were
the instant kind. In high school I took a job scrubbing pots at the
restaurant attached to the local cultural center. This place served
European-style food and gave me my first taste of Italian pasta and
sauces.
I didn’t realize it at the time, but that humble kitchen job launched a
culinary career that transported me from Mito and Tokyo to Chicago,
Detroit, and Las Vegas. I started in local mom-and-pop storefronts in
Japan and after years of hard work became a James Beard Award–
winning chef running French and Japanese restaurants here in America.
The cuisine I’ve created at my restaurants has been contemporary and
modern, celebrated as among the finest in America by such publications
as the New York Times and Food & Wine. I’m grateful for those accolades
—and I love creating dishes that draw from the best of French and
Japanese cuisine. But I also love my soul food, and have never stopped
yearning for it: the simple, delicious noodles I still prepare at home for
my family. I now want to share my favorite recipes with other cooks
here in America.
You can find noodles everywhere in Japan, from noodle stands in train
stations to neighborhood noodle shops to elegant noodle restaurants.
And at home, noodles are a staple of nearly every kitchen. We enjoy a
wide variety of noodles in Japan: hearty buckwheat soba, chewy udon,
vermicelli-like somen, and “Chinese noodles,” or ramen, which is
extremely popular throughout the country. Pan-Asian noodles, from
Thailand, Vietnam, and Korea, are also fashionable, as is Italian pasta,
like the kind I first tasted back in Mito. But as these imports have
become a part of the cuisine, they’ve adopted a uniquely Japanese
character.
This book dedicates a chapter to each of these styles of noodles. I
cover traditional preparations that I’ve enjoyed since I was a child,
including soba with hot, crispy tempura. I also introduce elegant recipes
influenced by my modern, cross-cultural cooking, such as udon with
heirloom tomatoes and ratatouille. And I include recipes that may
surprise you, such as spaghetti with clams and seaweed. My dishes are
extremely versatile, ranging from simple to elegant, hot to cold, and
summer favorites to winter treats.
In addition to noodle recipes, I’ll include a chapter on side dishes—