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[Southeast Asian-Style Somen Noodles with Japanese Condiments and Fish Sauce]

Recently, I’ve often come across recipes on social media and cooking websites that use a simple mixture of fish sauce and water in place of the traditional somen dipping sauce. Intrigued by the unexpected pairing of fish sauce—a staple Southeast Asian seasoning—and somen, one of Japan’s most iconic summer noodles, I decided to give it a try.

Fish sauce is an essential fermented condiment in Thai cuisine. It’s found everywhere—from street stalls to restaurants—and is used daily, much like soy sauce in Japan. Just a dash on a fried egg instantly imparts a distinctly Thai flavor. It's also widely used in Vietnamese cuisine, such as pho, and it is a familiar flavor across Southeast Asia.

This time, I made a “Southeast Asian-style somen noodle dish with Japanese condiments and fish sauce” using ingredients I had in my refrigerator. The main protein is soft-boiled, shredded chicken breast. For condiments, I used cucumber—a typical summer vegetable—along with myoga (Japanese ginger) and shiso leaves.

First, mix water and fish sauce in a bowl and chill in the refrigerator while preparing the toppings. The somen noodles are cooked, then rinsed in ice water and served in the chilled broth. Top with the prepared vegetables and chicken, and finish with a drizzle of homemade sansho oil I made during the sansho pepper season. The refreshing aroma of sansho and the rich umami of the fish sauce make this the perfect lunch for a hot day. For an extra Southeast Asian touch, you can also add pak choi or a squeeze of lime or lemon.

The intense sunlight of this season reminds me of Southeast Asia. When the days are hot, one way to enjoy the heat is to embrace dishes from tropical climates. The donburi and bowl I used are glazed pieces called “Zanzetsu,” made by Seiryugama. Their cool tones and textures enhance the presentation of this chilled somen dish. Try cold somen noodles with fish sauce and Japanese condiments—perfect for the summer heat.

Southeast Asian-style Somen Noodles with Japanese Condiments and Fish Sauce (Serves 1)

Ingredients:
300 ml water
1.5 tablespoons fish sauce
Ice, as needed
100 g somen noodles
1/2 cucumber
1 myoga
2 shiso leaves
1 chicken breast (white meat)
Sansho oil, to taste

Preparation:
1. Combine the water and fish sauce in a bowl and chill in the refrigerator.
2. Julienne the cucumber and shiso, and finely slice the myoga.
3. Boil water in a small pot with a pinch of salt, add the chicken breast, and simmer gently until cooked through.
4. Shred the chicken with a fork, place it in a bowl, pour a bit of the cooking liquid over it, and chill.
5. Cook the somen noodles according to the package instructions, then rinse and cool in ice water.
6. Add ice and noodles to the bowl with the broth. Top with vegetables and chicken, and drizzle with sansho oil.

Seiryugama's Donburi
https://www.shokunin.com/en/seiryu/donburi.html
Seiryugama's Bowl
https://www.shokunin.com/en/seiryu/hachi.html

Reference
https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E3%83%8A%E3%83%B3%E3%83%97%E3%83%A9%E3%83%BC

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[Price Revision Notice]

Due to the rising cost of raw materials, several items will increase in price on 2025/8/1. If you are considering purchasing, please place your order before then.

Koizumi Glass's Shiyakubin
https://www.shokunin.com/en/koizumi/shiyaku.html
Koizumi Glass's Canister
https://www.shokunin.com/en/koizumi/canister.html
Koizumi Glass's Schale
https://www.shokunin.com/en/koizumi/schale.html
Koizumi Glass's Flat Bottom Evaporating Dish
https://www.shokunin.com/en/koizumi/johatsu.html

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[“Tofu Hyakuchin” and “Kori-Tofu” in Edo]

This year, the rainy season has ended without waiting for the Gion Festival Yoiyama, and summer has already begun in earnest in Kyoto. Usually, preparations for summer are made gradually over the rainy season, but this year's unexpected seasonal change has made changes in clothing, food, and housing somewhat hectic. The preparation of barley tea started early, hot soba noodles have been replaced by cold somen noodles, and the number of times ice is being made has increased dramatically, turning on the “summer” switch all at once. This year's summer is going to be long. That is why we want to spend it peacefully while cooling ourselves from the inside out with cool, cold food. When I was thinking about this, I found a cool and refreshing dish that could be a summer dessert in a modern edition of “Tofu Hyakuchin,” a cookbook from the Edo period that I had been flipping through the other day.

Published in 1782, “Tofu Hyakuchin” was a cookbook that created a huge boom among the common people of Edo (present-day Tokyo) by introducing a hundred cooking methods using tofu. The popularity of the book was so great that a sequel, “Tofu Hyakuchin Sequel,” was published the following year, and it also led to the popularity of ‘Hyakuchinmono’ cookbooks that dealt with other ingredients, such as “Daikon Hyakuchin” and “Tai Hyakuchin.” Another feature of this book is that tofu dishes are categorized and evaluated in six levels: “ordinary,” “common,” “fine,” “unusual,” “exquisite curiosity,” and “masterpiece.” Tofu dishes classified as “Masterpiece” are said to have been prepared not only for their rarity or beauty of appearance, but also for their deep pursuit of the original flavor of the tofu.

One of the most unusual and surprising tofu dishes is “玲瓏とうふ (kori-tofu).” The word “玲瓏 (reiro)” in the name of the dish refers to the clear, translucent beauty of materials like jade. Just seeing that it is written with the character for “ice (氷)” and read as “kori” brings an indescribable sense of coolness to the heart. The recipe is a simple sentence: "Kanten is dissolved by boiling, and tofu is simmered and set using the resulting liquid. It is then cooled before serving. The seasoning can be adjusted to taste.” In other words, it is tofu set with kanten, but no specific seasoning is mentioned. The recipe is very flexible in that it can be served as a refreshing snack with soy sauce, condiments, and spices, or as a cold dessert with molasses or soybean flour, depending on the taste of the person eating it. Even if you do not have a sink can for agar, you can make it by pouring tofu and agar into a bowl you have on hand.

In this case, I used smooth silken tofu and molasses to make a cool, sweet treat. The transparent agar and pure white tofu look even cooler when placed on Otera Kohachiro Shoten's Kanamari. In the Edo period, when there were no refrigerators, this dish, which made people feel cool with all five senses, from its appearance and texture to its cold temperature, is a dish that brings comfort even in the hot season, reflecting the rich sense of seasonality and aesthetic sense of the people of Edo.

Otera Kohachiro Shoten's Kanamari S
https://www.shokunin.com/en/otera/kanamari.html
Seiryugama's Teacup
https://www.shokunin.com/en/seiryu/yunomi.html
Seiryugama's Kumidashi
https://www.shokunin.com/en/seiryu/kumidashi.html
Koizumi Glass's Flat Bottom Evaporating Dish 60mm
https://www.shokunin.com/en/koizumi/johatsu.html
Sanjo Showroom
https://www.shokunin.com/en/showroom/sanjo.html

References
https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E8%B1%86%E8%85%90%E7%99%BE%E7%8F%8D
https://dl.ndl.go.jp/pid/2536494/1/25
https://kotobank.jp/word/%E7%8E%B2%E7%93%8F-661266
https://www.ja-tottoriinaba.jp/product/recipe/detail/%e7%8e%b2%e7%93%8f%ef%bc%88%e3%81%93%e3%81%8a%e3%82%8a%ef%bc%89%e3%81%a8%e3%81%86%e3%81%b5 (Recipe)