Gomen Somen

Gomen means sorry in Japanese (i.e. Gomen, I broke your eggbeater).


Somen rhymes with gomen.

On this very hot day (yesterday really), I would like to apologize for disappearing from the blogosphere by offering up Japanese somen noodles. They are cold, require very little time and almost zero effort—ordering drive thru is tougher.

For those unfamiliar with Japanese food, somen is a great gateway drug.

The most popular way to eat the thin, wheat based noodles is to dip them into a cold, savory soup. This is the first Japanese food I learned to cook and eat, and I still make it all the time.

Gomen, I was a negligent blogger, but I hope these noodles will make amends.

Somen
1 noodle bunch
¼ cup somen soup base
¼ cup water
1 green onion (chopped)
(serves one)

Boil noodles according to instructions on package.

Drain noodles, rinsing under cold water until all noodles are cold.

If you want really cold noodles, toss a few ice cubes into the bowl.

Mix somen soup base and water in a small bowel. (Each diner should have their own soup bowl)



Eating instructions

Step 1
Season your soup—some like to use wasabi or ginger, but I keep it simple with green onion.

Step 2
Grab a bunch of noodles with your chopsticks and dump them in the soup

Step 3
Fish some noodles from the bowl and eat. Be sure to slurp. Slurping shows appreciation to the chef.

*Somen and soup base can be found in the Japanese section of Asian food stores and in some supermarkets.

More super simple summer dishes are to come. Click here to have them sent directly to your email for free.