OKINAWA SOBA at HEDO POINT -- And a Short History of the Local Noodle

There is a difference between Okinawa Soba and Okinawa Soba. The photo above is of the first kind --- NOODLES !!!

I am the second... a noodle-brained Flickr member who originally planned to post only 300 photos here, then call it quits. For some reason, that plan didn't work out, and I have slightly exceeded the original limit.

Fortunately, for those here on Okinawa who love a hearty bowl of noodle soup, there are many recipes for "Okinawa Soba" --- most all of them involving PORK as one of the ingredients.

However, my favorite is GYU SOBA, made with chunks of LEAN BEEF stir-fried in a mound of PEPPERED BEAN-SPROUTS that covers the noodles in a mountain of deliciousness.

In more and more Soba Shops, there are VEGETARIAN versions to be had. Almost every town and island in the entire Okinawa island chain has their own local SOBA concoctions, and each claims to be the best there is.

Check out lots of different OKINAWA SOBA PICS here : www.flickr.com/search/?s=int&w=all&q=oKINAWA+sOBA...

OKINAWA SOBA usually has a large noodle like Japanese UDON, but it is much firmer, like a good German noodle.

THE SILLY JAPANESE

The mainland Japanese will tell you that Okinawa Soba is NOT true Soba --- that is, noodles made of BUCKWHEAT --- but rather, it is a non-Japanese Okinawa creation made from WHEAT FLOUR.

In other words, the Japanese like to tell the Okinawans, "...Do as we say, not as we do...".

Huh ???

OK. Time for another Okinawa Soba Rant !!! The following does not meant to belittle or demean the tradition Buckwheat Soba dishes of Mainland Japan, which are all delicious and good in their own way.

Instead, it is meant to level the playing field, deal with old prejudices, and remind folks that Japan is not the 100% culturally homogenous place that they sometimes like to make it appear.

My Apologies to the illustrious Ainu "Japanese" of the North, who do not featured in this rant.

♥ ♥ ♥ A SHORT HISTORY OF THE SOBA WAR BETWEEN OKINAWA AND JAPAN ! ♥ ♥ ♥

A LESSON IN JAPANESE SOBA, AND THE BUCKWHEAT FROM WHICH IT IS MADE

"......Buckwheat refers to a variety of plants in the dicot family Polygonaceae: the Eurasian genus Fagopyrum, the North American genus Eriogonum, and the Northern Hemisphere genus Fallopia. Either of the latter two may be referred to as "wild buckwheat." Despite the name, buckwheats are not related to wheat, as they are not cereals / grasses (family Poaceae); instead, buckwheat is related to sorrels, knotweeds, and rhubarb......"

OK. So far, so good.

The word "Soba" in the mainland Japanese language means "buckwheat," but Okinawa soba noodles contain no buckwheat—they are made entirely from regular wheat.

After Okinawa became Japan's 47th Prefecture when the USA returned the islands to Japanese control in 1972, the Japan Soba-Growers' Association tried to force Okinawa drop the name "soba" from their noodle dishes. This was because, according to [Mainland] Japanese regulations on the naming of noodles, a noodle must contain at least 30% buckwheat in order to bear the name "soba."

However, the Okinawans refused to (1) adulterate their classic noodles with buckwheat, and (2) refused to drop the name "Soba". Instead, they took the Japanese to task.

THE OKINAWAN ARGUMENT

In the end, the Okinawa Soba makers won an exception to the Japanese rule based on (among other things) their solid argument that throughout Japan the word "Soba" was already used in many instances to mean noodles in general, including noodles that had no buckwheat at all --- something the Japanese Soba-Growers association completely and conveniently forgot in their zeal to stamp out "Okinawa Soba"......"

FOR EXAMPLE : Ramen, also made with plain wheat flour, is (throughout Japan) sometimes called Shina Soba or Chuka Soba, both meaning "Chinese Soba".

Further, Yaki Soba (stir-fried Chinese noodles) which is also popular throughout Japan, also contains no buckwheat at all, yet it is called "Soba".

The Japanese Soba-Growers Association --- who allowed the word Soba in those cases of 100% Wheat Flour noodles --- refused to consider those already-established exceptions in their fanatical mission to stamp out "Okinawa Soba".

In other words, the Japanese Soba-Growers Association --- just like the rest of the mainland Japanese corporations, associations, and central government --- are always blind to (and forgiving of) their own selfish, self-centered inconsistencies, while always looking for ways to walk all over the Okinawans and their culture in an attempt deny them the very things they allow for themselves.

Unfortunately, this prejudice against the Okinawans has run deep for centuries.

OKINAWA POKES BACK

In any case, the Okinawans didn't miss a beat to poke back at the Mainlanders for their ignorant and hypocritical goofiness, and today, ".....if one wants to eat buckwheat noodles in Okinawa, one must generally look for a sign or a menu listing that says "Japanese Soba" (日本そば Nihon soba), ---- rather than just plain "Soba" as would be seen throughout the rest of Japan....". (Wiki)

This is also why Japan needs their 100 : 1 population ratio against the ethnic Okinawans --- to keep them in check on all matters of culture and education, and to make sure the Okinawans continue their shared land use with the US Military and Japanese Self Defense Forces.

Otherwise, your average Okinawan will easily win an argument against your average Japanese main-lander, and an Okinawan Karate Master will always knock a Japanese Judo Master flat on his ass.

But, I digress.

OKINAWA SOBA remains my favorite noodle dish in all of Japan, and I ate it immediately after taking this picture at the Soba Shop at Hedo Misaki, the northern point of the island of Okinawa.

Mmmmmm. It was delicious.

SUBJECTIVE CONCLUSION

All though both Japanese and Okinawan Soba are delicious in their own way, 99.9% of Americans here, when confronted with both types of noodle dishes, prefer the OKINAWAN version made with Wheat Flour.

Perhaps this preference has to do being already familiar with taste and textures of various Western-style "noodle soups", "white" spaghetti and lasagna pasta, and various German-style stroganoff noodles.

However, if you are on a Gluten-free diet, you will have to go with the Japanese Buckwheat version. But, don't worry, it tastes good, too ! ^_^

沖縄そばの日沖縄そば

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♥ www.japanupdate.com/2012/10/soba-is-as-okinawan-as-its-name/

♥ www.okinawablue.com/2010/10/okinawa-soba-day.html

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RANDOM SOBA : www.flickriver.com/photos/24443965@N08/random/

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Taken in: 日本 / 沖縄県 (show map)

Taken on: January 3, 2009

Tags:

Okinawa Soba

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Okinawa Soba Day

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Sets appears in: • OKINAWA ! • HEDO POINT & VICINITY more » • POTTERY on OKINAWA « less

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