I’ve always liked yakisoba. It’s a brothless soba noodle that’s fried in a skillet with some meat, veggies, and a nice Worcestershire sauce flavor. It’s great stuff! I’ve always been curious though, how Worcestershire sauce made it into Japanese culinary culture. I dug around and found this on Wikipedia:
A thick sauce is manufactured in Japan under brand names such as ‘Bulldog’, which reflect its English origins, but this is a brown sauce more similar to HP Sauce rather than any type of Worcestershire Sauce.[19] A thicker variety of the sauce, although labelled Worcester (rather than Worcestershire) in katakana,[19] is commonly known as tonkatsu sauce and most often used as a condiment for tonkatsu (fried, breaded pork cutlets). Both the dish and the sauce are thought to have derived from English cuisine imported into Japan in the 19th century.[20]
Japanese Worcester sauce (pronounced as Usutā sōsu) is made from purees of fruits and vegetables such as apples and tomatoes, with sugar, salt, spices, starch and caramel. It commonly accompanies western-influenced yōshoku dishes such as the aforementioned tonkatsu and korokke. Yakisoba sauce, and okonomiyaki sauce are also variants of Worcestershire sauce, often thicker and sweeter than the original.
It seems that people worldwide enjoy tasty food and when one culture enters another’s region, they tend to leave some of their food culture. Let’s give this yakisoba a try!
Here’s the back of the package (click image to enlarge). Not sure if it contains meat. To prepare, heat up some oil in a skillet and drop some meat and veggies in and cook them abouut halfway. Drop in the noodles and cook a little longer. Add the seasoning sachet contents and combine thoroughly. Enjoy!
The fresh noodle pouch. This is a three pack, so you get three of everything.
Here are the seasoning sachets (one per serving).
Has a nice scent of Worcestershire.
A friend of mine stopped by yesterday and treated me to lunch. I gave him a bunch of instant noodles and a new sticker for his truck! Thanks, Matt!
Finished (click image to enlarge). Added kizami shoga (pickled ginger), mayonnaise, green onion, pork, cabbage and sweet onion. The noodles are great – perfect gauge and chewiness. The flavor is just right – perfect yakisoba. I loved it and when done, I wanted to eat the other two servings! 5.0 out of 5.0 stars. UPC bar code 4901959100468.
Yeah – I think that’ll be enough for me!
