In Japan, there are many noodle dishes such as ramen and udon, but in the Katsuyama and Ono area, soba is famous. Overseas, soba is already very well known as a Japanese food, and is loved by many people because it is so healthy, but here, oroshi soba, or “grated soba” is offered as a traditional dish.
Oroshi soba, or “grated soba” is soba eaten with chopped green onions and bonito flakes mixed in with the noodles, and dipped in a sauce-like soup with grated radish. people usually eat this in the summer as a way to beat the heat, but here in the Katsuyama and Ono areas, we enjoy it year round.
When you sip the noodles, bringing them into your mouth, you notice the aroma of the bonito flakes, and the more you chew, the more the flavor of buckwheat fills your mouth. The spicy grated daikon radish adds an accent, and though it is quickly flattened as you chew, the radish leaves you mysteriously refreshed, ready to eat another cup.
In the summer, you can also eat the “yukimuro soba” which was stored in an ice house, or natural refrigerator.
