Good afternoon, everyone! Here at the Itoigawa Global Geopark we’re experiencing some fantastic spring weather. It’s so warm, I rode my bicycle in to work today! I hope you’re seeing some beautiful weather wherever you are.
So, yesterday I visited Shimohayakawa Elementary School once again to try their Geo School Lunch! This month’s menu takes advantage of Kaiyo High School’s recently announced fare: Makochan Udon!
I wrote about Makochan Udon in a blog entry last week. At that time I (rather embarrassingly!) had to admit that I had not tried it. However, by stroke of luck I was invited to enjoy Geo School Lunch at Shimohawakawa Elementary School!
Today’s menu consisted of (from left-to-right) rice, fried nigisu (a locally-caught type of deepsea smelt), spinach and peanut salad, and, the main event: Makochan Udon!
The Makochan Udon was served bukkake-style. That is to say, the cold noodles are added to a rich fish-based broth. In this case, the broth was garnished with carrots, onion, and kamaboko, a type of fish sausage.
You can really see the jade-like green flecks of kelp in this udon. The flavor is rich and slightly salty while the texture is very ‘al dente,’ slightly chewier than your typical udon noodles and much more flavorful. I definitely prefer them over regular udon.
Unfortunately, the delicate flavor of the noodles was a bit overwhelmed by the rich broth, so I am definitely looking forward to trying them again.
–Ishikoro