the ramen blog & other goodies!

I received an e-mail from Ms. Mariko Daicho of TV Tokyo. Let’s help Ms. Daicho out!

Hello. I am a producer at TV Tokyo, a Japanese television network. We are producing a special program about ramen in America, and I am searching for things that show how deeply ramen has penetrated into American life. In reading your blog, I see there are many recipes, poems and haiku related to ramen. I would like to discuss with you other ways in which ramen is used or appreciated
here in the U.S. For example, is ramen available at sporting events along with hot dogs, etc.? Is instant ramen stocked in vending machines alongside other snacks? Whatever is out there, I’d like to learn about it. Please feel free to post this letter on your blog. Readers and you can feel free to contact me at daicho at tv-tokyo-america.com .

Thanks for your help. I look forward to hearing from you.

Mariko Daicho
Producer, TV Tokyo America
New York, NY

A short while ago, one of our readers asked “how many feet of ramen are in each pack (of instant noodles)?”

The helpful people at cockeyed.com, purveyors of truths to the question “How Much is Inside?” has the answer!

Excuse me? Click on the picture above to see the wacky 30 second Nissin commercial that gives you a taste of what ramen-making would be like as an Olympic sport!

via tvinjapan

“Chabuton’s mission is to create the perfect bowl of ramen…Our food is meant to feed the soul…and provide sensitivity that touches your entire being.” (Shiver)…I get all quivery just thinking about it. On the downside? It’s in a Japanese market food court.

Chabuton opened last year inside the Marukai supermarket in Costa Mesa, and the food court seems to have been in constant construction since. My wife and I finally decided to give it a try recently, with low expectations. Boy were we in for a pleasant surprise… Read the rest of this entry →

Nissin Food Products has announced a new “refillable” version of their world-famous Cup Noodles in March of this year. This new version of Nissin’s venerable product will have a plastic container instead of the traditional styrofoam cup, and was developed out of concerns for the environment.

The refillable Cup Noodles will be sold as a starter kit of a cup and 2 refills for 599 yen each (around $5), with additional refills, available in regular and seafood flavors, at 128 yen each (about a dollar).

A Nissin spokesman was quoted as hoping that this new product will appeal to environmentally conscious people, such as “the elderly and women”…hmm…interesting demographics.

If and when this product is available in the U.S., I’ll be there, fighting my way past the hoards of women and the elderly, I’m sure, to buy my very own cup and to save the world!

Source: Mainichi Daily via plasticbamboo

The Feb 1, 2007 issue of Shukan Bunshun

The Japanese magazine shukanbunshun just published an interview with Momofuku Ando’s eldest son (by his first wife) ???? (sorry, I don’t know the “English” version of his name), with some revealing details about Mr. Ando’s life. Read the rest of this entry →