Cold-served dipping noodles: what's in the sauce?
Human food preferences are obviously influenced by how hot or cold the ambient environment is, with the temperature of food we crave usually going in the opposite direction to the one on a thermometer outside.
Thus, we have a growth in popularity of hot dishes in winter, and of cold dishes in summer to balance things out.
But how hot or cold? Well, through experimentation, observation and thorough analysis physiologists have more or less definitively established that humans most prefer food that is 25 degrees C either more or less than their own body temperature.
So, if you are a healthy specimen at around 36-37 C, you would be best satisfied with food that is either 11-12 or 61-62 C.
But speaking about the lower end of this, so to say, ‘epicurean’ sweet spot, considering that some fats tend to solidify at such temperatures it may not be easy to use them for culinary purposes.
How is that related to noodles in general and Tsukemen in particular?
Well, with all pun intended the current ‘hot’ thing in the noodle world (at least in Japan) is Tsukemen – a dish where noodles themselves are more emphasized when compared to other types of noodle dishes, and assume a more prominent position in the total power balance inside the dish. But, of course, noodles in Tsukemen are, only a part (although a significant one) of the equation with the other one being the sauce they are dipped into when eating (thus, “tsuke” – to dip + “men” – noodles).
So, what happens when you try to use your standard Tsukemen recipe to make a dish that is served cold?
Well, following the laws of physics and properties of ingredients the sauce that would have otherwise been in a relatively liquid state may transmorph into a solid one rendering the whole dish rather difficult to consume as intended.
And the richer the sauce’s original texture the higher is the likelihood it would happen!

On July 29, 2022, join Yamato for a free online class to learn how to deal with such a problem.
In particular we will discuss
- how Tsukemen recipes can be adapted to hot conditions
- what kinds of fats and other ingredients are best suited to make rich-texture sauces for Tsukemen dishes served cold (i.e. “Hiyashi“)
The class is Free, and its live broadcast is accessible by the link that will be sent to your email address after you sign up.
IMPORTANT:
a link to the class’s livestream will be sent to your email address 30 minutes before the start
(NOTE: we are looking forward for, and would definitely welcome your watching the live broadcast, but should that be difficult, you would still be able to watch a recording of the class using the same link)
Time schedule
Time (Japanese time) | Contents |
4:30~4:35 (P.M.) | Introduction |
4:35 ~ 4:50 | A lecture on the concept and history of Tsukemen, and how to make Tsukemen dishes suitable for hot seasons |
4:50 ~ 5:20 | Practical demonstration of making fresh craft noodles for Hiyashi (cold) Tsukemen dishes |
5:20 ~ 5:30 | A practical cooking session featuring preparation of cold Tsukemen dishes made with fresh craft noodles |
5:30 ~ 5:35 | Q&A |
*July 29, 4:30 P.M. Japanese time will be:
July 29, 00:30 A.M. in Los Angeles;
July 15, 2:30 A.M. in Dallas;
July 29, 3:30 A.M. in New York;
July 29, 10:30 A.M. in Helsinki;
9:30 A.M. in Berlin;
8:30 A.M. in Lisbon
*Schedule and timetable may be subject to change
*The workshop will be conducted in English
How to register for the class
You will receive an email with instructions for how to log in to the class’s livestream.
NOTE:
Please feel free to tell us about what kind of noodles you would want to see featured or any particular topic covered during the class.
Featured in the class
