One of soul food for Japanese food is Udon.
Udon is made from white wheat flour.
There are different levels of chewiness and thickness in Udon.
Besides, there are several types of soup. Some are weak and others are strong.
Each region has unique udon.
During summer, we dip cold udon in a cold soup
with seasonings such as green onion and graded daikon.
During winter, we have udon with a hot soup in the bowl.
There are many toppings such as dried tofu, tempura and vegetables.
Typical udon noodles in Japan
・きつねうどん（Kitsune-Udon) = fox Udon
This hot udon has deep-fried bean curd on the top.
Do you know why we call it “fox Udon”?
The answer is this:
We Japanese visit shrines of Oinari Okami, the Japanese fox god.
It is said that the god loves deep-friend bean curd, so
we serve it as offerings in addition to rice and sake.
・たぬきうどん (Tanunki-Udon) = Racoon Dog Udon
The Udon has bits of deep-fried tempura batter on the top
and have both cold and hot one.
There are various theories about the reason why we call it Tanuki-Udon.
One of the theories is that it has only tempura batter on the top.
Vegetables and seafood for tempura are called “Tane”.
Tempura batter doesn’t have Tane, so “taking out Tane”is called “Tane-nuki” in Japanese.
Tane-nuki is abbreviated to “Tanuki” Therefore, the udon is called “tanuki.”
My favorite instant noodles from Maruchan
History of Maruchan Udon
1. Don’t add red pepper, but sip soup once and enjoy the dashi flavor.
2. Look at the inside of the cup when you finish it. You will see some black powders around.
, which means the soup contains nice broth. You should try!
Now, do you come interested in Kitsune-Udon?
It is good for you and your friends to share Kitsune and Tanuki noodles and enjoy different tastes.
Cited from Maruchan Official HP
