Soba
Soba can stand for two things: the thin, firm noodles made of buckwheat, and the buckwheat itself. This is another Japanese food dating back to ancient times and has been a favorite since then. It has been traced back to between 10,000 BCE and 300 BCE. This is called the Jomon Period.
Apparently back then the people did not remove the hulls. They ground up the buckwheat into flour, kneaded the dough, then baked, boiled or steamed it.
Records kept during the Tokugawa shogunate showed that the average Edo (old Tokyo) resident ate a bow of soba every other day. One of the reasons buckwheat was so popular was that it could grow in the infertile soil and harsh climate of the Japanese highlands, and if done properly two crops per year could be harvested.
One form of soba is mori-soba, consisting of cold noodles dipped in soba-tsuyu (chilled broth made from dried bonito); seasoned with wasabi (Japanese horseradish), and long onions, grated daikon (giant white radish) or shredded dried seaweed. Deep-fried shrimp can also be added to make an even fuller meal.
Seiro soba is served on bamboo trays and has a few simple condiments used including tsuyu dipping sauce, grated wasabi, chopped scallions, and perhaps tempura, yam or daikon radish. If some nori seaweed is sprinkled on top then it is referred to as zaru soba.
A variety of flavorings are used for hot soba. These can include wild mountain vegetables, seaweed, herring, mushrooms, tempura, tofu and raw eggs. Usually absent, however, in soba dishes is meat.
Soba is another of the healthy Japanese foods, containing rutin (good for high blood pressure), choline (possibly good for the brain) and vitamin B1. The seasonings also supply vitamin C.
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