Comments on Thai Food by SheSimmers: How to Make Chewy Homemade Udon Noodles

In South America, tapioca flour is known as "...

2011-09-12T20:16:03.207-05:00

In South America, tapioca flour is known as "harina de Mandioca". Just in case anyone down here is going to give this a try. It sounds like a great recipe to me. I was told in Japan that the dough should have the texture of an earlobe when you are done kneading it, which sounds about right. I had good luck using a heavy duty food processor, but I acknowledge that in Japan I was taught to use my feet. Thanks for sharing!

Now if I could just find a great broth recipe that doesn't use anything more than a bullion cube, soy sauce, ginger, and sherry (and maybe a touch of sugar)....

Anon - Wow. Thanks so much for reporting back. Did...

2011-03-16T10:30:00.130-05:00

Anon - Wow. Thanks so much for reporting back. Didn't know that tapioca starch also goes by sago powder, but it makes perfect sense. Thank you! :)

WONDERFUL!!!!! These are amazing! I just took th...

2011-03-16T10:20:52.492-05:00

WONDERFUL!!!!! These are amazing! I just took them off the stove and I am munching on them now (before dinner :) ). I did have to add all the water plus more, but it still turned out great. Just a note about the tapioca starch - mine was called sago powder and I don't know if there is a difference, but it still turned out well. I will serve it with a simple broth.

THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!! You are amazing and my new hero :).

Emily - Thank you so much for the report. Good to ...

2011-03-10T12:05:21.998-06:00

Emily - Thank you so much for the report. Good to know that this works with just all-purpose flour as well.

OMG these were AMAZING and so frickin' easy! I...

2011-03-10T11:54:34.928-06:00

OMG these were AMAZING and so frickin' easy! I was completely bad and used all-purpose flour and nixed the tapioca starch (not from snarkiness, I just was looking for something I could make without going to the store) and they were perfect: tender yet delightfully chewy (but nowhere near tough)! Noodles are one of the few frontiers I'd never tackled before and it was SO FUN to watch these strips of flour paste magically turn into real live noodles!!! I served them up in basic bowls of broth + veggies sauteed in sesame oil, then added an egg on top per person. My husband slurped his down in record time, looked at me and said "Are there more noodles?" (This guy normally only wants to eat mac & cheese with hot dogs. That or peanut butter.)

FABULOUS!!

Will have to try out your recipe. I just made udon...

2010-12-29T15:23:36.998-06:00

Will have to try out your recipe. I just made udon noodles but they were way too chewy and really heavy and doughy. I hope this recipe is better.

Anon - Here are my thoughts: 1. I think what you&...

2010-10-01T08:26:58.990-05:00

Anon - Here are my thoughts:

1. I think what you're talking about is not flour:liquid ratio. This is because according to the recipe, only half of the water is supposed to be added first, then the other half gradually added as needed to form a kneadable dough (1 1/4 cups is just an approximate amount as when, it comes to dough, humidity in the air as well as age and brand of flour all play a role). Any more flour and your dough won't form. Any more water and the dough is too soft and sticky to knead.

2. If a dough formed and you were able to knead it, roll it out, cut it, etc., then the flour:water ratio must have worked.

3. This dough *is* supposed to be tough to knead. It's not soft like bread or pasta. This is the reason why it's tough to knead this dough properly on the kitchen counter as other types of dough. You need your whole body weight, hence the kneading with the feet.

I think the problem which you've attributed to too much flour is actually not about too much flour in relation to liquid (for reasons cited above and also, as you said, the results were good). I think you must have referred to the total amount of dough which might have been too much to manage. The solution is to halve the recipe. You'll end up with about 3/4 of a pound of fresh noodles, but also much less dough to knead which makes it easier to knead.

Hope this helps. :)

I think this recipe must have an error in it. I t...

2010-10-01T07:31:43.584-05:00

I think this recipe must have an error in it. I tried it and could only get 4 cups of bread flour mixed + 1/2 cup tapioca starch in with 1 + 1/4 cups of water. The dough was so dry and tough I even had trouble kneading it with my feet! The results were good, but I think the 5 + 1/2 cups of flour is way too much.

Made these today, a half recipe. I had to use all...

2010-04-03T17:22:53.968-05:00

Made these today, a half recipe. I had to use all purpose flour, but next time I'll be sure to get bread flour. These came out great, a nice chewiness. On another occasion, I had tried a different recipe w/o the tapioca starch and I wasn't happy with the results.

Ground spices should be okay, though in my opinion...

2009-09-16T22:00:05.809-05:00

Ground spices should be okay, though in my opinion udon is best prepared the traditional way, i.e. plain. Chunky add-ins, on the other hand, would definitely interfere with the texture and thus not recommended.

I'm wondering if you can add things to this r...

2009-09-16T21:44:13.797-05:00

I'm wondering if you can add things to this recipe to add flavor to the noodle? Paprika or something with it ruining the texture or consistency.

Hello! I found you through the pigpigscorner as a ...

2009-08-05T02:41:20.632-05:00

Hello! I found you through the pigpigscorner as a fellow awardee!

Wow, these noodles look great. I have tried to make hand chinese handpulled noodles and must admit that these seem a bit more doable. The pulled noodles involve cake flour as I can imagine tapioca flour is used to lower the gluten level.

Hard to pull, I would rather have a past maker for these dear noodles. So excited to make them. yaki udon here i come.

I came across your blog trying to find a recipe fo...

2009-07-22T21:58:53.555-05:00

I came across your blog trying to find a recipe for homemade udon. I love your blog!! Thank you for this detailed recipe for homemade udon, I will definitely try it. =)

Thanks for this guide. I figured out how to make u...

2009-07-18T14:02:39.237-05:00

Thanks for this guide. I figured out how to make udon noodles earlier this year, and was looking for variations.
I tried mixing my flour with spices to get a small form of taste to them, I can recommend using crushed sesame seeds or crushed cumin seeds to add a tender flavor.

AprilーSuch helpful information. I truly appreciate...

2009-07-17T12:54:38.654-05:00

AprilーSuch helpful information. I truly appreciate it!

I was linked to this article by thekitchn.com.

The Nissin brand you have pictured is a famous brand in Japan. Very reliable, though they are most famous for their instant noodles (the dried kind).

As described in this article by the Japan Times, tapioca flour creates a much chewier product than regular flour does. That's the difference you're noticing when you prefer one kind of noodle over another.

So while traditional udon noodles wouldn't use tapioca flour, authentic Japanese noodle companies are using it. In other words, you're right. One is not superior than the other...they're just different. :)

I'm bookmarking this! Love chewy udon.

2009-07-14T14:22:24.505-05:00

I'm bookmarking this! Love chewy udon.

dolphing - With a heavy, sharp Chinese cleaver, it...

2009-07-12T06:45:26.914-05:00

dolphing - With a heavy, sharp Chinese cleaver, it's easier than it looks. And I'm not even the most dextrous person ...

You must has excellent skill so that to made the w...

2009-07-12T06:35:32.890-05:00

You must has excellent skill so that to made the width of noodle almost equalize.^^

I can't believe you did this, that's aweso...

2009-07-12T05:53:57.972-05:00

I can't believe you did this, that's awesome! Not that I would want my feet anywhere near my noodles, cause my feet are pretty gross. But I love the way you threw yourself into figuring this out from scratch. Brilliant!

Very interesting post about udon noodles because I...

2009-07-10T15:07:09.561-05:00

Very interesting post about udon noodles because I eat pasta but general speaking purchased but this give me encourage to try to make a Japanese version at home :)

Cheers an excellent work Leela!

Gera

Oh my, you are brave and you make it look easy :) ...

2009-07-09T23:36:44.759-05:00

Oh my, you are brave and you make it look easy :) You totally make it accessible, now I may have to try. I am sure that I have never had fresh or even frozen udon, if the dried is that bad then I better give this a go! Thanks Leela.

I was thinking how cathartic, kneading dough with ...

2009-07-09T19:33:47.022-05:00

I was thinking how cathartic, kneading dough with my feet. Its up there with the fish nibbling pedicures.

This recipe sounds so good and the pics are amazing, as I saw the noodles develop my mind was racing with the various toppings I would use.

Ah, you continue to impress us all! I would NEVER...

2009-07-09T16:13:07.304-05:00

Ah, you continue to impress us all! I would NEVER think to even attempt to make my own noodle but I may now.

We need to try making some sort of pasta or noodle...

2009-07-09T11:20:01.232-05:00

We need to try making some sort of pasta or noodle very soon. This sounds quite advanced though. :) Maybe we should start with plain old flour/egg, then make our way up to udon.