Sanuki Udon are freshly made, boiled, and prepared. At MARUGAME SEIMEN we are committed to this ‘freshness.’ For this reason, the first priority when we design a shop is to secure space for making the noodles, while a large pot for boiling noodles with al dente texture, as well as a special fryer to deep fry crispy Tempura are also necessary. Because we believe it is important to serve our customers with delicious Sanuki Udon, we are dedicated to such preparations. We are also dedicated to the warmth of people. You will understand this if you have experience visiting a noodle-making factory or Udon shop in Sanuki. In Sanuki’s genuine, popular, self-serviced restaurants, many people work together to make delicious Udon dishes, regardless of how small the shop may be—people such as the person who makes the noodles, the person who boils the noodles in perfect timing, the person who handles money, the person who prepares Tempura, the person who washes the bowls…and many more.
MARUGAME SEIMEN’s Udon use flour made from 100% Japanese wheat. We are dedicated to bring out the rich aroma and taste that is particular to the homegrown wheat. Sanuki Udon are kneaded by using only very simple ingredients: wheat flour, salt, and water. It is precisely for this reason that we dedicate ourselves to creating good quality noodles.
We carefully select the wheat flour to be used and pay attention to the amount of water used, the temperatures and other aspects according to the season when creating the noodles at our shops. This means the great taste of our noodles can differ from day to day. For this reason, we taste the very first batch of boiled noodles every morning to adjust the adequate boiling time by several seconds for that day. While the time required to boil the noodles can change depending on the season and weather, the most important attention is given to the condition of the noodles. Variations in noodle quality are also created during the step where we leave the dough to age—they may either have aged well or not. The person in charge of boiling the noodles at each shop pays utter attention to ensure the noodles are in their best conditions everyday before they boil them.
The amount of time used to boil the noodles can also differ depending on the type of Udon dish. In the case of Kamaage Udon, the exact boiling time is very important. Only noodles taken out of the pot just several minutes before they are fully boiled will have the soft chewing texture that is particular to Kamaage Udon. If this timing is missed, the noodles will soak more water and have a different quality that is only good for Kake Udon or Bukkake Udon. This is why customers ordering Kamaage or Kamatama Udon have to wait longer.
Withiout losing the flavor of the 100% Japanese homegrown wheat flour used, our soup helps bring out the great taste of the noodles and is another main player in Sanuki Udon dishes alongside the noodles. Of course, the white base sauce for Kake-dashi and Tsuke-dashi (Bukkake-dashi) sauces used at MARUGAME SEIMEN are freshly prepared everyday at each shop.
The quality of the soup will deteriorate if a large amount is made at once. For that reason, we have a very strict rule for the amount that can be created each time, which is also a time and effort-consuming task. The MARUGAME SEIMEN way is to also take time and make every effort to create soups by hand. Usually, when one talks about Sanuki soup one thinks first of iriko (dried sardine) as a main ingredient. Here at MARUGAME SEIMEN, however, we use less iriko in our sauces.
In order to introduce the great taste and culture of Sanuki Udon to the rest of Japan, we have chosen to create tastes that can be enjoyed by as many people as possible.
We create the stock by using domestically produced kelps as the base ingredient and adjusting the flavor by mixing in dried fish such as mackerel, bonito, and round herring. We then create a white soup by slowing cooking this stock and adding two types of kaeshi mixes (using soy sauce, sugar, mirin) to further balance the flavor and create Kake-dashi and Tsuke-dashi (Bukkake-dashi) soups.
In search for the traditional deliciousness of Sanuki Udon, MARUGAME SEIMEN also pays great attention to the condiments that are vital to Udon dishes. Our system* which allows customers to use as much ginger, Welsh onion, Tempura crumbs, sesame and other free toppings at the condiments section is also typical of Sanuki’s popular, self-serviced Udon shops.
Of these free toppings, ginger is indispensible to Sanuki Udon. We provide freshly grated ginger at each shop every day. Sometimes, our customers ask us why our ginger is brown—this brown ginger is the very proof of our dedication to quality. Often, grated ginger from China tends to have a strong yellow color and look delicious. In contrast to that, Japanese grown ginger is slightly darker in color, but it is characteristic in that it has good aroma and the right level of spiciness that amazingly brings out the flavors of Sanuki Udon dishes. For this reason, we have chosen to use Japanese gingers, even if they are slightly pricier.
* The ‘take-all-you-want condiments’ service is not available in some shops.
Everything including Tempura crumbs is fried at each of the shops. This is thanks to the fact that Tempura items are deep-fried at the shops, which then creates the great by-products. Of course, the Welsh onions used are also carefully selected and Japanese homegrown. Because we dedicate ourselves to even the condiments and freshness, everyday we make several preparations for new things.
