Yokote Fried Noodles

There is an interesting local food competition called B-1 Grand Prix. It was held last weekend in my hometown Yokote this year. I couldn't go to it but I think all of my city worker friends worked so hard the whole weekend because it is said there were 270,000 people there, about 2.5 times as much as the city's population! My taste of home won the first prize!! Yay!!! Here is how it looks like:

As a child, I thought all the fried noodles were like that. So I was surprised when I had a regular fried noodle in Tokyo because it tasted pretty strong with no sunny-side up on top and sour pickled ginger on the side instead of sweet Fukujinzuke. Yokote fried noodles in general don't taste strong because the source is a mixture of wrocestershire source and dashi broth. And red Fukujinzuke must be on the side!

There is a tiny eatery called Fujiharu in my hometown neighborhood. My elementary school was right in front of it and all the kids would go there after school because they used to lend manga as well. It was kids' favorite place, so was mine. I loved manga at that time. But our parents didn't like it because the eatery was run by 2 handicapped women. It was early-mid '70s, people's prejudice against those people were still strong. For me, a dish of their fried noodle was a secret treat that my friends and I often shared a plate because we were too small to have money for a plate for each.

Now Fujiharu has become a popular eatery because of the wide recognition of Yokote fried noodles and of course, our parents' prejudice was already vanished. They were very busy when I went there with my mom to get 2 plates to go in August. We had to give up because we didn't want to wait for an hour or so just to get it for lunch. But it's good to know they are still there making the same food I loved as a child. I will definitely try it again next time I visit my mom.

For those who in Tokyo, living or staying or whatever, you can taste it when you see this car.

This is a fried noodles stand car called SAKAE-YA. A guy from my hometown neighborhood runs it. Unfortunately I haven't stumbled across it yet but I'm sure the taste is super great! He is one of Fujiharu kids, you know. If you happen to find it, don't hesitate! Just get there and shout out loud, "Gimme Yokote Yakisoba!!"

Oh no, I want to eat it so bad now. Well, there is a secret weapon to cook it. Ta-dah~~~

This source is pretty close to what we eat in Yokote. But the hard part is to get the certain kind of noodle... I'm going to take a walk to a supermarket a bit far from my place to get it later because I have to sit on my chair for hours today and tomorrow to work on a very long text. It's going to be a nice change :D