Noodles are a type of food made from unleavened dough which is rolled flat and cut, stretched or extruded, into long strips or strings.
They are usually cooked in boiling water, sometimes with cooking oil or salt added. They are also often pan-fried or deep-fried. Noodle dishes can include a sauce or noodles can be put into soup.
The material composition and geocultural origin is specific to each type of a wide variety of noodles.
Noodles are commonly used to add body and flavour to broth soups.
Asian noodles are made primarily from starch ingredients other than flour, although the recipes for some Asian pan-fried and stir-fried dishes allow the substitution of wheat-flour noodles for the Chinese mein.
Noodles are a staple food in many cultures. There are Chinese noodles, Japanese noodles, Korean noodles, Filipino noodles, Vietnamese noodles, and Italian pasta.
Chinese noodles vary widely according to the region of production, ingredients, shape or width, and manner of preparation. They are an important part of most regional cuisines within China, and other countries with sizable overseas Chinese populations.
Noodles are a staple of Japanese cuisine. They are often served chilled with dipping sauces, or in soups or hot dishes.
Noodle soup refers to a variety of soups with noodles and other ingredients served in a light broth. Noodle soup is a common dish across East Asia, Southeast Asia and the Himalayan states of South Asia. Various types of noodles are used, such as rice noodles, wheat noodles and egg noodles.
Ramen are thin, wheat-based noodles made from wheat flour, salt, water, and kansui, a form of alkaline water. The dough is risen before being rolled. They were imported from China during the Meiji period. How it made the jump from China to Japan is still under debate, but it’s generally accepted that in 1910 a Chinese restaurant in Yokohama started serving a dish known as lamian.
Phở or pho is a Vietnamese soup dish consisting of broth, rice noodles, herbs, and meat. Pho is a popular food in Vietnam where it is served in households, street stalls and restaurants countrywide. Pho is
considered Vietnam’s national dish.
Saimin is a noodle soup dish common in the contemporary cuisine of Hawaii. Traditionally consisting of soft wheat egg noodles served in a hot dashi garnished with diced green onions and a thin slice of kamaboko, modern versions of saimin include additional toppings such as char siu, sliced Spam, sliced egg, or shredded nori.
Fried noodles are common throughout East Asia, Southeast Asia and South Asia. Many varieties, cooking styles, and ingredients exist.
Kesme or Reshteh noodles were eaten by Turkic peoples by the 13th century. Ash reshteh (noodles in thick soup with herbs) is one of the most popular Persian dishes in some Middle Eastern countries, such as Iran.
The first concrete information on pasta products in Italy dates to the 13th or 14th centuries. Pasta has taken on a variety of shapes, often based on regional specializations.
Zacierki is a type of noodle found in Polish Jewish cuisine. It was part of the rations distributed to Jewish victims in the Łódź Ghetto by the Nazis. (Out of the “major ghettos”, Łódź was the most affected by hunger, starvation and malnutrition-related deaths.) The diary of a young Jewish girl from Łódź recounts a fight she had with her father over a spoonful of zacierki taken from the family’s meager supply of 200 grams a week.
A 4,000-year-old bowl of noodles unearthed in China is the earliest example ever found of one of the world’s most popular foods, scientists reported today. It also suggests an Asian—not Italian—origin for the staple dish. The beautifully preserved, long, thin yellow noodles were found inside an overturned sealed bowl at the Lajia archaeological site in northwestern China. The bowl was buried under ten feet (three meters) of sediment.
The earliest written record of noodles is found in a book dated to the Eastern Han period (25–220 AD). Noodles made from wheat dough became a prominent food for the people of the Han dynasty.
Food historians generally estimate that pasta’s origin is from among the Mediterranean countries: homogenous mixture of flour and water called itrion as described by 2nd century Greek physician Galen, among 3rd to 5th centuries Palestinians itrium as described by the Jerusalem Talmud and itriyya (Arabic cognate of the Greek word), string-like shapes made of semolina and dried before cooking as defined by the 9th century Aramean physician and lexicographer Isho bar Ali.
The word “noodles” was derived in the 18th century from the German word Nudel. The word Nudel itself most likely comes from Knodel or Nutel, an old German word meaning “dumpling,” or, more literally, a “turd” or “small knot.”
The longest noodle measures 3,084 m (10,119 ft 1.92 in) and was achieved by Xiangnian Food Co., Ltd. in Nanyang, Henan, China, on 28 October 2017.
The longest line of bowls of noodles consists of 3,988 bowls and was achieved by Jinshi Beef and Rice Noodles Association (China) in Jinshi, Changde, Hunan, China, on 21 December 2019.