Sōmen — Japan's Finest Summer Noodle (素麺)

Ingredients

• 400 g Sōmen, artisan aged Miwa (三輪素麺) or Ibo-no-Ito preferred; less than 1.3 mm diameter
• 2 litres Water, for boiling; must be at a rapid boil before noodles enter
• large quantity Ice, enough to make the post-boil bath very cold
• For the tsuyu
• 200 ml Dashi, cold
• 200 ml Soy sauce, cold
• 200 ml Mirin, cold
• Garnishes — served separately
• 1 tsp Ginger, freshly grated
• 1 tsp Wasabi
• 2 Myoga (Japanese ginger bud), thinly sliced
• 4 sheets Nori, cut into fine strips
• 6 leaves Shiso, finely julienned
• 2 stalks Negi (Japanese long onion), finely chopped

Method

1. 1
   Combine dashi, soy sauce, and mirin in the ratio 1:1:1. Stir to combine. Refrigerate until completely cold. The tsuyu is concentrated; it will be diluted at the table with cold water at a ratio of 2 parts water to 1 part tsuyu. The tsuyu is ready when it is fully chilled and the mirin's sweetness is no longer sharp on the palate.
2. 2
   Prepare the ice bath: fill a wide, shallow bowl or basin with ice and cold water. It must be very cold — not merely cool. Set garnishes in separate small dishes beside the table.
3. 3
   Bring a large volume of water to a rapid, rolling boil. Lower the sōmen in and cook for 1.5 to 2 minutes. This is where the dish lives or dies: sōmen's fine diameter — under 1.3 mm — means the window between underdone (starchy, resistant) and overdone (soft, gummy) is no more than 30 seconds. Taste frequently from 90 seconds onward. The noodle is done when it is just tender with a faint, springy resistance at the centre.
4. 4
   Drain immediately. Plunge the noodles into the ice bath at once to halt all cooking and firm the texture. Agitate with chopsticks so the cold reaches every strand. The noodles are ready when they feel firm and cool to the touch throughout.
5. 5
   Arrange the noodles in a wide, shallow glass bowl with fresh ice and cold water so the pale strands float visibly in clear water. Serve within 30 minutes. The noodles should appear translucent-white, distinct, and unclumped.
6. 6
   Pour the cold tsuyu into individual cups alongside a small jug of cold water. Each diner dilutes their tsuyu 2:1 and adds garnishes — grated ginger, negi, wasabi, myoga, nori, shiso — to taste. Retrieve noodles from the bowl with chopsticks, dip briefly into the tsuyu, and eat. The broth should smell of clean dashi and soy, not raw alcohol from unmellowed mirin.