Noodles Trivia | 40 facts about the Asian food

Noodles is a popular kind of past that originates from Asia, but people all over the world really love to eat.

Let’s find out more about noodles!

1. Noodles are a type of food made from unleavened dough.
2. It is rolled flat and cut, stretched or extruded, into long strips or strings.
3. Noodles can be refrigerated for short-term storage or dried and stored for future use.
4. Noodles are usually cooked in boiling water.
5. Sometimes they are cooked with cooking oil or salt added.
6. They are also often pan-fried or deep-fried.
7. Noodle dishes can include a sauce or noodles can be put into soup.
8. The material composition and geocultural origin is specific to each type of a wide variety of noodles.
9. Noodles are a staple food in many cultures.
10. For instance Chinese noodles, Japanese noodles, Korean noodles, Filipino noodles, Vietnamese noodles.
11. The word was derived in the 18th century from the German word Nudel.
12. The origin of thin, string-like pieces of dough that are often dried and then cooked is hard to pinpoint.
13. What is called noodles is sometimes only considered to be the modern East Asian variety and not the general type and correspondingly its origin is usually listed as Chinese, but when it includes pasta it becomes more controversial.
14. The earliest written record of noodles in China is found in a book dated to the Eastern Han period (25–220 CE).
15. It became a staple food for the people of the Han dynasty.
16. 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 Talmu 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.
17. In 2005 a team of Chinese archaeologists reported finding an earthenware bowl that contained remains of 4000-year-old noodles at the Lajia archaeological site.
18. The findings were said to resemble Lamian, a type of Chinese noodle.
19. Analyzing the husk phytoliths and starch grains present in the sediment associated with the noodles, they were identified as millet belonging to Panicum miliaceum and Setaria italica.
20. The findings being noodles was disputed because millet, being gluten-free, isn’t suitable for making noodles as we know them.
21. Wheat wasn’t widely cultivated until the Tang dynasty (618–907 CE).
22. American food writer and author of On the Noodle Road Jen Lin-Liu notes that documentation of what can be clearly described noodles came about much later on the western side of the world than in China, although she stresses that she doesn’t exclude the possibility of two independent inventions.
23. The earliest documentation describes small bits of bread dough thrown into a wok of boiling water, eaten even today as mian pian.
24. Noodles used to be a luxury item
25. Japan invented instant ramen noodles
26. Also the first kind of noodles to be consumed in space.
27. Noodles make one of the cheapest meals to eat
28. It would only cost you $140 per year if you ate ramen for every meal.
29. It’s polite to slurp your noodles in Japan
30. What’s considered poor etiquette in Western culture to eat or chew loudly, it’s considered an appreciation for your meal.
31. Noodles are considered good for health as they are an excellent source of energy and are high in vitamins and minerals like iron, thiamin, niacin and riboflavin.
32. Also, they contain low sodium content and low-fat content.
33. Pho is Vietnamese noodle soup, that is really popular.
34. Pho is pronounced ‘fuh’ not ‘foh’
35. Contrary to its spelling, the Vietnamese beef noodle soup is pronounced ‘fuh’ as the dish was influenced by French colonies, and the name was derived from the French dish “pot-au-feu”.
36. There is a museum in Japan dedicated to Cup Noodles
37. In Yokohama, Japan, The Yokohama Cup Noodles Museum is an interactive museum dedicated to the world’s first instant ramen telling its origin story from humble beginnings to the mark of a global dietary movement.
38. April 4th is National Ramen Day
39. There are many holidays in the year dedicated to enjoying noodles like Eat Your Noodles Day on March 11th, National Ramen Day on April 4th, and National Noodle Day on October 6th.
40. By federal law, a noodle must contain 5.5 percent egg solids to be called a noodle