Hegi Soba: One of the Famous Japanese Soba Noodles

Soba is one of the most popular Japanese foods, and is enjoyed by many people throughout Japan.

Hegisoba, which originated in the Uonuma region, Niigata prefecture, is a derivative of the snow culture and is known for its high quality soba that has been presented to the Imperial family.

Let's take a look at what hegisoba is, along with some basic knowledge about soba.

Basics : What is Soba?

Soba is made from buckwheat flour, wheat flour as a binder, and water. Soba is one of the most popular Japanese foods, and can be eaten cold with men-tsuyu(a type of noodle sauce) or with warm soup.

In Japan, there are many foods called "soba," such as "yakisoba" and "chuka soba," but there are also dishes that are not noodles made from buckwheat flour.

There is also a food culture in Japan called "Toshikoshi Soba" which is eaten on New Year's Eve.

It is believed that eating soba on New Year's Eve will bring people luck.

History of Soba

It is said that the beginning of buckwheat cultivation in Japan can be traced back to the Jomon period (17,000-15,000 years ago to about 3,000-2,400 years ago).

Buckwheat pollen has been found in archaeological sites in Kochi Prefecture dating back more than 9,000 years, suggesting that buckwheat has been cultivated since that time.

Nowadays, when people think of soba, they all think of long, thin noodles with a slight color. However, soba did not have a noodle shape until at least the 16th century. For a long time in the history of soba, it was not a noodle.

For example, "Sobagaki" and "Soba Mochi," which were made by kneading buckwheat flour in hot water to form rice cakes, continued to be "soba" in the long history of soba.

Since when did "soba" become noodles?

There are many theories as to where and when soba noodles originated, but it is said that there is no evidence of soba being eaten as noodles until at least the 16th century.

As one of the references, a collection of haibun(a prosimetric literary form) published in 1706 by Morikawa Hsuroku (1656-1715), states that the origin of Soba as noodle had already spread "to many regions" by 1706.

However, the origin of soba as noodles still remains a mystery and is still a point of contention even today.

What is Hegi-soba?

Hegisoba is soba noodles served in a square wooden container called a "hegi," which is filled with "funori soba", a buckwheat noodle unique to the Uonuma region.

The way soba is served is also unique. Soba is arranged in bite-sized pieces on the hegi in a pattern that looks like woven thread, making it easy to eat one bite at a time.

Hegi-soba is known as a local dish that originated in the uonuma region, niigata prefecture where the weaving culture has been flourishing for a long time.The Uonuma region has always had a thriving textile culture, some of which are registered as UNESCO cultural heritage sites.

You can learn more here:

High Quality Japanese Traditional Fabrics Made in Snow Country, Japan

Did you know that the textile culture was very prosperous in the deep snow area of Niigata Prefecture? In the old days, weaving was the best possible work to do when the heavy snowfall would close the area in winter. The textiles from the snow country were highly valued as goods to be offered to the shogun (general), daimyo (Japanese feudal lord), and other influential people. What kinds of textiles are existed in snow country? The "Echigo Angin" has existed for 6,000 years Current archaeological research has unearthed a cloth called Angin from the strata of the Jomon period (14,000 ...

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Hegisoba is a local dish born from the fusion of the aesthetic sense created by the textile culture of Uonuma region and the Japanese food culture of soba.

In 1948, Kojimaya Honten in Tokamachi, Niigata Prefecture, presented hegisoba to the imperial family and received their compliments, making hegi-soba more famous.

What is Hunori-Soba on Hegi?

Normally, wheat flour is mixed in as a "binder" to make soba easier to make and keep the noodle shape.

Funori soba is made by using funori (A type of seaweed) as a binder instead of using wheat flour as a binder. This gives its texture and smoothness, and also gives it a light greenish color.

Why did people start using funori?

Originally, the Uonuma region was a production area of high quality textiles, and seaweed, Funori, was essential for the production of textiles, but in the Taisho era (1912-1926), people started using Funori, which was used to add tension to the threads of textiles, as a binder of soba noodles.

Funori was used to increase the strength of the threads and to shape them when finishing, and was a familiar material in the Uonuma region where many people were involved in making textiles.

The use of funori for soba making led to the creation of a unique Japanese soba noodles.

Where you can eat Hegisoba?

Here are some restaurants in the Uonuma region where you can eat Hegisoba.

Tokamachi & Tsunan city

1. Abuzaka
2. Matsuo
3. Echigo-Uonuma Kojimaya
4. Echigo-Tokamachi Kojimaya
5. Marunishi
6. Kasugaya
7. Sagano
8. Yoshiya

Yuzawa city

1. Nakanoya
2. Shinbashi
3. Kojimaya

Minamiuonuma city

1. Tabataya
2. Nakanoya
3. Yabu
4. Nagamori
5. Miiyanoya
6. Hakkai Shrine Teuchi-soba
7. Eigen
8. Matsuyoshi
9. Todoroki-Soba

Uonuma City / Ojiya city

1. Yakushi
2. Komatsuya
3. Itaya
4. Wataya
5. Kadoya
6. Wada
7. Wataya
8. Susakaya
9. Hukumasu
10. Maruichi

Reference: 
そばのお話し
中国4000年より深い「そば」の歴史9000年
うちの郷土料理
そばへのこだわり