1 00:00:00,240 --> 00:00:27,280 Speaker 1: Ridiculous history is a production of I heart radio. Welcome 2 00:00:27,280 --> 00:00:30,360 Speaker 1: back to the show, ridiculous historians. Thank you, as always, 3 00:00:30,440 --> 00:00:34,880 Speaker 1: so much for tuning in. Shout out to our returning 4 00:00:35,760 --> 00:00:42,000 Speaker 1: super producer, Mr Max Williams, recently back from some adventures 5 00:00:42,280 --> 00:00:48,000 Speaker 1: in the far west. WHO's that sneaking in the phones 6 00:00:49,240 --> 00:00:53,519 Speaker 1: black back? You just, you just make that song up? 7 00:00:53,600 --> 00:00:55,840 Speaker 1: Or is that a reference to something? It's it's my 8 00:00:55,920 --> 00:01:07,680 Speaker 1: sound cue. Is it really? Yeah, what is that right 9 00:01:07,720 --> 00:01:14,479 Speaker 1: now like? Is this something that I should have noticed 10 00:01:14,560 --> 00:01:18,919 Speaker 1: prior to to just now? Or you're you're okay? Well, Jeez, 11 00:01:19,040 --> 00:01:22,600 Speaker 1: I feel like a real hell, real heal. Um. We're 12 00:01:22,600 --> 00:01:24,679 Speaker 1: not talking about wrestling, though today. It would have been 13 00:01:24,680 --> 00:01:26,880 Speaker 1: a great segue if we were, because the heel is 14 00:01:26,920 --> 00:01:29,200 Speaker 1: like the bad guy in wrestling. It's also that part 15 00:01:29,200 --> 00:01:31,800 Speaker 1: of your foot that you're supposed to walk on. Was 16 00:01:31,959 --> 00:01:34,800 Speaker 1: Heel to toe, right, so hell first, but we're talking 17 00:01:34,840 --> 00:01:39,200 Speaker 1: about something else today. Uh, we're talking about noodles, or 18 00:01:39,240 --> 00:01:41,399 Speaker 1: is that like to refer to them cheekily? Eat nudes, 19 00:01:41,920 --> 00:01:43,720 Speaker 1: but not those kind of nudes, not the ones that 20 00:01:43,720 --> 00:01:47,000 Speaker 1: you send or don't send. Never send unsolicited for the 21 00:01:47,040 --> 00:01:49,360 Speaker 1: love of God, just don't do it. I'd like to 22 00:01:49,360 --> 00:01:54,760 Speaker 1: give a special shout out to every other fellow pseudo 23 00:01:54,880 --> 00:01:59,600 Speaker 1: prepper or prepper light in the audience today. Ridiculous his 24 00:01:59,640 --> 00:02:02,560 Speaker 1: story and shout out if you as well, have a 25 00:02:02,640 --> 00:02:07,800 Speaker 1: secret stash of instant noodles. They have taken over my pantry, 26 00:02:08,360 --> 00:02:12,880 Speaker 1: kind of like, uh, a dried version of Kad zoo 27 00:02:13,240 --> 00:02:17,200 Speaker 1: in a nifty package with a variety of ingredients. Yeah, 28 00:02:17,280 --> 00:02:23,040 Speaker 1: Japan has given the world so many cool inventions. I 29 00:02:23,160 --> 00:02:25,760 Speaker 1: first learned about this story years ago when I was 30 00:02:25,840 --> 00:02:29,640 Speaker 1: writing a neat little kids series called stuff of genius, 31 00:02:29,760 --> 00:02:34,120 Speaker 1: which is an animated show about various inventors. We've been 32 00:02:34,120 --> 00:02:38,520 Speaker 1: going through an inventor phase here on ridiculous history. Uh, 33 00:02:38,560 --> 00:02:41,600 Speaker 1: this is this is who we are. We we love inventors. 34 00:02:42,120 --> 00:02:47,200 Speaker 1: We love inventors. We are I wanted to note that 35 00:02:47,240 --> 00:02:49,440 Speaker 1: this is not a case of an inventor who died 36 00:02:49,440 --> 00:02:53,120 Speaker 1: at the hands of their own invention, but this is, yeah, 37 00:02:53,240 --> 00:02:57,280 Speaker 1: one heck of a story, uh, and it's probably one 38 00:02:57,280 --> 00:03:04,240 Speaker 1: of my favorite inventors stories, because noodles are so ubiquitous. 39 00:03:04,440 --> 00:03:06,960 Speaker 1: Right Ramen, you probably think of it here in the 40 00:03:07,000 --> 00:03:09,800 Speaker 1: US as Ramen, but there are so many brands. There's 41 00:03:09,880 --> 00:03:13,240 Speaker 1: Cup of noodle. There's all sorts of stuff, and today 42 00:03:13,440 --> 00:03:16,679 Speaker 1: we're going to explore the story of how these came 43 00:03:16,760 --> 00:03:23,320 Speaker 1: to be and why Momofuku and Oh deserves all the accolades. Uh, 44 00:03:23,360 --> 00:03:26,120 Speaker 1: you know, that's that's why there are those restaurants named 45 00:03:26,160 --> 00:03:28,880 Speaker 1: after him. He's that big of a deal. You know, 46 00:03:30,680 --> 00:03:33,079 Speaker 1: those are those are fancy, fancy restaurants. Only there's like 47 00:03:33,120 --> 00:03:34,560 Speaker 1: a bunch of them. I've only been to I went 48 00:03:34,600 --> 00:03:36,760 Speaker 1: to one that I think isn't there anymore. It's called 49 00:03:36,800 --> 00:03:39,760 Speaker 1: some bar with the momofuku noodle bar is still, I think, 50 00:03:39,760 --> 00:03:43,000 Speaker 1: a pretty, pretty hot ticket. David Chang. Yeah, and he 51 00:03:43,040 --> 00:03:46,120 Speaker 1: also has a you know, a line of products you 52 00:03:46,160 --> 00:03:50,080 Speaker 1: can get, including very fancy instant noodles and this line 53 00:03:50,080 --> 00:03:52,880 Speaker 1: of Chili Crisps, which I highly recommend. You can get 54 00:03:52,880 --> 00:03:54,760 Speaker 1: like these. There's like a like a truff Ali one 55 00:03:55,560 --> 00:03:58,200 Speaker 1: chili crunch rather, a super spicy one and a regular one, 56 00:03:58,240 --> 00:04:00,880 Speaker 1: and I got all three in their absolutly fantastic and 57 00:04:00,920 --> 00:04:03,839 Speaker 1: we are not sponsored by Momofuku, but you know, we're 58 00:04:03,960 --> 00:04:05,960 Speaker 1: certainly down. I think we both like to cook and 59 00:04:06,000 --> 00:04:08,840 Speaker 1: like a little spice. Obviously both like needles. Ben I 60 00:04:08,840 --> 00:04:11,200 Speaker 1: want to posit something. We talked about adventures who were 61 00:04:11,280 --> 00:04:13,119 Speaker 1: killed by their own inventions and mentioned that. Of course, 62 00:04:13,320 --> 00:04:16,200 Speaker 1: Mafukuando was not one of those tragic cases, but can 63 00:04:16,200 --> 00:04:18,000 Speaker 1: you imagine if he was? Wouldn't that be the stuff 64 00:04:18,000 --> 00:04:20,919 Speaker 1: of comic books? And he accidentally like deep fried himself 65 00:04:20,920 --> 00:04:22,840 Speaker 1: into a cube of noodles and an ended out in 66 00:04:22,880 --> 00:04:26,560 Speaker 1: the package going out with the rest of the products. Stuff. 67 00:04:26,880 --> 00:04:30,160 Speaker 1: There's an e c Uh there there are several stories 68 00:04:30,200 --> 00:04:34,680 Speaker 1: from EC comics that have things very close to what 69 00:04:34,720 --> 00:04:39,000 Speaker 1: you're describing sort of way. They're already grizzly comic book 70 00:04:39,120 --> 00:04:41,960 Speaker 1: versions of that reality. And of course I'm talked about 71 00:04:41,960 --> 00:04:44,880 Speaker 1: stuff like tales from the crypt vault of terror and 72 00:04:44,960 --> 00:04:48,720 Speaker 1: so on. But UH, if we're talking ramen and nut 73 00:04:48,800 --> 00:04:54,719 Speaker 1: body horror are our story actually traces all the way 74 00:04:54,760 --> 00:05:00,080 Speaker 1: back to four hundred C e. This is when the 75 00:05:00,120 --> 00:05:06,040 Speaker 1: first Chinese immigrants that we know about arrived in Japan 76 00:05:06,800 --> 00:05:12,040 Speaker 1: and over the centuries, as you know, uh, mainland China 77 00:05:12,240 --> 00:05:16,240 Speaker 1: and Japan didn't always get along, to put it very, 78 00:05:17,160 --> 00:05:20,120 Speaker 1: very lightly and very high level, but there was a 79 00:05:20,120 --> 00:05:25,440 Speaker 1: lot of cultural exchange going back and forth between these 80 00:05:25,440 --> 00:05:31,360 Speaker 1: two communities because of their proximity and Chinese immigrants introduced 81 00:05:31,520 --> 00:05:36,920 Speaker 1: or popularized many things in Japanese culture, either directly or indirectly. 82 00:05:36,960 --> 00:05:41,120 Speaker 1: We're talking about stuff like the art of papermaking, Buddhism and, 83 00:05:41,240 --> 00:05:47,039 Speaker 1: of course, new kinds of food, especially the weak noodle. 84 00:05:47,440 --> 00:05:49,160 Speaker 1: A lot of this is coming from a wonderful little 85 00:05:49,200 --> 00:05:53,400 Speaker 1: mental floss article by Michelle Deb Zac called a brief 86 00:05:53,520 --> 00:05:58,720 Speaker 1: history of Ramen. You don't know, if people I saw 87 00:05:58,839 --> 00:06:02,000 Speaker 1: the very first Chinese noodles that were served in Japan 88 00:06:02,080 --> 00:06:07,800 Speaker 1: back then, they wouldn't think of them as Modern Day ramen. Instead, 89 00:06:08,000 --> 00:06:13,680 Speaker 1: these things were called Sina Soba. Yeah, and Sina is Um, 90 00:06:13,800 --> 00:06:19,839 Speaker 1: a sort of antiquated Japanese word, Um referring to China 91 00:06:20,040 --> 00:06:22,400 Speaker 1: and UH, which kind of makes sense, I guess. Um 92 00:06:22,440 --> 00:06:26,120 Speaker 1: Phonetically speaking, Sina China, and Soba as a term, as 93 00:06:26,160 --> 00:06:28,600 Speaker 1: you should describe any noodle, and we know that today, 94 00:06:28,800 --> 00:06:31,479 Speaker 1: although Soba, it kind of does tend to refer to 95 00:06:31,520 --> 00:06:35,080 Speaker 1: a specific thickness of noodle. But I get a little 96 00:06:35,160 --> 00:06:37,720 Speaker 1: kind of that confused but overwhelmed when it comes to 97 00:06:37,800 --> 00:06:40,840 Speaker 1: all the different types of noodle. And I think you 98 00:06:40,880 --> 00:06:44,120 Speaker 1: know Soba noodles can come in various thickness. They really 99 00:06:44,120 --> 00:06:46,200 Speaker 1: are just kind of like like referred to as hand 100 00:06:46,240 --> 00:06:49,280 Speaker 1: pulled type noodles. There's a really great restaurant there was, 101 00:06:49,279 --> 00:06:51,760 Speaker 1: I don't know if it's around anymore in Atlanta, called SOBA, 102 00:06:51,839 --> 00:06:53,919 Speaker 1: but yeah, it was a term that at the time, 103 00:06:54,160 --> 00:06:58,680 Speaker 1: um in ancient Japan, was a staple food and was 104 00:06:58,920 --> 00:07:01,039 Speaker 1: used to refer to all those different types of doodles, 105 00:07:01,040 --> 00:07:06,320 Speaker 1: specifically kind made with buck wheat. Yeah, yeah, and look, 106 00:07:06,360 --> 00:07:10,680 Speaker 1: I'm a yes all noodles kind of guy. I have 107 00:07:10,920 --> 00:07:15,320 Speaker 1: always I've always tried to find the ramen shop in town. 108 00:07:15,880 --> 00:07:18,560 Speaker 1: It's up there with Casadas for me and that's, you know, 109 00:07:18,680 --> 00:07:22,120 Speaker 1: that's real personal statement there and burying my soul. So 110 00:07:22,200 --> 00:07:25,240 Speaker 1: there are when we asked about how this modern stuff 111 00:07:25,640 --> 00:07:30,720 Speaker 1: comes about, the one that is widely accepted now again, 112 00:07:30,760 --> 00:07:34,280 Speaker 1: this is not dried noodles yet, just modern ramen. The 113 00:07:34,280 --> 00:07:38,800 Speaker 1: one that's widely accepted starts in the early twentieth century 114 00:07:39,960 --> 00:07:43,880 Speaker 1: in Tokyo at a noodle shop called Rye Rye Kent. 115 00:07:50,960 --> 00:07:55,040 Speaker 1: This was a Chinese outfit. The cooks were Chinese and 116 00:07:55,400 --> 00:08:00,880 Speaker 1: they popularized Ramen by serving that here. Will describe it. 117 00:08:01,120 --> 00:08:04,840 Speaker 1: I'm gonna describe it like I'm doing a weird commercial 118 00:08:05,000 --> 00:08:12,160 Speaker 1: Max fresh and pooled wheat noodles in a salty drop 119 00:08:13,000 --> 00:08:18,840 Speaker 1: top with roasted poor fish cake, and no buy one, 120 00:08:18,880 --> 00:08:21,480 Speaker 1: get one free. No, they didn't do that, but these 121 00:08:21,600 --> 00:08:25,600 Speaker 1: ingredients are still considered classic toppings today. You'll find almost 122 00:08:25,640 --> 00:08:30,080 Speaker 1: any Roman place you visit. This coincides with Japan becoming 123 00:08:30,120 --> 00:08:36,040 Speaker 1: increasingly industrialized, which means now there's a growing urban workforce 124 00:08:36,440 --> 00:08:40,400 Speaker 1: and they need something that is quick to eat, that 125 00:08:40,600 --> 00:08:44,320 Speaker 1: is inexpensive and that is filling right and it it's 126 00:08:44,360 --> 00:08:47,920 Speaker 1: just bonus points if it's also really tasty. So Raman 127 00:08:48,040 --> 00:08:52,200 Speaker 1: checks all the boxes. And noodles, these kinds of handful 128 00:08:52,240 --> 00:08:54,640 Speaker 1: dudles that we're talking about, are still versatile. You can have, 129 00:08:54,960 --> 00:08:58,000 Speaker 1: you know, a kind of dryer stir fry with some 130 00:08:58,080 --> 00:08:59,880 Speaker 1: meat like you describe. You can have something that's in 131 00:08:59,880 --> 00:09:02,760 Speaker 1: a broth, which I guess typically would be more of 132 00:09:02,760 --> 00:09:04,440 Speaker 1: what you would refer to as a ramen or a 133 00:09:04,480 --> 00:09:08,000 Speaker 1: noodle soup. Um, but they're just great. You can have 134 00:09:08,040 --> 00:09:10,840 Speaker 1: a chilled you ever had chilled noodles? They're they're very 135 00:09:10,880 --> 00:09:14,760 Speaker 1: big in Korea, I believe. Yeah, I am also eat 136 00:09:14,800 --> 00:09:17,880 Speaker 1: the chilled noodles. It makes a lot of sense when 137 00:09:17,880 --> 00:09:20,520 Speaker 1: you're in an area where there's a hot, humid summer. 138 00:09:21,040 --> 00:09:25,240 Speaker 1: Um I'm usually gonna go hot noodles before but in 139 00:09:25,320 --> 00:09:30,600 Speaker 1: my in my Doomsday Pantry, I have right now like 140 00:09:30,960 --> 00:09:35,000 Speaker 1: uh ten pack of the little cold noodle kits, and 141 00:09:35,040 --> 00:09:36,840 Speaker 1: I know the kids are not the same as making 142 00:09:36,840 --> 00:09:40,760 Speaker 1: it from scratch, but if you're ever in a Korean 143 00:09:40,960 --> 00:09:44,760 Speaker 1: or Japanese restaurant that has cold noodles on the menu, 144 00:09:45,040 --> 00:09:48,640 Speaker 1: give them a try and you're gonna be surprised, promise. 145 00:09:49,800 --> 00:09:56,120 Speaker 1: World War Two brings a new ascendency to ramen. Amid 146 00:09:56,160 --> 00:10:02,600 Speaker 1: all the horrors and atrocities of this time period, there 147 00:10:02,600 --> 00:10:05,760 Speaker 1: were a lot of food shortages. A lot of people 148 00:10:06,000 --> 00:10:09,439 Speaker 1: had food insecurity, meaning they weren't sure where their next 149 00:10:09,480 --> 00:10:14,480 Speaker 1: meal would be coming from. Street food vendors were outlawed 150 00:10:14,520 --> 00:10:19,320 Speaker 1: by the allied occupation and this was a move to 151 00:10:19,400 --> 00:10:23,520 Speaker 1: conserve rations, and this was actually continuation of a move 152 00:10:23,600 --> 00:10:29,320 Speaker 1: that had started during the war. So people overwhelmingly just 153 00:10:29,880 --> 00:10:34,359 Speaker 1: bought ramen from food stalls. Right until foodstalls are outlawed, 154 00:10:34,800 --> 00:10:37,080 Speaker 1: the only two ways left to get it are to 155 00:10:37,280 --> 00:10:39,800 Speaker 1: make it at home or to find it on the 156 00:10:39,840 --> 00:10:43,719 Speaker 1: black market. And this is the thing people might not know. Yeah, 157 00:10:43,800 --> 00:10:47,040 Speaker 1: there was a black market of illegal food vendors. They 158 00:10:47,040 --> 00:10:50,080 Speaker 1: were pretty common in Japan. Well, and remember too, I 159 00:10:50,080 --> 00:10:53,480 Speaker 1: mean we're we're at a time where, yeah, there was 160 00:10:54,160 --> 00:10:57,120 Speaker 1: food instability, but also a lot of the stuff wasn't 161 00:10:57,200 --> 00:11:01,040 Speaker 1: shelf stable. So, you know, to your point about Doomsday 162 00:11:01,080 --> 00:11:04,000 Speaker 1: prepping or even just meal prepping or just trying to, 163 00:11:04,320 --> 00:11:07,640 Speaker 1: you know, store up for the winter, it's very difficult 164 00:11:07,679 --> 00:11:09,520 Speaker 1: to do because, as we know, if you you hand 165 00:11:09,559 --> 00:11:12,200 Speaker 1: pull these noodles, you have to have fresh ingredients, you 166 00:11:12,200 --> 00:11:13,960 Speaker 1: have to have the know how and you have to 167 00:11:13,960 --> 00:11:16,400 Speaker 1: have the facility to do it in and you kind 168 00:11:16,400 --> 00:11:19,160 Speaker 1: of got to eat them right away, unless you drive 169 00:11:19,200 --> 00:11:21,600 Speaker 1: them out, which again wasn't really it wasn't really something 170 00:11:21,760 --> 00:11:24,920 Speaker 1: quite cracked yet. Yeah, yeah, it's uh, I call it 171 00:11:25,040 --> 00:11:28,120 Speaker 1: it's I call it French fry rules. Right. French fries 172 00:11:28,160 --> 00:11:31,439 Speaker 1: are not great unless they're fresh, uh, and they can 173 00:11:31,480 --> 00:11:34,280 Speaker 1: be tricky to reheat them, wealth though it is possible 174 00:11:35,240 --> 00:11:38,920 Speaker 1: if you eat some rabid right, just like fun, and 175 00:11:38,920 --> 00:11:41,720 Speaker 1: then you put it in the fridge and take it 176 00:11:41,720 --> 00:11:45,000 Speaker 1: out later and attempt to reheat it with all the 177 00:11:45,160 --> 00:11:48,840 Speaker 1: ingredients mixed together, it's just not gonna it's gonna hit different. 178 00:11:48,880 --> 00:11:51,600 Speaker 1: It's not going to be the same, and this is 179 00:11:52,080 --> 00:11:55,760 Speaker 1: something people are, of course aware of. Uh. In even 180 00:11:55,800 --> 00:12:00,280 Speaker 1: the dire times of World War Two, also, these gold 181 00:12:00,280 --> 00:12:04,760 Speaker 1: food vendors played a very important part in society because 182 00:12:04,840 --> 00:12:09,440 Speaker 1: government rations wouldn't come on time. They could be weeks late. 183 00:12:10,040 --> 00:12:15,600 Speaker 1: There was also decreased agricultural production, as during any conflict. Right, 184 00:12:15,679 --> 00:12:18,880 Speaker 1: see what's happening in Ukraine right now. Uh. And there 185 00:12:19,000 --> 00:12:23,480 Speaker 1: might be simple human mismanagement of resources. I did not 186 00:12:23,679 --> 00:12:30,520 Speaker 1: know this, uh, until doing some earlier research, but thousands 187 00:12:30,559 --> 00:12:34,760 Speaker 1: and thousands of street food vendors were arrested for selling 188 00:12:34,920 --> 00:12:42,560 Speaker 1: ramen after the war, and they were working for the Akuza. Yeah, 189 00:12:42,559 --> 00:12:44,600 Speaker 1: that really does add a whole other layer to it, 190 00:12:44,640 --> 00:12:47,520 Speaker 1: doesn't that, when you think about it, Um Yakuza being, 191 00:12:47,559 --> 00:12:52,920 Speaker 1: of course, the infamous Um Organization in Japan responsible for 192 00:12:53,480 --> 00:12:57,960 Speaker 1: organized crime, or as this is. This is a true story, folks, 193 00:12:57,960 --> 00:13:00,880 Speaker 1: about going to get two into the details, but one 194 00:13:00,920 --> 00:13:04,040 Speaker 1: time I was in Japan and accidentally hung out with 195 00:13:04,120 --> 00:13:07,120 Speaker 1: the owner of a Karaoke bar, or a bar that 196 00:13:07,200 --> 00:13:12,280 Speaker 1: had karaoke, uh, and we hung out until dawn, like 197 00:13:12,559 --> 00:13:15,880 Speaker 1: until seven am something. When he wanted to go to 198 00:13:15,920 --> 00:13:20,600 Speaker 1: another place. He owned and uh, I'm pretty sure that 199 00:13:20,640 --> 00:13:23,480 Speaker 1: he was. He was Yuh Kusa. He said he worked 200 00:13:23,520 --> 00:13:27,760 Speaker 1: in construction and sanitation and had a few interest in 201 00:13:27,800 --> 00:13:32,600 Speaker 1: real estate. Nicest Guy. But the the Kuza is don't 202 00:13:32,679 --> 00:13:34,400 Speaker 1: think of it the same way you would think of 203 00:13:34,480 --> 00:13:39,000 Speaker 1: like the stereotypical mob. They're also really active in UM 204 00:13:40,400 --> 00:13:45,880 Speaker 1: in helping locals after disasters historically. So it makes sense that, 205 00:13:45,960 --> 00:13:47,760 Speaker 1: and you know, I'm not saying they're good guys, I'm 206 00:13:47,760 --> 00:13:50,760 Speaker 1: just saying it makes sense that they would play a 207 00:13:50,960 --> 00:13:55,120 Speaker 1: role in these black markets because they're seen as helping 208 00:13:55,160 --> 00:13:58,680 Speaker 1: the locals, but they're making no mistake, they're also making 209 00:13:58,800 --> 00:14:03,920 Speaker 1: money off of this endeavor. Right. It's not entirely charity, uh, 210 00:14:04,000 --> 00:14:09,240 Speaker 1: and that's why it's organized crime and not a nonprofit organization. This, 211 00:14:09,240 --> 00:14:12,040 Speaker 1: this is maybe where we introduce the man of the hour. No, 212 00:14:12,760 --> 00:14:17,040 Speaker 1: Mr Momo Fuku. And Oh, what do we know about him? Yeah, 213 00:14:17,080 --> 00:14:19,800 Speaker 1: we do know a bit. Uh. He was born in Taiwan, 214 00:14:20,080 --> 00:14:23,640 Speaker 1: which has always been kind of a tumultuous region in 215 00:14:23,720 --> 00:14:27,040 Speaker 1: terms of geopolitics and in terms of governance. At the 216 00:14:27,120 --> 00:14:30,960 Speaker 1: time it was occupied by Japan, and then he moved 217 00:14:31,280 --> 00:14:37,320 Speaker 1: in nineteen thirty three to Osaka. Um. Obviously Japan was very, 218 00:14:37,440 --> 00:14:41,440 Speaker 1: very chaotic and torn apart by war. He was seeing 219 00:14:41,480 --> 00:14:43,040 Speaker 1: some of the kinds of things you were describing, ben 220 00:14:43,040 --> 00:14:47,680 Speaker 1: in terms of people buying noodles from stalls in in 221 00:14:47,840 --> 00:14:51,160 Speaker 1: these literal black markets. You know, these were markets where 222 00:14:51,160 --> 00:14:55,440 Speaker 1: people were illegally selling things without the you know, permission, 223 00:14:55,480 --> 00:14:58,040 Speaker 1: I guess, with the government. Um. The noodles the time 224 00:14:58,080 --> 00:15:01,400 Speaker 1: were made from wheat flour. The was being donated by 225 00:15:01,560 --> 00:15:05,200 Speaker 1: the US in order to keep civilians from starving. But 226 00:15:05,400 --> 00:15:07,800 Speaker 1: instead of making bread, which is what you know, the 227 00:15:07,880 --> 00:15:10,000 Speaker 1: U S would have, I guess, intended this to be 228 00:15:10,120 --> 00:15:14,280 Speaker 1: used for uh, the Japanese were using it to make noodles. 229 00:15:14,280 --> 00:15:17,000 Speaker 1: Bread wasn't really, it isn't really much of a of 230 00:15:17,000 --> 00:15:20,840 Speaker 1: a common thing. Yeah, it's it's not. It's not as common. 231 00:15:21,440 --> 00:15:24,720 Speaker 1: You'll you'll see it around, you know, in Sandos, in 232 00:15:24,960 --> 00:15:29,360 Speaker 1: Uh convenience stores or convenience stores. But but yeah, it 233 00:15:29,440 --> 00:15:34,120 Speaker 1: makes sense. You would take maybe this less common ingredients 234 00:15:34,160 --> 00:15:36,760 Speaker 1: and you would make something that felt more common to 235 00:15:36,880 --> 00:15:40,400 Speaker 1: your experience. We have to really paint the scene with 236 00:15:40,480 --> 00:15:44,080 Speaker 1: what and I saw here and again that stuff of 237 00:15:44,120 --> 00:15:47,400 Speaker 1: genius piece I mentioned. It was tough because that's an 238 00:15:47,440 --> 00:15:50,960 Speaker 1: animated short it's spent largely for children, so we had 239 00:15:51,000 --> 00:15:56,440 Speaker 1: to skip over some of the really terrible things that 240 00:15:56,520 --> 00:16:00,560 Speaker 1: and I was experiencing. He's walking through Osaka. Like you said, 241 00:16:01,480 --> 00:16:04,720 Speaker 1: it's the day after the Japanese surrender to the allied 242 00:16:04,760 --> 00:16:11,920 Speaker 1: forces and Osaka did escape the horrors of atomic bombs, 243 00:16:11,920 --> 00:16:15,560 Speaker 1: but that didn't mean that it escaped everything. It had 244 00:16:15,560 --> 00:16:19,440 Speaker 1: been bombed to. Heck him back, uh, you know, office buildings, 245 00:16:19,520 --> 00:16:25,280 Speaker 1: factories are destroyed and Ando is thinking what am I 246 00:16:25,320 --> 00:16:28,040 Speaker 1: gonna do? I have to find some kind of job, 247 00:16:28,080 --> 00:16:32,960 Speaker 1: and that's where he comes across what what you depicted earlier. 248 00:16:32,480 --> 00:16:36,680 Speaker 1: And there's a group of people who are in some rubble, 249 00:16:36,800 --> 00:16:40,280 Speaker 1: standing by some rubble behind a train station and they're 250 00:16:40,360 --> 00:16:44,600 Speaker 1: lined up outside this guy's improvised Ram install and he 251 00:16:44,640 --> 00:16:48,600 Speaker 1: says what is going on? People are willing to go 252 00:16:48,800 --> 00:16:54,640 Speaker 1: through this much pain and inconvenience and suffering for a 253 00:16:54,760 --> 00:16:58,320 Speaker 1: simple bowl of ramen? And then he said I get 254 00:16:58,360 --> 00:17:03,480 Speaker 1: it now. Noodle Soup is comfort food and people are 255 00:17:03,560 --> 00:17:09,600 Speaker 1: turning to Ramen for comfort. And he thinks what's worse 256 00:17:09,720 --> 00:17:13,800 Speaker 1: is that hunger is the biggest issue today. He even 257 00:17:13,840 --> 00:17:16,800 Speaker 1: had a quote where he later said, peace will come 258 00:17:16,840 --> 00:17:20,200 Speaker 1: to the world when all its people have enough to eat. 259 00:17:20,320 --> 00:17:22,919 Speaker 1: And so his new mission becomes, and he's not a 260 00:17:22,920 --> 00:17:25,199 Speaker 1: cook at this point, by the way, his new mission 261 00:17:25,240 --> 00:17:29,080 Speaker 1: becomes figuring out how Japan can feed its entire post 262 00:17:29,119 --> 00:17:33,320 Speaker 1: war population. Yeah, and and he's he's he's thinking about 263 00:17:33,320 --> 00:17:36,639 Speaker 1: this less like a cook and more like an innovator, 264 00:17:36,960 --> 00:17:38,959 Speaker 1: or he's looking at it as a problem to solve. 265 00:17:39,000 --> 00:17:42,040 Speaker 1: He knows that the Ramen, the noodle soup, is a 266 00:17:42,119 --> 00:17:46,240 Speaker 1: comfort and is nourishing, uh, and also again, that it 267 00:17:46,320 --> 00:17:48,000 Speaker 1: is a kind of a taste of home. It is 268 00:17:48,000 --> 00:17:50,920 Speaker 1: something that makes people feel a little bit of warmth and, 269 00:17:51,680 --> 00:17:54,879 Speaker 1: you know, Um, security in the face of all of 270 00:17:54,880 --> 00:17:58,159 Speaker 1: this hor horrific adversity. Um. So he comes up with 271 00:17:58,240 --> 00:18:00,919 Speaker 1: kind of a list of things that that need to 272 00:18:00,960 --> 00:18:05,240 Speaker 1: be accomplished by his whatever, I guess, invention he's trying 273 00:18:05,280 --> 00:18:06,960 Speaker 1: to come up with sort of like a next level 274 00:18:07,240 --> 00:18:10,359 Speaker 1: shelf stable version of Robin. So, first and foremost, it 275 00:18:10,400 --> 00:18:14,240 Speaker 1: has to taste good, uh, and then secondly, in importance, 276 00:18:14,400 --> 00:18:18,359 Speaker 1: probably first honestly, is that it has to be non perishable, 277 00:18:19,000 --> 00:18:21,280 Speaker 1: has to be be able to be prepared quickly. He 278 00:18:21,359 --> 00:18:25,200 Speaker 1: specifically dialed in less than three minutes, presumably because there's 279 00:18:25,200 --> 00:18:27,760 Speaker 1: no time to waste. Right. I mean I guess it 280 00:18:27,760 --> 00:18:30,000 Speaker 1: really was a calculation of you know, maybe you don't 281 00:18:30,040 --> 00:18:32,359 Speaker 1: have more than three minutes because you might be in 282 00:18:32,400 --> 00:18:36,640 Speaker 1: a in a dangerous situation. Uh. Needs to be affordable and, 283 00:18:36,720 --> 00:18:41,920 Speaker 1: of course, needs to be safe to eat and relatively healthy. 284 00:18:42,440 --> 00:18:47,320 Speaker 1: We'll get that part of it a little later, right, right, right. Uh. Well, 285 00:18:47,760 --> 00:18:50,640 Speaker 1: what is safe and healthy? Right? At this point he's 286 00:18:50,680 --> 00:18:54,919 Speaker 1: probably thinking something that won't give you food poisoning, something 287 00:18:54,960 --> 00:18:59,240 Speaker 1: that won't make you sick, uh, and will deliver calories. 288 00:18:59,600 --> 00:19:02,840 Speaker 1: You know, two people who need energy. And he says, look, 289 00:19:02,880 --> 00:19:04,720 Speaker 1: I also want people to be able to eat these 290 00:19:04,720 --> 00:19:06,760 Speaker 1: at home so they don't have to go out in 291 00:19:07,000 --> 00:19:11,439 Speaker 1: possibly dangerous areas, right, and wait like those poor folks 292 00:19:11,480 --> 00:19:15,000 Speaker 1: by the rubble of the train station. So he builds 293 00:19:15,160 --> 00:19:20,480 Speaker 1: a laboratory shed in his backyard and you can see 294 00:19:20,720 --> 00:19:24,359 Speaker 1: a you can see reproduction of this at the Cup 295 00:19:24,440 --> 00:19:29,600 Speaker 1: Noodles Museum in Japan. It's cool. I love Japanese Museum. So, 296 00:19:30,280 --> 00:19:33,920 Speaker 1: of course, like any other inventor, he doesn't have U 297 00:19:35,119 --> 00:19:38,080 Speaker 1: he doesn't have immediate success. Right. He has the lightbulb 298 00:19:38,160 --> 00:19:40,760 Speaker 1: moment in his head. But then you get to the 299 00:19:40,760 --> 00:19:44,639 Speaker 1: the sweaty part, the practical application of the dream. Uh. 300 00:19:44,680 --> 00:19:50,439 Speaker 1: It is not until when he he hits on the 301 00:19:50,480 --> 00:19:53,560 Speaker 1: thing that will really change the game for for his 302 00:19:53,640 --> 00:19:58,000 Speaker 1: invention and therefore for the world. He's looking at his wife, Missoko, 303 00:19:58,320 --> 00:20:01,440 Speaker 1: and she is frying to her up and he goes, Huh, 304 00:20:01,480 --> 00:20:05,919 Speaker 1: the oil takes the moisture out of what she's cooking. 305 00:20:06,200 --> 00:20:12,120 Speaker 1: And then he says, hang on, fried dried noodles can 306 00:20:12,160 --> 00:20:16,640 Speaker 1: be remoisturized if you boil them in water. And he's 307 00:20:16,640 --> 00:20:19,080 Speaker 1: sort of yes, and in himself, like any like any 308 00:20:19,119 --> 00:20:22,879 Speaker 1: good improvisation game, he's going yes, and seasoning powder or 309 00:20:22,960 --> 00:20:26,840 Speaker 1: dehydrated toppings. Why not dehydrate everything? We could add those, 310 00:20:27,080 --> 00:20:31,240 Speaker 1: we can make so many flavors. And he says, I'M 311 00:20:31,240 --> 00:20:35,919 Speaker 1: gonna go with chicken as as my first flavor in 312 00:20:36,000 --> 00:20:41,680 Speaker 1: this new age of noodle. Why? White Chicken? That seems yeah, 313 00:20:41,720 --> 00:20:45,639 Speaker 1: apparently he thought it was kind of had this American vibe, 314 00:20:46,720 --> 00:20:50,440 Speaker 1: which is an interesting choice for for sure. I mean, 315 00:20:50,440 --> 00:20:53,280 Speaker 1: not only was he concerned with the American market, I 316 00:20:53,320 --> 00:20:57,080 Speaker 1: think he was just concerned with, uh, food restrictions from 317 00:20:57,240 --> 00:21:00,560 Speaker 1: various religions Um, he he. He had a feeling that 318 00:21:00,640 --> 00:21:03,240 Speaker 1: this would not only, you know, hit big in Japan 319 00:21:03,440 --> 00:21:05,879 Speaker 1: and be a very functional thing, but across the world, 320 00:21:06,119 --> 00:21:08,439 Speaker 1: and so he wanted to make sure there were no, 321 00:21:08,680 --> 00:21:11,760 Speaker 1: you know, religious food or dietary restrictions they would prevent 322 00:21:11,800 --> 00:21:15,160 Speaker 1: people from eating these. Um, you know, Hindus can't eat 323 00:21:15,160 --> 00:21:17,960 Speaker 1: beef and Muslims can't eat pork. But to his knowledge, 324 00:21:17,960 --> 00:21:19,879 Speaker 1: and I believe to my knowledge as well, there aren't 325 00:21:20,040 --> 00:21:30,640 Speaker 1: any religions that prohibit the consumption of chicken. And even 326 00:21:30,640 --> 00:21:33,840 Speaker 1: though you know there's I don't think it chicken has 327 00:21:33,840 --> 00:21:35,879 Speaker 1: ever even been waved over this thing. It's more of 328 00:21:35,920 --> 00:21:38,480 Speaker 1: just the perception of it. You know, this is a 329 00:21:38,520 --> 00:21:42,520 Speaker 1: powdered uh seasoning blend that I maybe can contained in 330 00:21:42,520 --> 00:21:46,680 Speaker 1: the original days some some sort of chicken assaults. But yeah, 331 00:21:46,760 --> 00:21:51,360 Speaker 1: it's chicken flavor the way. Lookuas you know, lemon flavored. Uh. Look, 332 00:21:51,600 --> 00:21:54,560 Speaker 1: I've always described as h you're drinking it and then 333 00:21:54,680 --> 00:21:57,920 Speaker 1: someone down the hall, in another room whispers the name 334 00:21:57,960 --> 00:22:04,800 Speaker 1: of the flavor and you go, I guess so, but anyway, 335 00:22:04,840 --> 00:22:07,440 Speaker 1: this is so, this is big right, and he has 336 00:22:07,480 --> 00:22:11,439 Speaker 1: a lot of foresight. I love the point about religious taboos. 337 00:22:11,840 --> 00:22:15,280 Speaker 1: And yes, of course there are. There are, uh, multiple 338 00:22:15,320 --> 00:22:19,280 Speaker 1: belief systems that forbid the consumption of animal flesh in general. 339 00:22:19,520 --> 00:22:21,520 Speaker 1: But he's not thinking about that. It's just like what's 340 00:22:21,560 --> 00:22:24,959 Speaker 1: the least objectionable thing, and so he lands on chicken 341 00:22:25,560 --> 00:22:29,040 Speaker 1: and he wants to make this successiful to everyone. But 342 00:22:29,160 --> 00:22:32,680 Speaker 1: it might surprise a lot of us would have been 343 00:22:33,000 --> 00:22:36,679 Speaker 1: ramen fans by necessity at some point in our lives. 344 00:22:37,480 --> 00:22:41,359 Speaker 1: Being very diplomatic there ramen when it first came out, 345 00:22:41,480 --> 00:22:46,960 Speaker 1: instant ramen was considered kind of a fancy thing. It 346 00:22:47,040 --> 00:22:48,840 Speaker 1: was a little bit of a splurge to get it. 347 00:22:48,840 --> 00:22:51,479 Speaker 1: It wasn't like you would see it today, where you're thinking, 348 00:22:51,840 --> 00:22:54,760 Speaker 1: I have a dollar fifty, how many of these packs 349 00:22:54,800 --> 00:22:56,920 Speaker 1: can I get? Sort of reminds me of like how 350 00:22:56,960 --> 00:22:59,359 Speaker 1: microwaves are first perceived when they came out, versus how 351 00:22:59,400 --> 00:23:02,040 Speaker 1: they were perceived it over time. You know, initially they 352 00:23:02,040 --> 00:23:04,159 Speaker 1: were like the wave of the future, literally though, the 353 00:23:04,160 --> 00:23:06,399 Speaker 1: micro wave of the future, and like they were all 354 00:23:06,400 --> 00:23:09,760 Speaker 1: these like, you know, cookbooks for making things in the microwave, 355 00:23:09,800 --> 00:23:11,560 Speaker 1: and then it kind of just became this like okay, 356 00:23:11,680 --> 00:23:14,840 Speaker 1: the microwave is the last ditch effort to to make something, 357 00:23:15,000 --> 00:23:18,240 Speaker 1: you know, instant or reheat a leftovers and like that. 358 00:23:18,280 --> 00:23:21,560 Speaker 1: Really is no microwave cooking per se Um. But yeah, 359 00:23:21,560 --> 00:23:23,639 Speaker 1: it was the same deal and it was also quite expensive. 360 00:23:24,160 --> 00:23:26,400 Speaker 1: It was because, because it was kind of a radical 361 00:23:26,480 --> 00:23:27,960 Speaker 1: idea to to do what he was doing. No one 362 00:23:28,000 --> 00:23:31,359 Speaker 1: else quite uh crack that code yet. So it was 363 00:23:31,440 --> 00:23:35,280 Speaker 1: around thirty five yen, or a buck eighty five um 364 00:23:35,400 --> 00:23:41,840 Speaker 1: when you adjust for inflation. And this also comes from 365 00:23:41,920 --> 00:23:45,000 Speaker 1: that fabulous mental philos article a brief history of Ramen 366 00:23:45,119 --> 00:23:49,800 Speaker 1: by Michelle dead cast and so this was really pricey, 367 00:23:49,840 --> 00:23:54,800 Speaker 1: around six times in fact, more expensive than standard noodles. 368 00:23:55,280 --> 00:23:59,959 Speaker 1: And so now and has to go into the world 369 00:24:00,040 --> 00:24:03,159 Speaker 1: of marketing and he thinks I have to sell that. 370 00:24:03,320 --> 00:24:06,800 Speaker 1: I need hearts and minds right converted to the Church 371 00:24:06,840 --> 00:24:10,080 Speaker 1: of instant ramen. And so he says, I'M gonna have 372 00:24:10,520 --> 00:24:13,360 Speaker 1: tasting events, I'm gonna take it directly to the public, 373 00:24:14,040 --> 00:24:19,679 Speaker 1: and this is very successful. Chicken Ramen, C H I 374 00:24:20,000 --> 00:24:25,080 Speaker 1: K I n catches on and it it blows every 375 00:24:25,080 --> 00:24:27,879 Speaker 1: other competitor out of the water. It's one of the 376 00:24:27,920 --> 00:24:32,879 Speaker 1: most ubiquitous foods in post war Japan. The fact that 377 00:24:32,920 --> 00:24:36,960 Speaker 1: it is so convenient to make for a lot of people. 378 00:24:37,000 --> 00:24:40,720 Speaker 1: That makes up for the cost. Prices eventually went down. 379 00:24:40,840 --> 00:24:43,359 Speaker 1: It's an economy of scale, and I think this was 380 00:24:43,400 --> 00:24:46,960 Speaker 1: also very smart of Momofuku, because he could have just 381 00:24:47,040 --> 00:24:49,800 Speaker 1: kept selling it at the same price point and then, 382 00:24:49,920 --> 00:24:52,080 Speaker 1: as economy of scale kicked in and it costs him 383 00:24:52,160 --> 00:24:55,639 Speaker 1: less to produce each unit, he could have pocketed the profits, 384 00:24:55,680 --> 00:24:58,320 Speaker 1: but he didn't. He stuck by his guns because he 385 00:24:58,400 --> 00:25:02,080 Speaker 1: wanted this to be a wordable. So that's that. I 386 00:25:02,080 --> 00:25:06,880 Speaker 1: think speaks highly to his character. And we had some 387 00:25:07,000 --> 00:25:10,040 Speaker 1: math here, also for mental floss, with the help of 388 00:25:10,080 --> 00:25:15,119 Speaker 1: our friends over at fast company, a Lisa Friedman, writing 389 00:25:15,160 --> 00:25:19,240 Speaker 1: the surprising origin story of the ICONIC Cup noodles. Here's 390 00:25:19,240 --> 00:25:22,040 Speaker 1: what here's what they did with the math. They said. Now, 391 00:25:22,080 --> 00:25:25,840 Speaker 1: if you look at it, and we're pulling these from numbers, 392 00:25:25,880 --> 00:25:29,520 Speaker 1: an average pack of ramen costs like a quarter. So 393 00:25:29,560 --> 00:25:33,120 Speaker 1: if you ate it three times a day, every day 394 00:25:33,160 --> 00:25:36,159 Speaker 1: for a year, you would only be spending two and 395 00:25:36,240 --> 00:25:40,480 Speaker 1: seventy five bucks for food. Of course, also, as we'll find, 396 00:25:40,520 --> 00:25:43,800 Speaker 1: you should not eat ramen three times a day for 397 00:25:43,880 --> 00:25:47,040 Speaker 1: an entire year. Just don't. Unfortunately, it's not Christmas if 398 00:25:47,040 --> 00:25:50,080 Speaker 1: it's every day right now. Yeah, it's got a whole 399 00:25:50,160 --> 00:25:52,879 Speaker 1: lot of sodium in it. I think around Uh UH 400 00:25:53,200 --> 00:25:56,639 Speaker 1: nearly two thousand milligrams of sodium and and every you know, 401 00:25:56,840 --> 00:26:04,400 Speaker 1: one of those Uh delectable fried wears of top ramen. Yeah, yeah, 402 00:26:04,600 --> 00:26:09,560 Speaker 1: around this time we see diversification of ramen. Different parts 403 00:26:09,560 --> 00:26:13,439 Speaker 1: of the country start having their own styles of Ramen, 404 00:26:13,920 --> 00:26:18,080 Speaker 1: like Tong Katsu, which is one of my favorites, which 405 00:26:18,119 --> 00:26:23,840 Speaker 1: comes from Fuko Yoka. Obviously we're not native Japanese speakers. Folks, 406 00:26:24,080 --> 00:26:27,280 Speaker 1: uh this this region is at the center of Japan's 407 00:26:27,359 --> 00:26:29,600 Speaker 1: pork industry, so it makes sense that they would make 408 00:26:29,840 --> 00:26:33,080 Speaker 1: Tom Katsu, which is again just h delicious. There was 409 00:26:33,119 --> 00:26:36,479 Speaker 1: this place in our old office called Tonton and they 410 00:26:36,480 --> 00:26:38,280 Speaker 1: had no right to be as good as they were. 411 00:26:38,800 --> 00:26:41,480 Speaker 1: You get the really solid and Robin. Certainly, you know, 412 00:26:41,560 --> 00:26:44,520 Speaker 1: had a big, big cop in the last you know, 413 00:26:44,680 --> 00:26:47,440 Speaker 1: ten years or so kind of you know becoming first 414 00:26:47,440 --> 00:26:49,480 Speaker 1: probably in places like New York and L A, kind 415 00:26:49,480 --> 00:26:52,400 Speaker 1: of becoming a little more chic Um, you know, outside 416 00:26:52,400 --> 00:26:56,479 Speaker 1: of just like the traditional kind of foodstall type situation 417 00:26:56,480 --> 00:26:58,720 Speaker 1: that there's maybe family run, maybe you know been around 418 00:26:58,760 --> 00:27:01,240 Speaker 1: longer generationally, but then kind of they're. There are these 419 00:27:01,280 --> 00:27:05,440 Speaker 1: more bespoke kind of ramen places like Tonton Um and, 420 00:27:05,560 --> 00:27:09,320 Speaker 1: you know, of course, like Mamafuku, that are all jumping 421 00:27:09,320 --> 00:27:12,160 Speaker 1: off of that tradition but then adding their own kind 422 00:27:12,200 --> 00:27:15,320 Speaker 1: of take to it. And then really the broth is 423 00:27:15,920 --> 00:27:19,000 Speaker 1: the magic. Like, if you it takes time. You know, 424 00:27:19,080 --> 00:27:22,239 Speaker 1: it takes time, effort and know how to really do 425 00:27:22,280 --> 00:27:25,560 Speaker 1: it right. I mean I think a traditional Dunkatsu broth 426 00:27:26,080 --> 00:27:31,960 Speaker 1: has to be boiled for over a day, sometimes even longer. Um, 427 00:27:32,000 --> 00:27:34,560 Speaker 1: there's actually a documentary about ramen that I saw on 428 00:27:34,600 --> 00:27:36,199 Speaker 1: a plane recently. I have to look it up and 429 00:27:36,200 --> 00:27:38,080 Speaker 1: see if I can find out what the name was. 430 00:27:38,200 --> 00:27:42,240 Speaker 1: But Um, you know, when you boil these pig bones, 431 00:27:42,880 --> 00:27:46,080 Speaker 1: you're essentially breaking down the marrow and the fat and 432 00:27:46,080 --> 00:27:48,680 Speaker 1: all of the good stuff inside the bone to create 433 00:27:48,720 --> 00:27:53,600 Speaker 1: this kind of cloudy, you know, Mommy rich broth that 434 00:27:53,680 --> 00:27:56,159 Speaker 1: really is kind of the base of the flavor of 435 00:27:56,200 --> 00:27:57,840 Speaker 1: the whole thing. And then usually, I think, a piece 436 00:27:57,880 --> 00:28:03,200 Speaker 1: of pork belly. M Yeah, I like a like an 437 00:28:03,200 --> 00:28:06,800 Speaker 1: egg in there as well. That's cool. Eggs that are 438 00:28:06,840 --> 00:28:08,679 Speaker 1: sort of marinated a little bit like there's like a 439 00:28:08,720 --> 00:28:12,159 Speaker 1: hard but a soft boiled eggs almost a brownish quality 440 00:28:12,160 --> 00:28:15,199 Speaker 1: because they marinate them in mirroring and so I yeah. 441 00:28:15,320 --> 00:28:18,800 Speaker 1: And then also there's UH Miso ramen. That would be 442 00:28:18,840 --> 00:28:22,880 Speaker 1: an example of Tara, the seasoning that you ladle into 443 00:28:22,920 --> 00:28:26,560 Speaker 1: the bottom of the Ramen bowl. I believe Misso ramen 444 00:28:26,760 --> 00:28:31,200 Speaker 1: comes from chefs in northern Hakkaido. Uh. They're the first 445 00:28:31,240 --> 00:28:36,480 Speaker 1: ones to add miso to Ramen as a as a 446 00:28:36,520 --> 00:28:41,120 Speaker 1: way of fortifying one against the cold winters, and those 447 00:28:41,120 --> 00:28:45,320 Speaker 1: winters are cold. I have a friend who actually grew 448 00:28:45,440 --> 00:28:52,160 Speaker 1: up in a very far northern area of Japan and 449 00:28:53,000 --> 00:29:00,160 Speaker 1: one time her contact lens case froze. Yeah, it that 450 00:29:00,280 --> 00:29:03,200 Speaker 1: cold Max and so she said she was just going. 451 00:29:03,360 --> 00:29:07,440 Speaker 1: She just went and decided she would take the morning off. 452 00:29:07,480 --> 00:29:10,720 Speaker 1: So it makes sense. So we see similar innovations across 453 00:29:10,800 --> 00:29:16,920 Speaker 1: the world in cold climates. But back to and Oh 454 00:29:17,120 --> 00:29:21,240 Speaker 1: he's not done yet. Well, hold up, hold up, we 455 00:29:21,480 --> 00:29:24,840 Speaker 1: I think off Mike. Folks, we have both been getting 456 00:29:25,040 --> 00:29:29,320 Speaker 1: so into instant noodles right now that no, I think 457 00:29:29,320 --> 00:29:32,160 Speaker 1: we're gonna have to take a noodle break. You want 458 00:29:32,160 --> 00:29:35,360 Speaker 1: to do you want to break and go eat some noodles? Yeah, 459 00:29:35,560 --> 00:29:38,640 Speaker 1: just briefly, and then we'll come back with UH, part 460 00:29:38,680 --> 00:29:42,000 Speaker 1: two of of the story of instant noodles. I think 461 00:29:42,040 --> 00:29:44,200 Speaker 1: are I think we got a little carried away with 462 00:29:44,240 --> 00:29:46,520 Speaker 1: our noodle exuberance and this one ended up being a 463 00:29:46,520 --> 00:29:50,000 Speaker 1: little longer than we expected. But all good stuff, Um, 464 00:29:50,240 --> 00:29:52,640 Speaker 1: and so look forward to part two coming at you 465 00:29:52,840 --> 00:29:57,600 Speaker 1: next time. I love noodle exuberance. Noodle Zuberants, what a 466 00:29:57,600 --> 00:30:01,520 Speaker 1: great phrase. I love the term exuberant and general that's 467 00:30:01,560 --> 00:30:05,760 Speaker 1: why we exuberantly. Thank UH super producer, Mr Max Williams, 468 00:30:05,840 --> 00:30:09,200 Speaker 1: returning from his time abroad. Thanks, of course, also to 469 00:30:09,600 --> 00:30:14,560 Speaker 1: guest super producer Tory Harrison, who pinch hit, pinched hit, 470 00:30:15,040 --> 00:30:19,760 Speaker 1: pinch hitted for us. Uh. She also creates ridiculous news. 471 00:30:19,880 --> 00:30:24,040 Speaker 1: Checked that show out. Who Else? Who Else? Who Else? Oh, 472 00:30:24,200 --> 00:30:26,720 Speaker 1: Christopher Rociota is here in spirit, of course, also a 473 00:30:26,760 --> 00:30:28,560 Speaker 1: big fan of noodles. I was just in his town 474 00:30:28,600 --> 00:30:30,560 Speaker 1: about a week ago and he turned me onto a 475 00:30:30,560 --> 00:30:34,160 Speaker 1: fantastic robin shop. He's a good dude. He's a good dude. 476 00:30:34,200 --> 00:30:37,600 Speaker 1: Thanks also to Eve's Jeff coat, thanks to our pal 477 00:30:38,080 --> 00:30:42,640 Speaker 1: an a hostner. Thanks to Alex Williams, who composed the 478 00:30:42,640 --> 00:30:46,960 Speaker 1: track you're probably hearing right now. whool anybody else? I 479 00:30:47,280 --> 00:30:50,400 Speaker 1: guess we could do Jonathan Strickland at the end, not 480 00:30:50,560 --> 00:30:54,440 Speaker 1: to mention Jonathan Strickland, the Quister, h a k a 481 00:30:54,880 --> 00:30:58,840 Speaker 1: Jonathan noodleman Um. Hopefully we'll see you real soon and 482 00:30:59,000 --> 00:31:09,800 Speaker 1: we'll definitely see you next time. For more podcasts from 483 00:31:09,800 --> 00:31:12,000 Speaker 1: my heart radio, visit the I heart radio APP, apple 484 00:31:12,040 --> 00:31:14,800 Speaker 1: podcast or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.