Sōmen

The earliest record for what would later be sōmen dates back to the Tang dynasty in 618-907 China. Around that time, the Japanese Imperial Court in Nara brought in some knotted pastry from China which they called sakubei/索餅 (most likely Chinese mahua/麻花). Sakubei later evolved into somen first in modern-day Sakurai, Nara's Miwa district during the Heian Period and then evolved to become high-class Japanese cuisine served to emperors and nobles. This transition from the knotted pastry (sakubei) to the thin noodle form we know today occurred primarily during the Kamakura period (1185–1333). This evolution was catalyzed by two major factors: the introduction of stone mills (ishiusu) by Zen Buddhist monks, which allowed for the production of fine wheat flour, and the development of the hand-stretching technique (tenobe) using vegetable oil. The oil prevented the dough from drying out, enabling it to be stretched into much thinner, delicate strands. By the late 14th century, the term somen (素麺) appeared in historical records such as the Kakaisho, marking its distinction from its predecessor. == East Asian cuisines ==

Japan , from the Songs of the Seventy-one Craftsmen (七十一番職人歌合 Shichijūichi-ban Shokunin Uta-awase), a poetry anthology written around 1500 Sōmen are usually served cold with a light flavored dipping sauce or tsuyu. The tsuyu is usually a katsuobushi-based sauce that can be flavored with Japanese bunching onion, ginger, or myoga. In the summer, sōmen chilled with ice is a popular meal to help stay cool. Sōmen served in hot soup is usually called nyūmen and eaten in the winter, just like soba or udon are. Some restaurants offer nagashi-sōmen (流しそうめん flowing noodles) in the summer. The noodles are placed in a long flume of bamboo across the length of the restaurant. The flume carries clear, ice-cold water. As the sōmen pass by, diners pluck them out with their chopsticks In Okinawan cuisine, Soomin is used in stir fry such as Sōmin Chanpurū and Abura zoomïn. File:Simple somen.jpg|Sōmen (in large white bowl at upper-right) with assorted toppings File:Nagashi somen by tasteful tn.jpg|Nagashi-sōmen File:Somen champru by ayustety in Naha, Okinawa.jpg|Sōmin Chanpurū Korea In Korean cuisine, somyeon is used in hot and cold noodles soups such as janchi-guksu (banquet noodles) and kong-guksu (noodles in cold soybean soup), as well as soupless noodle dishes such as bibim-guksu (mixed noodles). It is often served with spicy anju (food that accompanies alcoholic drink) such as golbaengi-muchim (moon snail salad). File:Janchi-guksu.jpg|Janchi-guksu File:Korean noodles-Kongguksu-01.jpg|Kong-guksu File:Bibim-guksu.jpg|Bibim-guksu File:Golbaengi-muchim.jpg|Golbaengi-muchim served with boiled somyeon == Gallery ==

File:Five-colour somyeon 1.jpg|Five-colour somyeon File:Somyeon.jpg|Boiled somyeon ==See also==