Soba

Lore & Background

The tradition of eating soba among ordinary people arose in the Edo period (1603–1868), centered around the city of Edo (modern Tokyo). The earliest references to soba are associated with Buddhist monasteries and tea ceremonies. The 1643 cookbook Ryōri Monogatari is the first to contain a recipe for making soba. After the Great Fire of Meireki in 1657, soba shops became increasingly common in Tokyo.

At first considered a low-class food, its reputation improved by the 18th century, when it began to be eaten by samurai and other high-status peoples. One estimate states that every city block had one or more restaurants serving soba, many also serving sake, functioning like modern cafes. In 1860, a meeting in Tokyo concerning the price of buckwheat was attended by 3,726 shops, indicating the popularity of soba. Soba was also sold from mobile food stalls called yatai.

Reader's Guide

Soba holds a significant place in Japanese culinary history, particularly from the Edo period onward. Its popularity was bolstered by practical health benefits: much of Edo's population suffered from beriberi due to high consumption of white rice, which is low in thiamine, while soba is high in thiamine and helped prevent the disease. The noodles are made by slicing dough into thin noodles; modern soba is usually made from a mix of 80% buckwheat flour and 20% wheat flour.

Soba is traditionally eaten on New Year's Eve in most areas of Japan as toshikoshi soba ('year-crossing soba'), and in the Tokyo area there is a tradition of giving out soba to new neighbors after a house move (hikkoshi soba), though this practice is now rare. Regional differences exist: soba is more popular in the Kantō region (eastern Japan), while udon is more popular in the Kansai region (western Japan). Soba continues to be popular in modern times, sold at railway stations, yatai food stalls, and dedicated restaurants, some of which are traditional establishments whose names have passed down over time.

Did You Know?

• The word soba means 'buckwheat'; the full name for buckwheat noodles is soba-kiri ('buckwheat slices').
• The first specific reference to buckwheat noodles (soba-kiri) comes from a record of 1574 kept at Jōshō-ji temple.
• In Okinawa, soba generally refers to Okinawa soba, made from wheat flour.