Slurp! A Social and Culinary History of Ramen - Japan's Favorite Noodle Soup

Based on research in Chinese and Japanese, as well as interviews with comedians, food service professionals, entertainment managers, store-owners, customers, and scholars of food history, Kushner explores the history of ramen and Japan's noodle culture over the last 1,000 years.

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Ramen, Japan’s noodle soup, is a microcosm of Japan and its historical relations with China. The long evolution of ramen helps us enter the history of cuisine in Japan, charting how food and politics combined as a force within Sino-Japan relations. Cuisine in East Asia plays a significant political role, at times also philosophical, economic, and social. Ramen is a symbol of the relationship between the two major forces in East Asia – what started as a Chinese food product ended up almost 1,000 years later as the emblem of modern Japanese cuisine. This book explains that history – from myths about food in ancient East Asia to the transfer of medieval food technology to Japan, to today’s ramen “popular culture.”