Handmade Sanuki-Style Kitsune Udon

Method

1. Dissolve the salt completely in the dough water. Put the flour in a large bowl and add the salt water in 3 additions, rubbing it in with your fingertips until it looks like coarse crumbs. Press it together into one mass and knead for 6 min, until no dry flour remains. It is fine if the surface is still lumpy at this stage.

   Add in this stepPlain flour (all-purpose) 200 gWater (for the dough) 90 mlSalt (for the dough) 10 g

2. Put the dough in a heavy zip bag, wrap it in a towel and place it on the floor. Tread on it evenly with your heels until flat, take it out, fold it in three and tread again; repeat 3 or 4 times, 5 min in total. When the dough is smooth and as springy as an earlobe, gather it into a ball, seal the bag and rest it at room temperature for 2 h. Resting relaxes the gluten so it rolls out easily.

3. Pinch the heads and guts off the dried sardines. Put the water, sardines and kombu in a 18 cm pot (soak them for 30 minutes while the dough rests, if you can) and heat over medium-low heat for 12 min. Just before it boils, take out only the kombu, turn down to low heat and simmer gently for 5 min, adding the bonito flakes for the last 2 minutes. Turn off the heat, let the flakes sink and strain through a paper-lined sieve without squeezing.

   Add in this stepWater (for the broth) 850 mlDried sardines or anchovies for stock (niboshi) 15 gKombu 6 gBonito flakes (katsuobushi) 10 g

   medium-low heat→low heat

4. Spread the aburaage in a sieve and pour boiling water over it to rinse off the surface oil; once cool, press it between your palms to squeeze out the water. Cut each sheet diagonally into 2 triangles. Put the water, sugar, soy sauce and mirin in a 16 cm small pot, lay the tofu in it and cover the surface with a circle of baking paper with a hole in the middle. Simmer over medium-low heat for 10 min, turning once, until only a little liquid is left in the bottom and the tofu is plump and deep brown.

   Add in this stepAburaage (thin fried tofu sheets) 2Water (for the tofu) 150 mlSugar (for the tofu) 1½ tbspSoy sauce (for the tofu) 1½ tbspMirin (for the tofu) 1 tbsp

   medium-low heat

5. Dust the board with starch, divide the dough into 1 piece(s) and roll each into a rectangle 3 mm thick. Dust the top with starch, fold it loosely in three and cut it with a large knife into even strips 3 to 4 mm wide. Lift and shake the noodles as soon as they are cut so the starch coats them and they don't stick.

   Add in this stepPotato starch (for dusting) 20 g

6. Bring 4 L of water to a rolling boil in a large pot over high heat, shake the noodles in and stir straight away so they don't stick to the bottom. When it returns to the boil, adjust to medium-high heat so it keeps rolling without boiling over and cook for 10 min. Take out one strand, cool it in cold water and bite it: no white core in the middle means it is done. Drain, rub the noodles under cold water to wash off the surface starch and firm them up, then dip them in boiling water for 30 seconds just before serving.

   high heat→medium-high heat

7. Add the soy sauce, mirin and salt to the strained broth and heat over medium heat for 3 min. Turn it down just before it boils and taste.

   Add in this stepSoy sauce (light usukuchi if possible) 2½ tbspMirin 2½ tbspSalt (for the broth) ½ tsp

   medium heat

8. Put the noodles in warmed bowls and pour over the hot broth. Top with 2 pieces of tofu, the spring onion and grated ginger and serve at once; stir the ginger into the broth bit by bit as you eat.

   Add in this stepFresh ginger, finely grated 10 gSpring onion, thinly sliced 20 g