Protected local food
Miwa Somen
三輪素麺
Miwa in Nara is said to be where hand-stretched somen began, about 1,300 years ago. The noodles are very thin but firm, and stay springy after boiling.
Key facts
- Registered as a protected name
- 29 March 2016
- Region
- Kansai
- Official name in Japanese
- 三輪素麺
- Official area (in Japanese)
- 奈良県全域
Thin, firm and springy
Somen are fine wheat noodles, usually eaten cold with a dipping sauce in summer. Miwa somen are stretched by hand, which gives them a strong bite. They can be made very thin and don't go soft soon after boiling.
A noodle with a shrine
Somen making began here in the Nara period, about 1,300 years ago, around Miwa in Nara. Every 5 February, somen makers from across Japan gather at Google Maps 大神神社 (opens in a new tab) for a ceremony. From the late 1960s the craft spread as a family business across the whole prefecture.
Good to know
- On a cold day, try nyumen: somen served hot in broth.
- Dried somen are light and keep for a long time, an easy food gift to take home.
- Visit Omiwa Shrine too. See shrines & temples for simple etiquette.
Questions travellers ask
What is the difference between somen and udon?
Both are wheat noodles. Somen are much thinner and are usually served cold with a dipping sauce.
Where is Miwa Somen made?
Anywhere in Nara Prefecture. The name comes from Miwa, the area said to be the birthplace of hand-stretched somen.
Where it comes from
Crafts from the same area
Heritage stories from the same area
- Aizu's 33 Kannon pilgrimage: faith with a day out
- Asuka: the women who shaped the birth of Japan
- Date Masamune's dazzling culture in Sendai and Matsushima
- Gyoda: the town of tabi storehouses
- Hida no Takumi: 1,300 years of master woodworkers in Takayama
- Iga and Koka: in search of the real ninja
- Izumo: the sacred land where the sun sets
- Kamenose: crossing the landslide heart of the Tatsuta Kodo
- Katsuragi Shugen: where mountain asceticism began
- Michinoku gold: where Japan's gold story began
- Mount Takao and Hachioji, the city of silk
- Nyonin Koya: the temples where women prayed instead of Mount Koya
Sources
We checked the facts on this page against these sources.