Slurp!: A Social and Culinary History of Ramen by Barak Kushner (Book Review)

Tonkotsu ramen, as served at Soyokaze restaurant in Norwich: pork broth featuring extra chashu pork, ear fungus, noodles, a nitama egg, spring onions and a sheet of nori.

© Asha Bardon 2021

Ramen is one of those elements of Japanese cuisine which transcends Japan: broke students eat it, people argue about the right way to make it, and YouTube celebrities regularly roast famous chefs who seem incapable of making it correctly. But ramen is more than just noodles, toppings and soup. It has its own rules and nuances.

So, after reminding myself of how awesome it is made by a local chef, I sat down to devour Slurp!: A Social and Culinary History of Ramen by Barak Kushner.

Food travelogues are one of my favourite reads. I took Michael Booth’s Sushi and Beyond on my last trip to Japan. Slurp, however, was more of a historical romp through the history of everyone’s favourite noodle dish. I focused specifically on the chapters dealing with the post-World War II period and how, surprisingly, important ramen (specifically the instant Cup Noodle) was to Japan’s recovery.

I was familiar with Andō Momofuku and the story of how he deep-fried cooked ramen into a brick which could then be eating once it had melted in hot water. What I didn’t know was the complexities of the process, such as needing to have the noodles nestle in the middle of the container to prevent them breaking while dry but to also allow the steam to do much of the work but not make the noodles too soft. 

There was also the element associated with post-war starvation, even if you had some money, getting and making food was another matter. Ramen was vital as a simple, quick way to eat a filling meal using something everyone would have access to: water. Whilst also allowing them the ability to add to their meal with whatever was around or available.

Ramen itself, of course, has a much longer history and has been both a court and comfort food. However, this book was a nice academic introduction to one of my favourite meals and is a must-read for anyone looking as food heritage or the importance of Japanese cooking and culinary history. 

Bibliography

Booth, M. (2010) Sushi and Beyond: What the Japanese Know About Cooking London. Vintage. Available at: https://amzn.to/3osGX2D [Accessed 14th November 2021]

Kushner, B. (2012) Slurp!: A Social and Culinary History of Ramen. Global Oriental.  Available at: https://amzn.to/3kCBTYl [Accessed 14th November 2021]