Horumon Udon, a specialty of long-established restaurants
Octopus dumplings in Osaka, miso katsu in Nagoya, ramen in Hakata, beef tongue in Sendai, gyoza in Utsunomiya…. Local gourmet foods exist in every corner of Japan. Here in Tsuyama City, too, there is such a B-class local gourmet.
The name is ” Horumon Udon” (hormone udon ).
Since winning third place in the 2009 B-1 Grand Prix (a B-class local gourmet festival), it has been gaining momentum as a new specialty of Tsuyama. However, its origin is surprisingly old. Originally, this region was a popular area for raising Japanese black cattle. It was common to eat fresh hormone grilled on a teppan grill. When the Okayama National Athletic Meet was held in Okayama in 2005, Tsuyama decided to market hormone udon as a local gourmet dish. The owner of Hashino Shokudo is one of the pioneers of this idea. Hashino Shokudo has had horumon udon as a popular menu item for nearly 30 years. He is the driving force behind this boom. Hashino Shokudo has been in business for 120 years. Although it is a long-established restaurant, it has a homey atmosphere where you can enter without hesitation. The owner’s personality is also warm.
Now, the hormone udon, the dish you have been waiting for. First, fresh hormone is placed on a sizzling hot griddle. Then, add green onions, bean sprouts, and two balls of udon noodles, stir-fry them, and finally, dip them in homemade spicy miso sauce.
The tender hormone is juicy and melts in your mouth when you take a bite. The fat from the hormone and the sauce are well mixed with the udon noodles. The price is only 770 yen for such a hearty dish! Incidentally, there is no such thing as a “hormone udon restaurant” in Tsuyama, and this is just one of the menu items. It is served at various restaurants, and the sauce and ingredients vary from restaurant to restaurant, so it is fun to try and compare.
