Udon noodles

Thick wheat noodle made from a plain salt dough. Unlike Chinese wheat noodles and ramen it contains no alkali, so it has none of their springy bite or yellow colour, and it is correspondingly softer and blander. What it does have is surface area, which makes it good at holding a viscous sauce. The format matters more than the brand. Frozen Sanuki is preserved by cold alone and has the best texture. Vacuum-packed shelf-stable udon is pH-adjusted with lactic or citric acid for room-temperature storage, and that surface acid will curdle a protein emulsion. Rinse it under hot water after cooking.