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  • M: We're here in Suidobashi Tokyo, Japan.

  • S:And we're gonna take you for some "OG" style ramen

  • Chuka Soba, at katsumoto.

  • Come let's go, you're gonna love thisss.

  • M: Okay let's talk chuka soba. I am positive

  • that a lot of you guys have never even heard of this phrase before.

  • S: Mmm mm, you always think of tonkotsu ramen, right

  • you think of miso ramen,

  • you think of shoyu ramen which is like a soya sauce,

  • and you think of shio ramen, which is salt ramen

  • but a lot of people don't really think about chuka soba,

  • M: exactly, which is such a shame. Cause it is as we

  • mentioned before, the "OG", the vintage,

  • some of the most original ramen that exist in Japan.

  • S: Now don't get confused with the word soba,

  • when you're thinking soba you're of that

  • probably thinking of that nihatsu soba from that video we did a while ago

  • M: Oh yeah from that buckwheat noodles.

  • S: So chuka soba just means like chinese noodle

  • It's an old way of saying it

  • Now they pretty much call it ramen

  • but still like if you want that kind of like vintage-y feel

  • people call it chuka soba.

  • M: Now although this is kind of like chinese style ramen,

  • it shouldn't be mistaken as being chinese ramen.

  • S: And I know you might be thinking, "Oh if I'm in Japan

  • and I only wanna eat Japanese food but kind of

  • think about it, remember when we did a video about

  • jajangmyeon and korea.

  • Jajangmyeon is a staple of korean food now

  • Even though it's inspired by chinese food,

  • if you avoid jajangmyeon,

  • you're missing out a huge part of korean food culture.

  • If you skip out on chuka soba,

  • you're not a ramen hardcore fan.

  • You're not a ramen otaku,

  • you're a poser.

  • You need to eat chuka soba in order to get the

  • real ramen experience.

  • Hi, I'm Kenoji Matsumura.

  • And *err*, I'm a chief here at Katsumoto.

  • The soya sauce ramen is considered like the

  • origin of ramen in Japan.

  • So, it's very light yet it's very flavourful.

  • We put a lot of *ahh* ingredients so,

  • fish, chicken, pork, also kelps.

  • Each one has like a slight flavour

  • so you can enjoy the mixture of many flavours.

  • *Haha*

  • M: Now there are a lot of options to choose from

  • at this amazing restaurant.

  • S:I'm getting the toku sei ramen,

  • which is pretty much the deluxe version

  • and it has extra toppings of everything

  • because I'm big and I'm hungry

  • and I've been smelling this ramen as they've been

  • cooking it and I really wanna eat as much of it as I can.

  • Things that I want people to know about ramen,

  • M: Go for it. S: Erm it's delicious

  • M: Yes. S: I wanna eat it everyday.

  • M: Yes. S: And I don't wanna get fat from eating it everyday.

  • M: That's not gonna happen.

  • OMG, I just got an extra whiff of like

  • some kind of porky chicken magic happening

  • Salivation

  • My, my chest is tingling *wot simon??*

  • Our ramen senses are "What's that??"

  • M: "There's ramen nearby" S: oooooh

  • M: OMG it's coming S: Okay *breathing heavily*

  • M: Hai

  • M: Arigato gozaimasu S: Look at that boi

  • M: *sighs*

  • S: It's always really hard to shoot a ramen video

  • because noodles expand if you wait for too long

  • M: Yeah S: so you just gotta go right in.

  • M: The top layer of the broth has like a thin shin

  • of oil on top of it.

  • *Simon's just groaning in the back*

  • But it's not so thick like a tonkatsu ramen

  • M: Ah the colours are dense. S: There we go.

  • I like you to drink the soup first

  • cause the soup is the part of the ramen

  • that most of the thought and the time goes into

  • S: Oh boi M: Oh my god

  • M: That is fantastic

  • when you have a tonkatsu ramen,

  • sometimes it's so thick and oily,

  • that you can't really finish it.

  • S: Mhmm M: But this one has that lightness

  • of like a shoyu, like of a soya sauce ramen

  • S: Cause I don't usually like shoyu ramens

  • because I just find them a bit too bland

  • I think the oilness of this really gives me

  • that tonkatsu flavour that I really like. M: Yeah

  • M: Well its got, you know, pork in it

  • as well as chicken, as well as fish.

  • So it's like everything coming together.

  • *Slurping all that goodness*

  • Eat the ramen by slurping it

  • while eating ramen,

  • it is like the the best way

  • to get the proper balance between

  • *er* soup and the noodle

  • and *er* also it's considered like the

  • traditional way to eat it.

  • S: Also these are thinner noodles, M: Mhmm

  • S: than usual

  • M: Mmmmm S: This is exactly how I like my noodles.

  • M: Mhmm S: I don't want my noodles to be too soft

  • M: This is how I like my noodles too though

  • M: Oh this is fantastic S:Mmm

  • S: I think this is the first time I thoroughly enjoy

  • the shoyu base

  • It's like a really dark consume

  • M: Mmm S: so you have the oiliness on your lips

  • M: Mhmm S: But you feel the taste on the side of tongue more

  • M: You have this kind of like salty

  • but then kind of like a sweet flavour in the background.

  • S: I've had ramen with fish broth in it,

  • and the fish can be very overwhelming at times

  • M: Mhmm mhmm

  • S: But this right here, the fish isn't in the foreground

  • it's like a background.

  • All I wanna say is DEEP

  • M: You're not gonna say depthy?

  • S: Everything is mad deep son, no

  • M: Okay so the basic ramen comes with senju onion

  • which is like a green onion that is from the Kanto region.

  • S: Yeah M: Bamboo shoots, menma,

  • It comes with 2 different kinds of pork in it

  • So you got the shoulder roast char siew

  • and also the pork back rib char siew.

  • S: I can't believe how soft this meat is

  • you don't even need teeth

  • you can just mush this against the roof of your mouth

  • with your tongue like cotton candy.

  • M: And it also comes naruto

  • which I know people out there are being like

  • "you mean the anime guy?"

  • with the little squiggle on his forehead

  • And it also comes with a soft boiled egg.

  • *insert food porn music*

  • M: Ohhhh yeah ooooooo

  • S: Now the key to your eggs

  • is supposed to cut it in half vertically

  • not horizontally, so you have 2 equal halves, M: Mmm

  • S: and then you gotta leave it in the broth

  • so the inside yoke can warm up.

  • Cause now, its nice and gooey, warm

  • If you just bite your egg right away it's gonna be a little

  • bit cold but this is perfect now.

  • M: Oh man fantastic

  • S: You know I thought this was gonna be

  • an informative video in which we talk about chuka soba

  • but like I really like this

  • M: You are wronnggg

  • S: I really like this, this is me fangirling over really good ramen.

  • We are located in a business district

  • so during rush hour or lunch time

  • we get *er* mostly business men

  • on weekends, we get like ramen manor

  • those who read ramen magazines

  • and they come here to enjoy and taste our ramen.

  • M: I'm like a huge advocate of people trying out

  • different types of ramen.

  • To think that you've tried one and you like

  • understand ramen which you absolutely don't. S: Nooo, yup

  • M: Every place has its own little special way

  • to make things, its own way to make noodles.

  • If you're in Tokyo,

  • Tokyo has a Tokyo style of ramen, right?

  • And when we went to Fukuoka, Fukuoka has its own style

  • So don't just go to one place and say