🍜 Houchou (Thin udon noodles dipped in dipping sauce)

Oita Prefecture has long been a flourishing grain-growing region based on its fields. Jigona(all purpose flour), flour ground from the harvested wheat, was used in dishes such as "koneri" and "yaseuma," thus laying the groundwork for a flour-eating culture. "Houchou" is a noodle dish made by kneading wheat flour into thin udon noodles and dipping them in a dipping sauce (dashi (=Japanese soup stock)) with condiments. It is said that the name "houchou (abalone intestines)" originated when a retainer of Otomo Sorin, a feudal lord in Kyushu, offered a thin flour noodle that looked like abalone intestines. Sorin liked the dish very much. It is believed this is the origin of the name. Later this dish took root mainly in the Hetsugi area, a wheat producing region in Oita. Many local residents like its texture, which is different from that of Udon noodle. There is a similar dish called "houtou" in Yamanashi Prefecture, and there is a theory that "houtou" became "houchou" with an accent.