🍜 Tai Somen (Sea Bream Somen Noodles)

Tai (sea bream) has long been an indispensable fish for celebrations and other occasions. Kumamoto prefecture has an abundance of fresh sea bream, and its consumption is always among the highest in the country. It is popularly served in a variety of ways, including sashimi, salt-grilled fish, and sea bream chazuke (rice in green tea). In the Amakusa region, “Tai Somen” (also known as ‘Tai Men') involves making a broth from the head and bones leftover after filleting sea bream and pouring the broth over somen noodles before eating. It's a practical wisdom of not wasting the rich flavor of sea bream broth, often served during celebratory occasions in a mindful approach to living. The use of somen noodles seems to have been influenced by the food culture of Shimabara, where somen is a specialty. Meanwhile, “Tai Men” from Yamato Town in Kami-mashiki District (formerly the Mamihara district) is a luxurious celebratory dish. It involves simmering a whole sea bream, arranging it on a large plate, and serving somen noodles as if they were representing white waves on the plate. Somen noodles are briefly cooked in a broth made from simmering sea bream, then arranged and served. The dish is enjoyed by dipping the noodles into the broth before eating. Mamihara was a bustling post town during the Edo period, flourishing with Sake brewing businesses and lined with merchant houses, including restaurants and inns. In a town nestled in the mountains, obtaining fresh sea bream was challenging. However, due to the affluence of wealthy merchants, Tai (sea bream) from Hyuganada sea was transported by carriage through Oita's Takeda and that from Amakusa was shipped via boats or swift horses. In the old days, it was a special dish for weddings and other such occasions, and the women of the village inherited the recipe for making it, with each family having a pot and serving dish large enough to boil 2 to 3 kg of Tai fish in. “Tai Somen" (or ‘Tai men') is also known as a local dish in Okayama, Ehime, and Hiroshima prefectures bordering the Seto Inland Sea. The exact origin in Kumamoto Prefecture is uncertain, but it is believed to have been introduced to Mamihara from Himeshima in Oita Prefecture. In Himeshima, sea breams are known to form a pair and choose a nest, never parting ways. This behavior has symbolized the wish for an unbreakable bond during wedding ceremonies. It is also meant for both families to meet each other ("tai-men") and the long noodles symbolize the enduring relationship between the two families, expressing a wish for lasting connections.