Takashi's Noodles: [A Cookbook]

I've had this book for a while, but it took me months to get up the will to try the recipes -- I'm so glad I did. The recipes are far simpler than I initially thought. It's not as daunting to find the right ingredients as I thought it might be, and while some of the recipes seem to have a large number of steps, they are laid out well and very easy to follow. I used to visit Takashi's 'Slurping Turtle' restaurant a couple of times a month, so now that I've moved away from Chicago, I'm thrilled that I can still get my fix! I now make large amounts of the dashi or soup bases to freeze, which means far easier weeknight meals than I would have expected. I love this book. If you're looking for a starting point, my first attempts were with the niku udon, kitsune udon, and miso ramen -- dive into a couple different recipes, and you won't be disappointed.

First off, ignore the one star review. The review bought the wrong type of rib cut and is blaming it on the book. You have to get the across the bone Asian style rib cut..not the between the bone American/European style Rib cut.Now..onto the review:This is a excellent book!Takashi(who is a skilled chef in the Chicago area) has put together simple recipies that taste great and can be be made in a home kitchen without a monster effort. He also gives you a little backround about the noodles and the dishes so you can get a feel on how they are viewed in their native country. There are more than noodle recipies also-he includes recipies for Yakatori, Gyoza/Pot Stickers and many other common Asian Pub/Street food dishes that really fit in with the noodle recipies.Plus, Takashi is not afraid to throw a Professional type recipie at you for a challenge if you so desire:look for the recipie with foam.I am a professional chef and I can appreciate the simpliticy and ease of this book. I suggest a large 12+qt pot and a fine strainer or a china cap with cheesecloth to strain the soups as the only real things you need. Also, find where your local well stocked Asian Grocery store is at, as you will need to visit them for a few things that you won't find in a normal grocery store. If you can't find it locally, go online-Asian ingredients can be found online cheaply these days.Just get this book if you are interested in Asian noodle soups/dishes and want a great, simple starting place Or you don't want to put a full day or three ala Momofuku to make noodle dishes.

I ordered this book back in early fall and by now have made most of the ramen and udon recipes in here. I love this book. Anyone complaining about difficulty making the recipes or preparing elements ahead of time should go back to their instant noodles! The detailed information is probably the most accessible instruction the typical American will receive for making traditional ramen recipes that are considered highly challenging and prized technique in Japan. I have several friends who I've prepared ramen dishes for and they've said that the recipes I've made were better than the ramen they've had in the city here and in Manhattan. If you want to learn to make an exceptional dish, it takes work. If you understand that from the get go then you'll enjoy this book.PS: most of the packaged items called for in recipes can be found on Amazon. As Takashi tells us, it's better to make the dashi from scratch than to use the pre-made powders that are full of MSG.

Love the new-to-me recipes and culinary experiences

This is a great cookbook with a wide variety of recipes. In addition to great Japanese noodle recipes the chicken Yakitori recipe has become a standard that I make frequently. The recipe for braised pork belly is also excellent, and something I've repurposed in a lot of other recipes. Since this is a Japanese cookbook you'll have to find some ingredients that aren't common to most grocery stores, although I found that Asian markets around me carried everything I needed (most ingredients are also available online). I've started keeping Dashi and Kombu around the house all the time, and they've become regular ingredients in my cooking. All in all a great book!

Takashi did a great job writing a Japanese noodle cookbook using available ingredients found in the western grocery stores. His recipes are not what I call a fusion style of recipes and he stays true to his background by presenting true Japanese noodle recipes.His Japanese recipes are very solid and traditional recipes with beautiful presentation and photos. Pages 1-94 are Japanese recipes and pages 96-127 delves into other Asian as well as western noodle dishes.The cold noodle dipping sauces are excellent with some innovative ideas such as tomato dipping sauce which I found very interesting. It does go extremely well with chilled somen noodle.

Much as I love noodles and Asian food, unless you live in a major city (like the author does) witha large selection of Asian markets to acquire many of the ingredients, you wont be able to make many of these recipes. He doesnt supply definitions of some of these items, nor does he supply substitutions or suggestions on where to buy them. This book wasnt meant for those of us in flyover country. Good thing I got it for cheap used!

Gave this to my daughter for Christmas along with a basket of ingredients to make some of the dishes. She LOVES this cookbook. Noodles are easy to make and the ingredients in the book are not too hard to find. The recipes that my daughter has tried she absolutely loves. Great book for a beginner to try Japanese noodle dishes.

If for no other reason buy this book for the Tantanmen recipe. It was wonderful and brought us back to being at Takashi's restaurant Slurping Turtle in Chicago.

great book, easy to follow and worth it

Yammi recipes.

Aweskme