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Audio Japan 〜Learning Japan with You〜 This podcast is to dive into Japanese culture,
trends, and some niche information. If you want to listen to it in Japanese,
please go to the podcast. Audio Japan 〜Anata to issho ni Nihon wo Manabu〜
I broadcast on platforms like Spotify, YouTube, Apple Podcast, and so on.
My name is Taiki Arai, an educational designer. My nasal voice seems to have improved.
I'll deliver this with a clear voice. Do you have a favorite instant noodle?
I personally love the miso flavor cup noodles by Nissin Foods. First,
I eat the noodles, and then I pour the remaining soup over rice. Curves on curves.
Quite the power move, isn't it? Did you know that the tab on Nissin's cup noodle,
commonly referred to as a double tab, was designed for reducing plastic use by eliminating the need
for the bottom sealing sticker? When I first saw the double tabs, I thought they were for making
it easier to open regardless of being right or left-handed, but it turns out I was mistaken.
Today's topic is about Japan's instant noodles. Instant noodles, selected as a top innovation
in postwar Japan, have undergone several transformations before becoming the cup noodles
we see on shelves today. In the first half, I'll talk about the origins of instant noodles,
including the founder's story and the historical context. In the second half, I'll discuss how cup
noodles came to be. Let's get started. The creator of instant noodles was Momofuku Ando.
A brief touch on Ando. Born on March 5th, 1910, in Taiwan during the Japanese rule,
his birth name was U Baifu. Losing his parents at a young age and being raised by his grandfather
and grandmother who ran a textiles store, Ando showed an unusual interest in numbers from an
early age. Perhaps his family environment nurtured his entrepreneurial spirit.
Ando didn't start with a food business like chicken ramen. In his early 20s, in 1932,
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he used his father's inheritance to establish Tokyo Meriasu in Taiwan, importing goods from
Japan and selling them in Taiwan. His foresight into the textile industry's demand led to his
business success. Merias refers to a knitting method used for making t-shirts and similar items.
In 1933, he established a Merias wool seller, Nitto Shokai, in Osaka.
A brief detour into history. After Japan's victory in the Sino-Japanese War in 1894
and the subsequent Treaty of Shimonoseki in 1895, Japan began governing Taiwan.
About 30 years later, with the Japanese government having developed Taiwan's infrastructure,
Taiwanese people could afford personal consumption by the 1930s,
perhaps contributing to the success of Japanese products like Meriasu.
Despite succeeding in various ventures from manufacturing slide projectors to constructing
barracks during and after World War II, Ando faced accusations of tax evasion by the GHQ
and went bankrupt, losing all his wealth. Facing bankruptcy in his 40s seemed daunting,
yet Ando saw it as an opportunity, reflecting, I only lost my fortune but gained experience.
Inspired by the sight of people queuing for ramen in post-war Osaka and recognizing Japanese
people's love for noodles, he envisioned creating instant noodles that could be prepared with just
hot water. Ando's criteria for his instant noodles were five things. First, tasty and non-repetitive.
Second, non-perishable. Third, quick and easy to prepare. Fourth, economical. Fifth, healthy and safe.
He dedicated a year working from dawn till late at night in his own shack of methods to preserve
ramen, often only sleeping for four hours a day. Despite numerous prototypes, he struggled to
balance both preservation and convenience. During this time, he saw his wife frying tempura in the
kitchen and noticed how the batter expelled water and bubbled up when immersed in hot oil.
This observation sparked an idea, leading him to try frying noodles in oil, which successfully
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removed the moisture and dried them out, solving the preservation issue. When hot water was added,
the noodles would revert back to their original state, ensuring convenience as well.
This method is known as the instant hot water drying method. I thought it was Shira's genius.
Thus, in 1958, chicken ramen was launched. Just by pouring hot water, one could enjoy chicken ramen
in just two minutes, a product unimaginable at the time and thus doubled as magical ramen.
At a time when a single udon noodle bowl cost 6 yen, chicken ramen was priced at a staggering
35 yen per piece. Initially, bowl sellers were hesitant to stock it, but the overwhelming positive
feedback from those who tasted it led to a surge in orders to the bowl sellers. Creating a quality
product meant that even if it was priced higher than similar items, people would still want to
buy it again. Other factors contributed to its success. The simultaneous establishment of a mass
distribution system by supermarkets for processed food around the time chicken ramen was launched.
The effectiveness of television commercials is also affected. The increase in dual income and
nuclear families leading a consumer demand for convenience in Japan. Incidentally, the yellow
chick featured on the chicken ramen package affectionately known as Kiyoko-chan and went on
redesign in 2010. It's quite adorable and seems like a design that would be loved by people of
all ages. Now onto cup noodles. In 1966, at 56 years old, Ando visited Europe and America to
expand chicken ramen globally. He observed a supermarket manager breaking chicken ramen
into a paper cup, pouring hot water, and eating with a fork. Realizing the necessity to adapt to
foreign eating habits since the bowls and chopsticks were uncommon abroad, Ando began
developing a suitable container. After creating about 50 samples and leveraging American technology
for an insulated, lightweight, and easy-to-hold container, Ando faced a new challenge, fitting
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dried noodles into the uniquely shaped container. The solution came unexpectedly when Ando,
struggling with insomnia, envisioned inverting the noodle block into the cup.
This innovation allowed for mass production. The dream come true idea led to the birth of
cup noodle in 1971, named for its global appeal. Cup noodles were priced at 100 yen each,
considerably more expensive than the 25 yen bagged noodles of the time. Initially registered
by stores due to ethical concerns about eating while standing at its high price. Breakthroughs
came through innovative hot water vending machines and sampling events in youth-popular
areas like Ginza. However, the major breakthrough was during the Asama-san Kuso incident in February
1972, where televised images of police special assault team members eating cup noodles during
the standoff captured the product's popularity. You might think this was enough, but at the age of
91, Ando declared his intent to develop space food. Forming a project team, they finally perfected
space rum, a space food ramen that could be consumed even in zero gravity, after much trial
and error. This innovation was based on the instant oil heat drying method used during the
invention of chicken ramen. Space rum then embarked on its journey to space in July 2005,
where astronaut Soichi Noguchi became the first person to eat instant ramen in space.
Throughout this discussion on the creation of cup noodles, we've touched upon the founder,
Ando, and the historical context. What I want to convey includes, first, opportunities and
inspirations exist in daily life. For example, the balance between preservation and convenience
for chicken ramen was inspired by watching his wife deep-fry tempura. Second, whether or not
you seize those opportunities is up to you. Like the broader minor phenomenon, where you start
noticing things you are focused on everywhere, you won't notice opportunities without a certain
level of dedication. Third, it's never too late to start. Ando began developing chicken ramen in his
50s, starting from scratch with nothing but persistence, spending a year in trial and error
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to perfect it. This story is truly inspirational. Audio Japan, learning Japan with you. It's time
for ending. I've received our first message for this episode. It's from Mr. Onodera, who hosts
the podcast, Listening Gyoza. Thank you for your message. We met at a podcast school that opened
in January this year. His question is, what do foreigners refer to when they visit Japanese
restaurants? My foreign friends living in Japan mainly search Instagram hashtags or look for
places with high reviews on Google. However, for tourists visiting Japan, the preferences
may differ even among foreigners, so I did some research. According to a survey published by the
Norin Chukin Bank in April 2023 and the 2024 edition of Inbound Customer Attraction by
Grunaby Pro, there is a trend of using different platforms before and during the trip.
Before the trip, the world's largest review site, Trip Advisor, is commonly used. And during the
trip, Google Business Profile, which can display restaurant information on Google Maps, tends to
be utilized for finding places to eat. Additionally, social media platforms like Instagram, YouTube,
and TikTok are also used by visitors to gather information about Japanese restaurants.
For example, Abroad in Japan run by a British man is one such source. I hope you find this
information helpful. As I mentioned at the beginning, for those who wanna listen to the
Japanese version, please go to the podcast, Audio Japan. Anata to issho ni Nihon wo Manabu.
Starting in February, new episodes will be released every Tuesday and Friday at 6 a.m.
Japan Standard Time. On Tuesdays, I will cover familiar themes, and on Fridays, I will discuss
current Japanese affairs. I also welcome your comments and letters about the episode.
Please fill out the survey form in the overview section. I look forward to hearing from you.
If you like this audio, please subscribe and follow my channel.
Thank you for listening to the end. My name is Taikei Arai, an educational designer.