The Untold History of Ramen: How Political Crisis in Japan Spawned a Global Food Craze

California Studies in Food and Culture #49

by George Solt

A rich, salty, and steaming bowl of noodle soup, ramen has become an international symbol of the cultural prowess of Japanese cuisine. In this highly original account of geopolitics and industrialization in Japan, George Solt traces the meteoric rise of ramen from humble fuel for the working poor to international icon of Japanese culture.

Ramen’s popularity can be attributed to political and economic change on a global scale. Using declassified U.S. government documents and an array of Japanese sources, Solt reveals how the creation of a black market for American wheat imports during the U.S. occupation of Japan (1945–1952), the reindustrialization of Japan’s labor force during the Cold War, and the elevation of working-class foods in redefining national identity during the past two decades of economic stagnation (1990s–2000s), all contributed to the establishment of ramen as a national dish.

This book is essential reading for scholars, students of Japanese history and food studies, and anyone interested in gaining greater perspective on how international policy can influence everyday foods around the world.

Genres: History, Food, Nonfiction, Japan, Food and Drink, Food History, Cooking

240 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2014

Reviews

[Maru Kun]

Unless they were around at the time, most Japanese people don't know that the ubiquity of Ramen in Japan is a post WWII phenomenon...

[Jordyn Duprey · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had to read this book for school and it was around 200 pages just on ramen. I’m now a ramen expert.

[Michelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Do you desire to know more than you ever could imagine you needed to know about the geopolitics of wheat consumption in post-World War II Japan? Then The Untold History of Ramen is right for you! I kid a little, but this well-researched history of ramen spends a lot of time in the details of how many kilos of flour and tabulations of household expenditures in describing the contours of the rise of a now internationally famous noodle dish with truly humble origins.

Solt isn't the most exciting writer, and this is more of an academic study than an entertaining romp through the ramen world, but he has his moments. He has a skeptical eye towards claims of authenticity, even deconstructing the idea of an "authentic food" itself in the context of ramen, a Chinese soup enhanced by American trade and global trends, but considered essentially Japanese. I particularly enjoyed his analysis of sexist critiques of women's labor: apparently when a woman feeds her family instant ramen, she is a lazy moral failure, but a man using a cup-o-noodles to power his productivity is lauded.

Ramen may be an international fad food of sorts, but it's still just a bowl of noodles - satisfying, filling, moreish, whether it's instant or artisanal. The forces that brought it to its modern incarnations, as charted by this book, are unlikely but seemingly unstoppable.

[anchi · Rating 4 out of 5]

對於一個喜歡吃拉麵的人來說，這本書成功地將我對拉麵的認識帶上了另一個層次

看完這本書後，除了驚訝，還是驚訝，原來拉麵這小小一碗背後的歷史故事，牽扯了日本過去一個世紀的歷史發展，可能因為我對日本歷史的認識較淺，所以看完後的衝擊感較大

坦白說，我閱讀前的期望僅僅是認識拉麵的起源，但這本書帶來的知識真的比想像中大很多，不管是拉麵出傳入日本的歧視或是戰後日本面臨的糧食危機，對我來說都是第一次以食物的角度來閱讀

「歷史書寫本身就是一場政治角力，書寫者透過建立、過濾與架構事實，替換掉與之有所衝突的歷史 (p156)」

由於作者是個美國學者，書寫的角度必定與其他日本研究的學者有異，不過看著他在書中真實呈現美國對於戰後歷史的干預，本書反而有中立的感覺

[Saya · Rating 4 out of 5]

Muy buen estudio sobre la historia del ramen desde sus inicios (incluyendo las tres teorías sobre su origen en Japón) hasta el siglo XXI. No es una lectura que se me haya hecho especialmente pesada, pero los primeros capítulos (época Meiji, entreguerras) se me han hecho algo confusos. Y tampoco es que me llame la atención la historia de la comida en sí, pero me resulta interesante conocer la historia desde una perspectiva culinaria o, mejor dicho, conocer la cocina a través de su contexto político, social y económico. Y este libro cumple con creces.

Me ha resultado interesantísimo leer acerca de la ocupación estadounidense en Japón y en otros países, y cómo Estados Unidos tomó decisiones hacia un lugar de la balanza u otro dependiendo exclusivamente de sus intereses más directos, controlando las raciones de comida enviadas a cada país ocupado o manipulando los medios para que los japoneses aceptaran esa especie de "favor" que le estaban haciendo los americanos. El autor es también crítico con la imagen que se tiene del ramen como "plato puramente japonés" y con esa fabricación de "nostalgia" japonesa sobre la que ya leí en Tears of Longing: Nostalgia and the Nation in Japanese Popular Song. El último capítulo (no es muy largo) se centra principalmente en la emergencia del ramen en Estados Unidos, por lo que es la parte del libro que menos me ha llamado la atención.

El libro no incluye descripciones de los distintos tipos de ramen ni recetas, dado que no es ese su objetivo. Es, en definitiva, un muy buen análisis cultural a través de un plato que todo el mundo conoce hoy en día, y lo recomendaría a toda persona interesada en la historia y cultura japonesas y, por supuesto, a quien sienta curiosidad por saber de dónde viene el famoso ramen y cómo se ha transformado en lo que hoy conocemos.

[Ellen Bloomfield · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Hard But Insightful Read

Ramen is doing very well in the Chicagoland area. This well researched dive into ramens past is very dry at points. But it gives an eye opening view of WWII and post-war Japan. Anyone wanting a light view of ramen history this is not your book.

[Madison C. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had to read this for a random Sociology elective at my college (about Asian culture). It was pretty informative! I know little to nothing about Japanese history, so I learned a ton from this book. It's not the most exciting book in the world (and jumps around a bit), but I also got through it fairly quickly-- so it was still readable. It's definitely about more than just ramen. It includes a detailed history of Japan's political state from WWII on. I'd recommend this if you're interested in Japanese history or want to know (a lot) more about ramen! I likely would not have picked it up had I not taken the class, but nonetheless enjoyed it.

4/5 stars.

[Fern · Rating 4 out of 5]

Most engaging and eye opening read which filters Japanese socio-economic-political landscape in the 20th century through the yummy lens of ramen. It sounds gimmicky, but works out surprisingly well serving to illuminate changes in Japan's social landscape as the dish evolves.

[Beth · Rating 3 out of 5]

26 Books Challenge: A book written by a male author. Learned a lot more about Japanese food politics than I ever expected! And I'm now kicking myself for never trying ramen when I was actually there.

[Lynn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Today’s post is on The Untold History of Ramen: How Political Crisis in Japan Spawned a Global Food Craze by George Solt. It is 222 pages long and is published by University of California Press. The cover is a picture of a man standing at a ramen stand and eating. The intended reader is someone who is interested in the history of ramen and how it became the national food of Japan. There is no foul language, no sex, and no violence in this book. There Be Spoilers Ahead.
From the back of the book- A rich, salty, and steaming bowl of noodle soup, ramen has become an international symbol of the cultural prowess of Japanese cuisine. In this highly original account of geopolitics and industrialization in Japan, George Solt traces the meteoric rise of ramen from humble fuel for the working poor to international icon of Japanese culture.

Ramen’s popularity can be attributed to political and economic change on a global scale. Using declassified U.S. government documents and an array of Japanese sources, Solt reveals how the creation of a black market for American wheat imports during the U.S. occupation of Japan (1945–1952), the reindustrialization of Japan’s labor force during the Cold War, and the elevation of working-class foods in redefining national identity during the past two decades of economic stagnation (1990s–2000s), all contributed to the establishment of ramen as a national dish.

This book is essential reading for scholars, students of Japanese history and food studies, and anyone interested in gaining greater perspective on how international policy can influence everyday foods around the world.


Review- An interesting, if technical, history of ramen in Japan. Solt does good research in this book to give the reader an excellent understanding of ramen and its evolving place in Japanese cuisine. Starting with the earliest recorded in the 1600’s to the modern national food that ramen has become, Solt gets into all the legends and real records around ramen. At times, this is a very dense book with lots of details about population, income, and other important statistics but it can make your eyes glaze over after a while. That said, if you are interested in food history, then you will love all the details. I did enjoy this book, I learned a lot about ramen and about Japanese food history. I would recommend this book if you like food history.


I give this book a Three out of Five stars. I get nothing for my review and I borrowed this book from my local library.

[Kokoro · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tenía cierta idea de sus orígenes, pero nunca creí la historia de un simple platillo me produjese reacciones conflictivas. Y es que el camino que ha llevado el ramen a ser tan común y asociado con Japón esta lleno de baches llamados racismo, guerra, pobreza, hambruna, política exterior, corrupción, practicas no tan éticas por parte de compañías y gobiernos, medios de comunicación y moda que asusta.

Sencillamente tras leer este libro uno mirara de otra manera al ramen antes de comerlo.

La baja calificación es debido a que en uno de los capítulos hay posiblemente un exceso de información sobrante en cuanto transcripciones de cartas, informes y otros textos de los gobiernos estadounidense y japonés, creo el autor podría haberlo escrito de otra manera. En el último capítulo esta enfocado en la entrada de este platillo en Estados Unidos, y habla un poco de México, si bien es algo interesante y en el caso de mi país algo preocupante lo que se menciona mi interés se centra en Japón.

Buen libro para conocer más sobre el ramen, por ahí hay otro libro similar sería bueno hacer contrastes. Lo ideal sería incluir un texto japonés pero se entiende la omisión (o censura?) de ciertos aspectos.

Poco más que añadir, salvo recalcar si eres fan del ramen o te interesa la gastronomía este libro puede serte interesante.

“Although consumption in Mexico is still a far cry from the forty-five servings eaten annually by the average Japanese, the pace of growth has been alarming for dieticians and proponents of traditional Mexican cuisine.”

AUCH! Y para acabarla “esa” marca antes era buena ya que recuerdo al abrir uno veía 6 o 7 camarones, varios granos de elote, chicharos y zanahoria, pero ahora…. Juran que esas 2 o 3 cosas pequeñísimas e informes son camarones y si tienes suerte puede que te haya tocado algún pedazo de verdura.

[Ad · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ramen noodles are so popular outside japan, that it is good we now have a serious study of the subject. "The Untold History of Raman" by George Solt originated in his doctoral dissertation at the University of California. He traces the rise of ramen from humble fuel for the working poor to it becoming a "cool Japan" icon in the internationalized world, and describes how the first wave of popularity in Japan came about during the U.S. occupation from 1945-1952, when American wheat was imported in large quantities into Japan. Solt also describes how the recent decades of economic stagnation, in which a new poor class of urban young was born, helped fuel the renewed popularity of ramen through egalitarian ideals. (The ramen-centric comedy Tampopo by director Itami Juzo also helped).

Ramen may be called "iconic Japanese" today, but it is not at all a traditional Japanese dish. The true authentic Japanese noodles are for example soba and udon, which go back many centuries, while ramen is a 20th c. invention. It is not even 100% Japanese: the basic idea originated in China (not the elaboration - ramen as eaten in Japan does not exist in China), which can be seen from the fact that the soup of ramen does not use dashi but an infusion of chicken and/or pork bones seasoned with soy sauce, miso or salt. The use of animal matter for stock or soup is completely foreign to the authentic Japanese "washoku" cuisine.

That doesn't diminish the fact the ramen is a heart-warming, savory broth, and that it is fun to try out different types from different regions, such as tonkotsu ramen from Hakata, or miso ramen from Sapporo. After reading Solt's study, I am in fact a bit hungry - what about ramen?

[Cpen · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fascinating book on history of ramen and the Japan nationalism associated. The author presented how Japanese carved ramen, originally a Chinese food, into the symbol of Japan. The nationalism in background brings impacts to the development of ramen. A prominent example is the changes in its name - from 'Shina Soba' or 'Chuka Soba' before WWII, to 'Chuka Soba' only post-war and the resurgence of the name 'Shina Soba'.

The author regard his approach of studying Japan politics through the lens of ramen as 'historical inquiry at the level of everyday'. This is truly a genius move as it connects everyday life of a commoner to national and international politics. Without Cold War, Japanese might not be mania of ramen. Without the recession in 1990, Japan might not shake off her menacing label of 'economic animal' and introduce ramen to the world.

History of ramen also reflected a few social changes of Japan after Meji Modernisation. Ramen was considered a major change in dining culture, from rice-based to noodle-based and from eating together to eating alone. Development of ramen is often overshadowed by the confrontation between conservatives and progressives, for instance the introduction of instant ramen relieved women's duty of cooking traditional meals for family, which draw fierce criticism from the conservatives.

Every chapters of the book are enjoyable, except that the last chapter focused on development of ramen in America, which is a bit off-tracked and non-American readers might not find it interesting.

[astraeus · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a very interesting book tapping on the complex history and evolvements of ramen, from a Chinese originated shina soba, to the Post-war working class food, to a national symbol representing a "Cool Japan" in the entire world. It is very interesting because the evolvement of ramen is accompanied or even directed by the evolvement of the Japanese society, and it is very intriguing to explore the correlation between a type of daily food and a ultracomplex society. It is true that there might be too many factors in the development of ramen culture, but for as discussed in the book, personally I found the main driving force to be the gradual shift of societies. When the society faced economic stringency, ramen is viewed as a survival sustenance; when the society is undergoing unprecedented growth, ramen then became part of busy working life; when the society entered the modernity, it became a trend or a fad, deeply ingrained in the Japanese culture

[Celeste Lee · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.75 Fascinating reflection on the economic prospects of pre and post WWII Nihon... Who knew that shina soba a quick, hot, cheap meal sold on the street yatai-style by Chinese immigrants (reminds me of the people calling out Japanese yakimo when I lived there - Do they still do that or is that another piece of old Edo gone?) became the nutritious (U.S. x Japanese propaganda indeed) working man food, fueling the economic growth of Japan in the 60s & 70s, eventually evolving into a gourmand tourism exercise that this book proves actually started in the 80s (thanks to NHK promoting the superiority of Kitakata style ramen, Fukushima, Tohoku-ku) when i was there. Not particularly charming and often times bit repetitive and academic like, nonetheless, a good read that weaves in a lot about changing Japanese culture, mores, and sense of identity.

I so miss Pepe Ramen, which I am sure is long gone. Curious that ramen is Chinese in origin, fueled by US wheat exports to an impoverished food poor post-war nation and eventually transposed into a singularly Japanese experience that is literally exported everywhere, has its own museum and is sold both thru the auspices of 'Top Ramen' aka instant ramen and gourmet ramen. The trick is alkali in the water to make ramen!

[Maximo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Was not expecting that much WWII history and politics from the history of a pretty common dish.

I found this to be a good analysis of the different phases ramen went through: a Chinese migrant dish, a worker dish in the early industrialization pre-war period, a luxury during US occupation, a popular restaurant choice among urban residents and fuel for office workers in its instant form to the global sensation it is today.

The politics of the US occupation were new to me, and although one can't expect much from such an event, the anti-rice and racist propaganda by the US in favor of wheat and the general brainwashing of the Japanese population was quite sinister. The realization of the US that Japan was going to be a key ally in East Asia during the Cold War afforded Japan a better treatment, however.

[Stray Toki · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book dives into the history of ramen in Japan, starting with three “creation myths” and the spread of the dish during the late Meiji and Taisho periods. The biggest part of the book revolves around the post-WWII revival of ramen and how is it connected to internal and international politics, industrialisation and social changes through decades.
It’s an academic work, so not a super exciting read, but not a bad one either. I only wish the author wouldn’t repeat and rephrase himself so many times. The book would be 50 pages shorter and much more pleasant to read.

[Alan Tsuei · Rating 3 out of 5]

一位老外唸歷史博士的論文，與其說是談拉麵的一本書，不如說是拉麵在日本近代歷史與文化的浮沉，從中國傳入的麵食（支那麵、南京麵、中華麵），明治維新出現的西化生活型態，二戰前的米荒米騷動時替代稻米的其它主食，食品加工工業化的發展，二戰後面臨的經濟困境（收入低的吃麥食，收入高的吃米食），為了防堵日共蔓延而增加美國援助的小麥，接著談到日清開創了速食拉麵（泡麵）的階段，但一直到80年代拉麵才在年青族群中成為流行，加上日本出口經濟遇到的瓶頸，而採取刺激國內旅遊消費內需市場的政策，因而配合當地文化獨特性而出現一連串各地不同風味拉麵的影視與比賽等宣傳，90年代後拉麵師父開始擁有匠師精神，穿上了職人的作務衣，慢慢從填飽肚子的飲食成為了一個日本所獨有的門面，再到西方接受起了拉麵風…
如果只是談拉麵的歷史，可能不會引起我太多興趣，不過把拉麵放到近代東亞的歷史中，那就算另一層的附加價值了，果然文化離不開歷史，而歷史又離不開人性，只要能掌握人性，才能讓文化跨出自己的小圈圈，反思台灣在面臨產業轉型的困境中，有什麼是我們真的引以為傲又拿得出手的玩意？

[Keiko Tanaka · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have been using this book as a textbook for my course. Although the author tells a complex story very well, for someone who has read so many Japanese books about ramen, this books lacks originality — simply translating these Japanese authors have been writing for decades. As an academic book, I wish there were more theoretical insights.

[Claire Manning · Rating 5 out of 5]

very interesting

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting concept, but a little scattershot in execution.

[Erin Miller · Rating 3 out of 5]

Academic story telling of the history of Ramen in Japan.

[ジェシカ]

Wow, didn't know how much I wanted a book analyzing the making of ramen as a national Japanese food--both in and outside the county. Happy the author approached his analysis via different lens.