Miwa Somen: Nara's Centuries-Old Noodle Tradition

The Miwa area, near Omiwa Shrine on Nara's eastern edge, has a somen-making history said to stretch back well over a thousand years, and it's often cited as the origin point of somen production in Japan. The thin wheat noodles are stretched and dried using techniques passed down through generations of local producers, historically timed to the dry winter months when conditions best suit the drying process.

In summer, Miwa somen is served chilled with a light dipping sauce — a common hot-weather meal across Japan, but Miwa's version is often noted for being thinner and more delicate than typical mass-produced somen. In colder months it appears hot in nyumen, a simple broth-based noodle soup. It remains a genuinely artisanal product in Miwa, with some makers still hand-stretching noodles rather than relying entirely on machines.