Kitsune Soba

Kitsune soba is a Japanese soba dish topped with a large piece of sweet, simmered aburaage (fried tofu). The name comes from the kitsune (fox) of Japanese folklore, who is said to be particularly fond of fried tofu. The association links the dish to Inari, the Shinto deity of rice whose messengers are foxes. In the Kanto region the dish is called kitsune soba; in Kansai, the same preparation with udon is called kitsune udon. The sweet-simmered aburaage — soaked in a soy-dashi-sugar broth until it has absorbed the sweet-savory liquid — is the defining element.

A bowl of kitsune soba brings up hot soba noodles in a clear, savory dashi broth, topped with a large, golden square of sweet, juicy fried tofu. The tofu, having absorbed the sweet soy-dashi broth, is soft, almost custard-like, with a distinctive sweet-savory flavor that contrasts with the earthy buckwheat noodles and the clean, umami broth. Eaten hot, the interplay of the sweet topping and the savory noodles is the defining pleasure.

Kitsune soba rests on the simmered aburaage and the dashi broth. The aburaage — thin, deep-fried tofu skin — is blanched to remove excess oil, then simmered slowly in a mixture of dashi, soy sauce, sugar, and mirin until its porous structure has absorbed the sweet-savory liquid thoroughly. The absorbed broth is what gives the tofu its characteristic sweet, juicy, almost dessert-like character. The soba — buckwheat noodles — are boiled and served in a separate, hot dashi-based broth (kakejiru) seasoned with soy and mirin. The two broths — one sweet (for the tofu), one savory (for the noodles) — are meant to intermingle in the bowl, the diner's chopsticks pulling pieces of the sweet tofu down into the savory noodles.