With each pull of the bamboo sticks, the dough gets stretched thinner and thinner, until it resembles strands of silk thread.
The production of hand-stretched somen noodles, a specialty of Anjo, Aichi Prefecture, is at its peak.
From the early hours of the morning, the workers at the Miyakoseimen Co., a noodle manufacturer with a 200-year history in the city, join together in the process that dates back centuries. Using two bamboo sticks, they skillfully stretch the dough until the long strands are only about one millimeter in diameter.
The stretched noodles are dried, then softened by exposing them to natural humid winds. It is said that this method has been used since the Edo period (1603-1867) to produce a distinctively chewy texture.
"We'll adjust the amount of salt and water depending on the temperature and humidity in the morning," Miyakoseimen President Chiyoko Hayakawa, 63, said. "We strive to keep producing noodles that are delicious as always."
The company says reserve orders are brisk, and production will continue until early September.
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