Dango-jiru
だんご汁DishSep to Feb
Dango-jiru suits riders who want a cheap, filling bowl on a cold day in Oita or Aso, and its chewy hand-pulled noodles are thicker and plainer than udon.
Where to eat Dango-jiru · 1 place
Oita has always had more upland fields than rice paddies, so wheat and barley went into flour, and dango-jiru is the best-known dish of that flour culture. Cooks knead flour and water, rest it in balls, then stretch it by hand into flat ribbons and drop them into a miso soup with vegetables. The ministry of agriculture says that resting stage is why a ribbon of dough is still called a dango, or dumpling.
It was everyday food when rice ran short, and taro is the favourite partner in the pot. Next door in Kumamoto and Fukuoka the same dish goes by dago-jiru, and it turns up at school lunches and in big pots at local festivals.
Quick answers about Dango-jiruよくある質問
Why is dango-jiru called dango when the noodles are flat?
According to Japan's ministry of agriculture, the dough rests in balls before it is pulled into flat ribbons, and the name for dumpling stuck from that stage.
How do you order Dango-jiru?
Look for dango-jiru in Oita and dago-jiru in Kumamoto and Fukuoka. Aosora Shokudo in Aso serves it as a set meal.
When is Dango-jiru in season?
Dango-jiru: Families make it most from early autumn through winter, though restaurants serve it all year.
Where can you eat Dango-jiru in Japan?
Places we list for Dango-jiru include Aosora Shokudo at Aso Shikisai.