Chopsticks are absolutely essential for Japanese dining.
There are a variety of designs, materials, length, and thickness for chopsticks.
If you can pick the right chopsticks for you,
Your food will be even tastier.
And your dinner will bring you more joy.
1. They are like lightsabers for Jedi
There are so many kinds of lightsabers depending on the Jedi.
Example:
Master Yoda's one is small and green, Master Windu has a purple lightsaber.
Chopsticks are like that. Especially for Japanese people.
Because our utensils belong to the owner.
We don’t share it with other people.
2. So why not pick the one you really like!
In the summer of 2019, when I left Japan, my sister gave 2 sets of chopsticks to me and my wife at the airport.
They have the same shape and style. We always use it.
They fit my hand very well..
3. Do you know how to pick the right ones?
Right chopsticks make dining fun, and change the impression of the food.
You don’t want to feel uncomfortable when you hold them.
The texture of the tips of chopsticks is important too,
Because they touch your mouth and it is very sensitive.
There are some points that you should keep in mind…
4. You need to pick your chopsticks by these totality
What you need to keep in mind when you pick chopsticks are…
Shape of the part where you rest your finger, how easy it is to pick up food,
Mouth feel, thickness, material, weight, length, shape, texture, flexibility and design.
There are too many. Right?
Keep reading and you will find out…
5. Mouth feel of chopstick tips is important
Round, smooth, and thin chopstick tips are more comfortable.
This is because when the tips leave your mouth,
You don’t want to feel any resistance.
If it is only a few times,
It might be okay,
But you bring food into your mouth using your chopsticks many times while you are eating.
This small stress adds up, so if you want to dine without any stress,
Having chopsticks that have round, smooth, and thin tips is ideal…
6. How easy to pick up food using the chopsticks is important
Chopsticks that have narrow tips make it easy to pick up small food like beans.
And it is useful to remove small bones from fish.
This is contradictory to what we have talked about above,
But round chopsticks are slippery, so…
7. When you eat noodle soup, use different types of chopsticks
The ideal chopsticks for noodles soup are non-slip
Ramen or other noodles are slippery because they are soft,
And it is covered with soup and flavored oil.
In order to grab these slippery noodles, you need non-slip chopsticks.
There are many ways to make chopsticks non-slip
Having some rough surface on the tip of chopsticks is a common solution for it.
Grooved wooden chopsticks work for the same reason.
Another solution is square chopstick tips.
This is because the edges on the tips can grab the ramen noodles tightly.
8. You need nice thickness on the part where you rest your finger
There are a variety of thicknesses to chopsticks, but…
The right amount of thickness makes you feel comfortable when holding chopsticks.
9. Shape of the part where you rest your finger is important
You need to keep in mind the shape of the part where you rest your fingers.
There are square cross sections,
And round cross sections of chopsticks.
The square ones are easier to control since your finger movement transmits better.
However, round ones fit more with your hands.
10. Material difference is important too
Materials of chopsticks are wood, melamine, resin, and plastic.
It depends on your preference, but for adults,
There is a tendency that a little heavier side is more comfortable to use.
11. The weight of wood chopsticks depends on the type of trees
Here are some examples of wood sorted by weight.
Check this out…
Ebony wood > ironwood > rosewood > morus > cherry > tochinoki > dark-bark spruce > cypress > cedar
The pattern of the wood also depends on the trees and the types of tree.
Some have distinct patterns, some have hard or soft feelings.
12. Standard length of ramen chopsticks are 9 inches(23cm)
However, it depends on the size of your hands.
Do you know how to find the ideal length of chopsticks for your hand size?
Check it out…
1 Open the gap between your thumb and index finger and make 90 degree.
2 Measure the length from the tip of your thumb and index finger.
3 Multiply the number by 1.5
This is the ideal chopstick length for you.
13. There is a variety of shapes for chopstick tips
Round, square, pentagon, and random shapes.
Take a look…
Round tips are basic
But if you want to pick this shape for ramen, pick the ones that have a non-slip texture on it.
Square tips can grab noodles nice and tightly
These edges on the chopstick tips work well for noodles.
Pentagon tips are great too
For the same reason as the square tips, pentagon tips can grab the noodles well.Along with that, a pentagon shape fits in your hand very well.
Tips that are randomly shaved are the other option
Having loose unevenness on chopsticks gives you a nice fit and grab.
14. Coated vs bare wood
Coated ones are easier to keep clean because the wood is covered by lacquer.
However, it is slippery.
Bare wood chopsticks are usually finished with beeswax.
They have a nice warmth of wood.
They retain the texture of the wood, so it is non-slip.
But as time goes by, the wood gets worn,
And become a whitish color..
15. Flexibility of chopsticks matters for picking up food
Having the right amount of flexibility in chopsticks makes them easy to use.
One example is bamboo chopsticks.
They are good at picking up food because it bends when you put some pressure.
Don’t worry, It goes back to the straight shape when you release the pressure.
16. There are so many designs of chopsticks
It might be better to own 2 or 3 pairs of chopsticks depending on the style of food.
By rotating them, you can give your chopsticks a break sometimes.
Here are some designs of different cross sections of chopsticks.
Triangle shape
Faces of this type of chopsticks are larger.
This means you can hold your chopsticks steady.
Square shape
The square ones are easier to control since your finger movement transmits well.
But sometimes you might feel uncomfortable when the edges touch your finger.
Pentagon shape
Nicely balanced and fits with your fingers very well.
My recommendation is picking an odd number
Like triangle shape, pentagon shape, and heptagon shape.
This is because you hold your chopsticks with 3 fingers.
So odd numbers fit better when the number of edges is small.
Round shape
This is the standard shape of chopsticks.
They are comfortable to hold because it is smooth.
Octagon shape
Shape is closed to the circle so it is easy to hold too
8 is a lucky number in Japan.
So people give octagon chopsticks as gifts.
Randomly shaved shape
Having loose unevenness on chopsticks gives you a nice fit and grab.
Due to Covid, a lot of good ramen restaurants have closed
It makes me feel very angry.
I used to eat ramen out frequently,
But in this situation,
Ramen shops have started to shorten the hours, limit the number of customers, or even closed their shops.
It has affected the industry so much.
I am afraid good ramen will be gone
But meanwhile, you still can enjoy ramen in the comfort of your own home.
Here are some of my recommendations for ramen lovers.
1. Sapporo Ichiban Shio Flavor
MY THOUGHTS OVERALL ★★★★☆
In truth, Sapporo Ichiban delivers a good quality shio ramen experience.
Actually, it is very difficult to find good shio ramen.
Do you know why?
Because it is very difficult to make it since it is very simple.
There are many good shoyu and miso flavored instant noodles out there.
But I feel specifically, the shio flavor market is monopolized by Sapporo Ichiban.
Think about this for a moment having good shio ramen for your dinner with your favorite ramen toppings.
Now, you want some, don’t you?
2. Nissin Raoh Shoyu Flavor
MY THOUGHTS OVERALL ★★★★★
It is nearly impossible to make restaurant quality noodles at home without the right tools and equipment.
How can you beat that?
Using Raoh’s shoyu flavour will help you achieve this easily. This is top-notch ramen hands down!
One pinnacle of instant noodles is the soy sauce flavor. It is expensive compared to regular ones but let me tell you, it deserves every single penny.
In a nutshell, I loved every bit of it.
...And I am sure you will too.
3. The problem here is that no toppings come with these packets.
Here are some topping options and recipes for you.
Green onion
4. Have you ever faced these issues...
A lack of large, high-quality soup bowl sets at home?
Are you still struggling with...
😢 ...small bowls that aren’t large enough for soups, noodles and toppings.
😢 ...spillage every time you eat out of your bowl.
😢 ...low-quality tableware and utensils that don’t compliment your food.
Look no further,
Our best-selling bowls are here to fix all the issues you face with small, inefficient tableware.
After struggling with spillage and leakage during dinner time,
We decided to introduce APEX S.K’s large soup bowls to the market.
Want to hear why some people absolutely love our ramen bowls?
"These are perfect for homemade ramen soup nights! The bowls we have at home are not large enough and my wife has been trying to look for larger bowls. I'm so glad I stumbled upon these. They made a great Christmas gift for the whole family. Everybody was so excited and we can't wait to put them to use on our next ramen night."
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"The shape, the color, and the overall appearance of the bowl was exactly what I was looking for - the shape, the color"
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About the Author
Kei is a self-proclaimed ramen lover, blog writer and founder of "Apex S.K. Japanese tableware".
"I am from Ibaraki, Japan.
Ramen is great! It can bring you a sense of happiness and satisfaction that no other food can. I have been eating ramen for 30 years.
If there is no ramen, my life would be miserable.
Ten years ago, I worked as an office worker. The job was really stressful - excessive working hours, low wages, unpaid overtime work, and constantly being yelled at by my boss.
I was new and alone, no girlfriend, no friends, and felt very lonely.
My only oasis was the ramen shop near the office. For me, the ramen chef there was literally an angel. I saw a halo on his head. (No joke)
Tonkotsu shoyu ramen was my all-time favorite. He made ramen with broth chock-full of umami flavor, nice chewy handmade noodles, and tender chashu.
My greatest dream is connect people with ramen through my blog. I want to share a lot of interesting and funny stories and ramen trivia with you.
Knowing more about ramen can help you appreciate your ramen and make it taste extra delicious."
Did you know that we offer more than just a ramen blog?
We also have an exclusive collection of ramen-inspired t-shirts and hoodies that any true noodle lover will adore.
Head over to ApexRamen and check it out for yourself
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