A tribute to the nabeyaki udon in Studio Ghibli's 1995 film "Whisper of the Heart" (directed by Yoshifumi Kondo), which the owner of the antique shop Chikyuya serves to the heroine Shizuku in front of his fireplace. The star-shaped carrots are a fixture of recipes recreating the scene. I used udon made from Hokkaido wheat.
Ingredients
- Udon (made from Hokkaido wheat)
- Egg
- Kamaboko fish cake
- Carrot
- Leafy greens
How I made it
- Slice the carrot and cut the slices into stars with a cutter
- Slice the kamaboko
- Put the udon and broth in a clay pot, crack in an egg, and top with kamaboko, carrot and greens
- Cover, bring to a simmer, and carry the pot to the table
Sources: eiga.com news.allabout.co.jp
This moment in the journey
Nabeyaki udon in a room with a fireplace
Outside the window, a little snowman stood on the night snow. The powder was too dry to roll, so I had carved a lump of snow round instead. With a twig for a face, it reminded me of an actor I like, so I named it Toshiyuki.
What I had wanted to eat in a room with a fireplace: the nabeyaki udon from the Ghibli film "Whisper of the Heart." When I lifted the lid of the clay pot, a soft-cooked egg and the star carrots appeared through the steam. The udon was made from Hokkaido wheat.
The fried chika could be eaten bones and all, hot, soft and really good. I poured the alcohol-free beer into a glass and raised it to myself. The nabeyaki udon the grandpa made in the film looked so delicious, and the fireplace is part of why. But I'm sure it's mostly because Shizuku had worked so hard.
Watch this scene on YouTube5:50
More notes from this journey
Noboribetsu, Hokkaido
Fried chika
Chika is a sea-dwelling smelt of the same genus as wakasagi, common along the Hokkaido coast.
From: Below freezing outside, a fireplace within
Noboribetsu, Hokkaido
Zangi
Fried chicken eaten all over Hokkaido.
From: Below freezing outside, a fireplace within
Noboribetsu, Hokkaido
Wakasagi and ice fishing
Wakasagi is a smelt about 10 centimeters long; in Hokkaido it is also called chika locally.
From: Below freezing outside, a fireplace within
Noboribetsu, Hokkaido
Hokkaido dialect
Three Hokkaido words from this episode's narration: namara means "very"; shibareru means freezing cold; and shitakke means "well then" or "so," and also serves…
From: Below freezing outside, a fireplace within
Noboribetsu, Hokkaido
Soda Shokudo
A neighborhood diner in the town of Noboribetsu.
From: Below freezing outside, a fireplace within
Noboribetsu, Hokkaido
Kani Goten
A red building on Route 36 with a bear and a salmon on its roof, housing a seafood restaurant and a seafood shop.
From: Below freezing outside, a fireplace within