Otchahoi

Sara otchahoi

Otchahoi (Japanese: オッチャホイ) is a noodle dish local to Shibata, Niigata, Japan. This dish was first introduced by a local restaurant called Singapore Shokudo (Japanese: シンガポール食堂). Although this dish is relatively unknown in Singapore, otchahoi is considered to be Singaporean cuisine by the Japanese.

Description

Otchahoi is made by cooking flat noodles similar to kishimen together with bean sprouts, eggs, komatsuna and cabbage. There are two types of Otchahoi: sara otchahoi (Japanese: 皿オッチャホイ), which is made by stir-frying the ingredients in oil and seasoning with garlic and chili peppers, and shiru otchahoi (Japanese: 汁オッチャホイ), which is made without chili peppers and served in chicken and pork broth.

History

Singapore Shokudo

Otchahoi was created at the suggestion of the father of the founder of Singapore Shokudo, who ran a hotel for the Japanese people in Singapore. The founder was also born in Singapore and spent his childhood there. After World War II, he started a restaurant in Shibata in 1946. His father suggested adding otchahoi, a Singaporean dish that was his favorite, to the menu, and the founder recreated the taste of Singaporean street food, based on his father's memories. In the beginning, only Sara Otchahoi was available on the menu, and later Shiru Otchahoi was added.

Origin

Although otchahoi is widely recognised as a type of Singaporean cuisine, there is no exact dish in Singapore by this name, and it is unclear where the name otchahoi came from. The founder of the Singapore Shokudo had heard that his father had given it the name, but he did not know the origin of the name, and whenever he was asked about it, he would reply, "I don't know either".

Several Japanese people who lived in Singapore before World War II mention a dish called otchahoi. In the writings of Nishioka Kaori (Japanese: 西岡香織), who was involved in broadcasting for Nippon Broadcasting System and Fuji Television, otchahoi appears as a recollection of a Japanese person who once lived in Singapore. There is also a reference to otchahoi in the book Japanese Society in pre-war Singapore (Japanese: 戦前シンガポールの日本人社会), published by The Japanese Association, Singapore [ja]. In this book, the dish is described as "flat mee with starchy sauce.": 219  Another reference in the same book mentions that there was also a version with gravy sauce.: 217 

Japanese newspaper The Asahi Shimbun suggested that the dish may have originated from char kway teow, a dish that is indeed commonly eaten in Singapore and the surrounding countries, due to its similarity in taste and appearance. Asahi Shimbun also suggested the possibility that the name otchahoi may have been derived from Orchard Road, a district in Singapore. A writer Nanjo Takenori [ja] argued that the word may have originated from 炒燴 (chǎo huì).

A game director Sakuma Akira visited Shibata in 2004, tried otchahoi there. In the game Momotaro Dentetsu, which he supervised, the otchahoi appears as one of the properties. and in the animated movie Uma Musume Pretty Derby: Beginning of a New Era [ja], released in 2024, the topic of otchahoi appears in a scene where Dantsu Flame, one of the main characters, talks to Jungle Pocket, the main character.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "（Sunday Style）「オッチャホイ」料理名の謎 新発田の人気ソウルフード/新潟県". 朝日新聞 新潟県版. 2017-06-11. p. 31.
  2. 1 2 探県プロジェクト🔎新発田(しばた)市 ～ まるどりっ！ - UX新潟テレビ21 on YouTube
  3. 1 2 "その名も不思議「オッチャホイ」、新潟・新発田の地元飯". 日本経済新聞. 2020-02-14. Retrieved 2020-02-14.
  4. 1 2 3 "［ぐるメモ］皿オッチャホイ 幅広の麺 唐辛子ピリリ=新潟". 読売新聞 新潟県版. 2014-06-25. p. 32.
  5. 1 2 "食・ニイガタで世界の味(4) オッチャホイ（シンガポール）". 新潟日報. 1997-04-15. p. 13.
  6. ↑ 小野瀬雅生(CRAZY KEN BAND) (2012-04-26). "新潟新発田のシンガポール食堂でオッチャホイ". 小野瀬雅生オフィシャルブログ「世界の涯で天丼を食らうの逆襲」by Ameba. アメーバブログ. Retrieved 2017-03-27.
  7. ↑ 田中貴 (2021-12-27). ラーメン狂走曲. ワン・パブリッシング. p. 179. ISBN 978-4651201726.
  8. ↑ 地主恵亮 (2013-09-27). "オッチャホイの街でオッチャホイを食べる". ちしきの金曜日. デイリーポータルZ. Retrieved 2017-03-27.
  9. ↑ ジブおじさん (2023-03-06). Rarest Singaporean Dish ONLY Found in Japan's Coldest Resion (YouTube). Event occurs at 0m50s. Retrieved 2023-03-12.
  10. ↑ 西岡香織 (1997-04-15). シンガポールの日本人社会史 -「日本小学校」の軌跡-. 芙蓉書房出版. p. 115. ISBN 4-8295-0184-7. 在星十八年の思い出をよみがえらせるのは椰子とドリアンの味、蒼い海、テッカンを握って歩き廻り、オチャホイを喰べたあの街角の店、
  11. ↑ 元浦良一 (April 1970). "南十字星". 会報・南十字星. 5. シンガポール日本小学校同窓会.
  12. ↑ シンガポール日本人会・史蹟史料部, ed. (1998-06-27). "大正〜昭和の暮らしを語る -百瀬俊彦さん会見記-". 戦前シンガポールの日本人社会 -写真と記録- (初版 ed.). シンガポール日本人会. pp. 215–219. ミーは担いで売にきて、屋台ではビーフン、ミー、クイティャオがあって、オチャホイという平ったい黄色か白のミーに豚肉とかモヤシの入ったあんかけ麺が人気があった。
  13. ↑ シンガポール日本人会・史蹟史料部, ed. (2004-05-21). "『襄坊、梅森襄さん大いに語る』1998年11月6日". 戦前シンガポールの日本人社会 -写真と記録- (改訂版 ed.). シンガポール日本人会. pp. 217–219. あの頃よく食べたのは、ミー・ゴレン、サテー、クイティャオ、ミーシャム、ロジャ、ポピア、油条（ユーチョー・クエ）、グレービーのかかったオチャホイ、香港炒飯なんか覚えてます。
  14. ↑ 南條竹則; 橋本金夢（絵） (January 2023). "文豪と食【34】前編". 春陽堂書店. Retrieved 2024-06-19.
  15. ↑ Akira, Sakuma. "さくまあきらホームページ:仕事人裏日記". sakumania.com. Retrieved 2025-03-19.
  16. ↑ "桃鉄研究所再開第61回目！". www.sakumania.com. Retrieved 2025-03-19.
  17. ↑ 吉村清子; 小針哲也 (2024-05-28). "PHASE:1". 小説 劇場版『ウマ娘 プリティーダービー 新時代の扉』. 角川文庫. Cygames（原著）、秋津琢磨（監修）. KADOKAWA. pp. 52–53. ISBN 978-4041146194. 「ねぇ、ポッケちゃん。駅前にできた新しいお店、知ってる？ お昼にウララちゃんから聞いたんだけどね、ニンジンオッチャホイがすっごく美味しいんだって！」