Broadcast date: February 1, 2010

What are the noodles made of in the first place? It turned out to be wheat. So, where did noodles first appear? Huang Shuyi took everyone to a market near the Flame Mountain in Xinjiang to see the "stretched" noodles made by the old woman with her hands. This kind of noodles is closely related to the earliest noodles!

In 1991, multiple mass graves with a history of 2,500 years were discovered in Xinjiang. A bowl containing the earliest noodles was discovered among the unearthed cultural relics. However, the raw material of noodles - wheat, does not originate from Xinjiang, so where does the wheat come from? How did humans first use wheat to make food?

However, clues have been found in the unearthed cultural relics, and a leather mask can trace the origin of wheat! The results confirmed that wheat came from the Mesopotamia region west of Xinjiang. In the Mesopotamia region, which is now Iran, humans have cultivated wheat here 9,000 years ago, which is where wheat first appeared.

The earliest way to eat wheat was to grind flour with a stone mill to make food similar to bread. The film team went to the Sahara Desert in North Africa to get a glimpse of the earliest method of making bread. They made it The bread looks more like a pancake than a loaf of bread. The North Africans invented stone mills to produce bread, which was introduced to Rome. The Romans, who were obsessed with eating bread, even invented the "oven" and spread the bread baking technology to Europe.

After a lot of accumulated wisdom, humans grind wheat into powder and then knead it into dough to make bread for eating. So who knows how to turn the dough into strips of noodles? Why did noodles first appear in Xinjiang? The film team took everyone back to Xinjiang to see a kind of noodles that the nomadic Kazakhs eat on special days, called "Naren", which means hand-caught mutton noodles. The Tajiks are an ethnic group originating from Iran and still live in Xinjiang. The "La Tiaozi" they made may have evolved from the oldest noodles. If the earliest noodles appeared in Xinjiang, when were they introduced to China? Broadcast date: February 8, 2010

There are many types of Chinese pasta, with more than 1,300 styles. Why are Chinese people so obsessed with pasta?

Chinese people eat pasta like crazy. They not only regard pasta as food, but also as an art and a game!

How can the Chinese pull out two million noodles from one kilogram of flour?

How did the Chinese create noodles that are both edible and attractive, such as knife-shaped noodles, pick-point noodles, and cat ears?

How can pasta flourish from the hands of the Chinese?

In this episode, Huang Shuyi will continue to take everyone to taste the "unparalleled noodles" from China!

When talking about Chinese pasta, we have to mention Shanxi Province. Sliced ??noodles, pointed noodles, cat ears, etc. are all produced here. It is roughly estimated that there are more than 280 kinds of pasta in Shanxi. A Shanxi chef can use one kilogram of flour to make two million strands of hand-made dough. The dough is smooth and elastic. In addition to the skill of the chef, there is another secret: the stickiness of the dough. So why is dough sticky and elastic at the same time?

In order to solve the mystery, the film team took everyone to the Yungang Grottoes. This grotto, which has been listed as a world cultural heritage, has been standing for more than 1,500 years. However, the Buddha statues in the grotto were seriously damaged. The culprit was not man-made vandalism. It's the water source in this area. However, it is this water that makes the noodles here unique! The mystery was revealed. After a pH test, it was found that the water here is 7.91, which is alkaline. When alkaline water meets flour, the tenacity of gluten will be stronger, so the dough will become longer, longer and smoother!

There is no wheat in southern China, but the Chinese use other materials to make noodles, such as "rice noodles" made from rice. The film team took everyone to the Hani village in Yunnan to see how they make and eat rice noodles.

Huang Shuyi takes everyone back to ancient Kaifeng and Chang'an to see why China's earliest night market appeared in Chang'an during the Song Dynasty? Let’s go to Kaifeng, a city with prosperous commerce, and look at the two-story large restaurants that appeared five hundred years earlier than Europe. What were the most popular dishes in Kaifeng restaurants at that time? Also, how diversified were the cooking skills of people in the Han Dynasty? How staggering was the division of labor and scale of the kitchen?

The oldest cooking methods in China are "steaming" and "boiling". China's earliest written noodle recipe was found in an ancient book with a history of more than 1,400 years. The program also invited experts to demonstrate how the ancient Chinese cooked noodles! Broadcast date: February 15, 2010

China has carried forward the pasta culture, and it has also affected the food culture of neighboring countries! In this episode, Huang Shuyi will take everyone to "Bhutan", a small Buddhist country in southwest China. What are the similarities between Menchi and Puta, the most popular local noodles, and Chinese noodles? Are Thailand’s rice noodles and kuih noodles, and Vietnam’s lemon noodles very similar to China’s rice noodles and river noodles? How are they made?

In Bhutan, a Buddhist country that is independent of the world, there is a kind of pasta made by all the women in the village. What is so special about this kind of pasta? Bhutanese people live a simple life, and the national happiness index ranks among the best! The Bhutanese would rather give up earning foreign exchange and only allow 7,000 tourists to enter the country every year. The purpose is to reduce the cultural impact caused by tourism and preserve the distinctive traditional festivals and traditional food.

"Ceqiu" is a Buddhist celebration and an important festival for the Bhutanese people. The Bhutanese people will make a kind of buckwheat noodles called Puta to celebrate. Why don’t Bhutanese use wheat to make noodles? Buckwheat has almost no gluten and is difficult to knead into dough, so making Puta takes a lot of work and requires tools to help, so women in the whole village will make Puta together. What’s the best way to eat Puta? In fact, whether it tastes good or not depends not only on the taste, but also on the thought behind it. Puta is a noodle that took a whole day of collective effort to make, and of course it is very delicious!

Bhutanese also like to eat another new type of noodles called Menchi. Menchi is made from wheat and has a history of only 20 years in Bhutan, and the price is not cheap! Bhutanese would rather spend a little more to have a bite of Menchi noodles. What is the charm of Menchi? Some scholars believe that Menchi was introduced to Bhutan from China. What is the basis?

The history of rice cultivation can be traced back to 10,000 years ago, and the Dai people in southern China also have a long history of making rice noodles. However, the process of making rice noodles is very complicated. It takes three days to soak the rice in water, grind it into rice milk, ferment it, make it into rice noodles and boil it in hot water. Only then can I make my own rice noodles. The Dai people’s tradition of making rice noodles is passed down from generation to generation, even thousands of miles away!

Seven hundred years ago, the Dai people were expelled by the Mongols, and some fled to Thailand to settle. Foods such as rice noodles and rice noodles also began to take root in Thailand. In a secret room of Thailand’s Cabbage Garden Palace, we can see from the murals that Thais regard the noodles as precious to worship Buddha. These noodles may be Thai people’s favorite rice noodles! What is the most traditional and authentic way to make Khanom Chin rice noodles in Thailand? As for Gui Diao, which is also familiar to us, how did it come to be born in the floating market and become a street noodle?

In addition to Thailand, Vietnam is also influenced by China, and its food culture is very similar. In "Hekou", the largest city in Vietnam, you can see street stalls selling rice noodles, but the Vietnamese call it "lemon". Food cultures influence each other. The roll noodles sold in a restaurant in China come from Vietnam and are very popular among diners. Broadcast date: February 22, 2010

Japanese people like to eat noodles just like Chinese people, and there are many types of noodles, such as ramen, udon and soba noodles, etc., which are exquisite in appearance. How do the Japanese make noodles so amazing and creative? Soba noodles have already begun to develop in Japan during the Edo period. How did soba noodles evolve into a fast food delicacy at that time? Sanki Udon is world-renowned, and its meticulous preparation method is breathtaking. How can you make a perfect bowl of Udon?

In a Buddhist temple in Japan - Eiheiji Temple, monks have to practice hard every day. In their minds, they regard eating noodles as a reward. Why? As early as the Song Dynasty, there were frequent trade exchanges between China and Japan. In addition, a large number of Japanese monks went to China to seek Dharma. As a result, Chinese Buddhist food and cooking methods were continuously spread eastward to Japan. In fact, the earliest noodles that appeared in Japan were soba noodles. Why?

Many famous soba restaurants in Tokyo are more than a hundred years old, and they still retain the traditional method of making soba noodles. Soba noodles became popular all over Japan in the 19th century. Many shops were opened and a ranking list of the 100 best soba restaurants was established. There is a seasoning called "bonito", which is one of the reasons why soba noodles are popular. What exactly is it? Today, the soba craze is still going strong. In Morioka, Honshu, a soba-eating competition is held regularly, and there are a lot of tricks!

Udon is a unique food in Japan. In Sanki, Kagawa, Japan, there is always an udon shop nearby. Sanki people like the feeling of udon sliding across their lips, so they usually eat it with a "snowy" sound. But how do you make a perfect bowl of udon? See how the chefs at the best udon restaurants in the county prepare their udon.

Japanese people also like to eat ramen. The Japanese use creativity to make ramen more fascinating and quickly penetrate into every corner. The Japanese's new fire ramen, how to make the ramen catch fire? Noodles are equally popular in ancient and modern Japan. One of the reasons is that they are convenient. Come to a noodle shop in a Tokyo subway station and see how every second counts to make noodles taste new over time! Broadcast date: March 1, 2010

A bowl of noodles contains many beautiful wishes! Japanese people are accustomed to eating vegetarian noodles on July 7th, which means good luck; Thai people eat noodles on festive days, which means happy events will come one after another; Chinese people eat longevity noodles, hoping for a long life! As for Korean pasta culture, it is also infiltrated with Confucianism. In this episode, Huang Shuyi will take a look at the characteristics of Korean pasta and how modern instant noodles have affected the world.

The descendants of Yi Hwang, the leader of Korean Confucianism, hold sacrifices to their ancestors every year on the 15th day of the sixth lunar month. The sacrifices are rich in food, one of which is noodles. Noodles are made from wheat. Koreans regard wheat as a treasure, and making a bowl of noodles takes a lot of time, so noodles are used to express filial piety!

Buddhism plays an important role in South Korea, and Buddhism has also changed the food culture of Koreans. How is a Buddhist noodle dish "Perilla Jade Melon Noodles" made? What are the habits of Korean monks when eating noodles? In the program, you will also try to make the traditional Korean noodle "Jeommyeon" based on Korea's first cookbook.

During the Joseon Dynasty, flour was a rare foreign ingredient, and beef noodle soup was among the aristocratic dishes.

Emperor Gaozong loved to eat "Pyongyang cold noodles" the most. What ingredients are used in this cold noodles? Why do Koreans love to eat cold noodles in winter? What’s the secret of Korean traditional soba noodles?

Today, Koreans have taken pasta into space. Dr. Lee So-yeon, the first Korean astronaut to set foot on the space station, brought ten kinds of Korean-developed space food to space, including Dr. Lee's favorite noodles. How are these space pastas different? The development of pasta can be rapid, and there is one person who takes the greatest credit. He created the world's first bowl of instant noodles. Who is he? Currently, five billion people around the world eat 10 billion packages of instant noodles every year, making it the most consumed processed food.

Modern people pay attention to efficiency in their lives. Noodles have developed to this day and have become one of the global delicacies. Ordinary noodles have become extraordinary and have conquered the world. Broadcast date: March 8, 2010

With more than 300 varieties of pasta, Italy is called the European Noodle Kingdom. Strips of pasta are common enough, but what’s so special about the taste of layers of pasta? Have you ever had sweet pasta? Why is fresh pasta just for the aristocracy?

There are various kinds of noodles in Italy, because Italians eat noodles with almost every meal, just like Chinese people eat rice, and they are happy without rice. In the Middle Ages, the Arabs invaded Sicily, Italy, so the area was deeply influenced by Islamic culture, and the food was also excellent. The traditional dishes "Parmesan cheese-baked eggplant" and "straight pasta" are good examples. How to cook the thousand-year-old straight pasta to make it delicious?

Bologna, an ancient city in central Italy, has a pasta culture that is completely different from Sicily. The locals will cut the dough into small squares of five centimeters, called Tortelli, which is what we know as "Italian wontons". This pasta is very popular in central Italy. In addition to Tortelli, there are hundreds of freshly made pastas. Gnocchi is stuffed with potatoes, Ravioli is filled with fresh milk cheese, and there is also a kind called Baquero, which means slap in Italian. There is a story!

Pasta has been available in many varieties since ancient times. In addition to being a staple food, it can also be used as a dessert! Huang Shuyi will take everyone to a market in Sicily to taste almond cake made from dough; to an ice cream shop in Iran to see a dessert made of noodles, which has a history of 400 years.

Pasta can be simply divided into two categories, dry pasta and fresh pasta. Most of what ordinary people eat on weekdays is dry pasta. Dried noodles allow pasta to stand on its own and be marketed around the world. What factors lead to the creation of dry pasta? Huang Shuyi will take everyone to the Capuchin monastery in Sicily. There are more than 7,000 mummies in the basement of the monastery, all of which have been naturally dried. These mummies are well preserved. What’s the secret? What does this have to do with dry pasta?

As for the history of fresh pasta, it is older than dry pasta. Before the mid-16th century, fresh pasta was considered a luxury delicacy, and only the upper class had the opportunity to enjoy it. The country once banned the production of pasta during times of famine. Why? Broadcast date: March 15, 2010

Italy is the noodle kingdom in Europe. When were noodles introduced to Italy? Was it really Marco Polo who brought noodles back to Italy from China? Or are Italians self-taught? What process did pasta go through before it could flourish and dominate Europe? In the last episode of "The Best Noodles", Huang Shuyi will explain it to everyone one by one!

Eating pasta was already popular in Venice in the fourteenth century. When and how did noodles appear in Italy? One of the theories is that Marco Polo brought noodles back to Italy from China. Is this true? However, in "Marco Polo's Travels", no food records mention that he brought noodles back to Italy from China; and there are books recording that as early as 1244, before Marco Polo returned to Europe from China, Italy People already eat pasta regularly. So could noodles be invented by the Romans in ancient times? Huang Shuyi took everyone to the ancient Roman city of Pompeii, which was buried alive by a volcanic eruption two thousand years ago. From the ruins of the ancient city, it was not found that the ancient Romans had the habit of eating pasta.

We came to an ancient church built in the 11th century in Palermo, the capital of Sicily. There were many Arabs in turbans painted on the ceiling of the church. It turned out that more than a thousand years ago, an Arab The army landed in Sicily and ruled for two hundred years. It turns out that noodles were introduced to Sicily during this period, and then spread throughout Italy and Europe. Scholars believe that the Sicilian dry pasta itriya is the ancestor of all kinds of spaghetti.

As early as the Tang Dynasty, tens of thousands of Westerners came to China's big cities such as Kaifeng for trade via the Silk Road. At that time, the dry food carried by Arab merchants was a kind of flat bread that could be stored for a week. Later, dry noodles were developed, and dry noodles also spread along their business routes. When noodles were introduced to Italy, how did Italians promote noodles?

“Noodles” is a simple and delicious food, but behind it is the fusion of the dietary civilization and wisdom of various ethnic groups, making it a “peerless good noodle” for humans around the world.