8474E2C3-23A6-488E-B992-0B09C7FCEF86-9218CE0A-8FEE-4F98-80C0-A3009C8D2A5B.JPG — Tomoko in japan

On our Inside Japan Tour, we take our travelers to Tomoko's small boutique food store in Osaka where she hosts intimate Japanese cuisine cooking experiences. In the three years since she started her small business, she’s cooked with over 2000 guests from over 47 countries.

It was in Tomoko’s shop that TTLT founder, Annie, first learned how to make udon noodles — those round, chewy Japanese noodles that are everywhere in Japan.

Annie says, “Tomoko patiently walked me through the many different variations of udon noodles (who knew there were so many!). It was one of my favorite dishes of my childhood — reminding me of the times my dad would take me to work with him once a year and always treat me to a bowl of tempura udon for lunch.”

Annie & Tomoko with the finished udon noodles waiting to be boiled.

Stepping on the tough udon dough to activate the gluten.

“I was completely shocked when Tomoko showed me the secret to their perfect, chew consistency was actually STEPPING on the noodles — in a clean, sanitary way, of course — using plastic bags to wrap the flour & water concoction multiple times before using your feet to slowly build the gluten chains that bring the dough to the perfect bouncy consistency.

“In September that year, I returned to Osaka and to Tomoko's small shop with a group of eight travelers. In pairs, we learned how to make those same noodles, lightly stepping back and forth on our dough, and then dining on the fruits of our labor.”

Travelers on our Inside Japan Tour with Tomoko & Annie in Tomoko’s shop in Osaka.

Because Tomoko’s business works mostly with tourists, on March 16, 2020, everything came to a frozen halt when COVID-19 hit. No more groups, no more in-person anything.

Tomoko says teaching online classes with us at The Table Less Traveled during the pandemic has not only been about getting a helpful form of income during this difficult time, but she was also thrilled she could continue, as she says, “enjoying the communication with overseas guests, because I love international exchange.”

One particular thing she’s found interesting working with us, has been collaborating on developing new recipes for our classes, as she’s been able to gain insight into the favorite and popular Japanese dishes in the U.S.

Tomoko’s passion for sharing culture and cuisine is infused in all her classes as she goes above and beyond to fill the time with not only the recipe you plan on making, but with cultural and historical information that make you feel like you’ve just taken a quick immersive trip to Japan for a delicious meal.

If you’d like to meet Tomoko and practice making Japanese goodies in your own home, take a look at her upcoming classes below! And if you have any Japanese dishes you’d like to see on our schedule — leave us a comment!