Tsukemen @ Menya Shi Shi Do, Jaya One, Petaling Jaya

Here we are and back again! And this time, it is a different take on my favourite form of carbs, noodles. Most people outside Japan may not have heard about tsukemen (つけ麺). Directly translated to as "dipping noodles", this noodle dish is the slightly more complicated cousin of the standard ramen noodle with soup most people that are familiar with. 

A view of the inside

Unlike your traditional ramen, tsukemen comes with a fortified broth where you first had to dip your noodles and leave it to absorb some of that broth before chowing down. Hence the name "dipping noodles". And there is no better place than my favourite joint, Menya Shi Shi Do. This is a revisit post so I will just focus on the tsukemen here. If you would like to read my first post on my overall take on this amazing place, do click here. So for now, I will just go straight to the noodles.

What a monster

The noodles are much thicker than your standard strand. This is because so that it can withstand a more vigorous eating style. It would not break easily. And the broth I ordered was my usual kuro midori, the usual flavour when I am here for my tonkotsu. So I was curious how things would turn out if the soup was fortified. 

Very very intense. Key word is very. 

It was, as expected, very intense. The broth was saltier, sweeter, and of course a lot more porky. The pork fat, which is usually at the background in the standard ramen soup this place usually serves, comes center stage. It even had a bacon-like after taste to it. This was thoroughly enjoyable, although my doctor would say my heart would not enjoy it as much.

Let the slurping begin!

One trick is that you have to let the noodle sit in the broth for a bit before slurping. How long you would like to dip it for is up to you. But for me, about 10 seconds would be enough. The noodles are also much more chewy than your average and it sticks to that tasty porky nectar very easily. Each slurp was amazing. The braised pork that came with it was also pretty spectacular. Fatty, tender and packed with soy sauce flavours, the braised pork can easily go well with some rice. The egg that came with the noodles was standard fare for this place, which would translate as very good. 

Balls of fire!

Needing a bit more stuff to top things off, I got myself some croquettes. But it is not your standard French types, not the potato ones you get from a Japanese supermarket. It was a combination of potato mash and minced meat. Imagine potato balls and meat balls getting it funky and have children. That was how it tasted. Delicious.

Once again, this was another satisfying lunch. The tsukemen is not cheap though, as it stood for about RM30 a serving and the croquettes about RM 5.90. But then again, with such good quality food, you will bet your bottom dollar that it was worth it. It deserved my revisit, and I am sure I would head there again soon. Fancy a go? The address is as follows:

100-1.039, The School, Jaya One, No.72A, Jalan Universiti, 46200 Petaling Jaya, Selangor