Champon

Original Shikairō Champon

Champon (ちゃんぽん, Chanpon), also known as Chanpon, is a noodle dish that is a regional cuisine of Nagasaki, Japan. Due to the inspiration from Chinese cuisine, it is also a form of Japanese Chinese cuisine. Champon is made by frying pork, seafood and vegetables with lard; a soup made with chicken and pig bones is added. Ramen noodles made especially for champon are added and then boiled. Unlike other ramen dishes, only one pan is needed as the noodles are boiled in the soup. Depending on the season and the situation, the ingredients differ. Hence the taste and style may depend on the location and time of year.

History

Champon was first served by Shikairō (四海楼), a Chinese restaurant in Nagasaki. According to the restaurant, it was based on a dish in Fujian cuisine, tonniishiimen (湯肉絲麵).^[1] In the middle of the Meiji period, the owner saw a need for a cheap, filling meal that suited the palates of hundreds of Chinese students who came to Japan for school. Nowadays, champon is a popular specialty food (or meibutsu) of Nagasaki.^[2]

Etymology

Look up champon or ちゃんぽん in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

The word champon derives from the Fujian word shapon (吃飯), which means "to eat a meal".^[1][2]

References

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