Description
Book SynopsisTasty, convenient, and cheap, instant noodles are one of the most remarkable industrial foods ever. Consumed around the world by millions, they appeal to young and old, affluent and impoverished alike. This title examines the history, manufacturing, marketing, and consumption of instant noodles.
Trade Review"Three anthropologists, intrigued by the presence of instant noodles everywhere from the wealthiest college campuses to the poorest cities of the developing world, decided to chronicle the food’s emergence in Japan, the United States, and Papua New Guinea. In their new book,
The Noodle Narratives: The Global Rise of an Industrial Food into the Twenty-First Century, Deborah Gewertz of Amherst College, Frederick Errington of Trinity College, and Tatsuro Fujikura at Kyoto University show just how much can depend on one affordable, portable, dehydrated food."
* Boston Globe *
"Ask about the foods that have conquered the world and you're likely to hear about Coca-Cola and McDonald's Big Macs. But the most successful industrial food ever produced flies far under the radar. And it has finally been outed by three anthropologists in a fascinating new book
The Noodle Narratives, which analyzes the precipitous rise—or "brilliant career," as the authors say—of instant ramen, from its birth in postwar Japan to its sales of just over 100 billion servings worldwide in 2012." * The Salt *
"This book is a tour of the past, present and future of "one of the most remarkable industrial foods ever,” and makes the case that its humble role will become even more important in feeding an increasingly huge human population." * Food Management *
Table of ContentsList of Illustrations and Table Acknowledgments Introduction: Instant Noodles as Quotidian and Ubiquitous 1. The Taste of Something Good 2. Japanese Instant Noodles in the Market and on the Mind 3. What Instant Noodles Reflect and Affect in America 4. Instant Noodles for the Bottom of the Pyramid in Papua New Guinea 5. Making (and Unmaking?) a Big Food World Conclusion: Big Food for a Huge Population? Notes References Index
