tanuki soba; soba with tempura batter bits
A bowl of hot soba noodles topped with small, crispy bits of tempura batter (tenkasu). The name literally means 'raccoon dog soba,' but the dish contains no meat.
On a cold day, I crave tanuki soba.
Tanuki soba has tempura batter bits on top.
Standard kanji spelling for this dish name.
Kana spelling is common in menus and casual writing.
The name literally means 'raccoon dog soba.' The exact origin is uncertain, but it is often said to come from the idea that tanuki are tricksters, and the dish 'tricks' you by having no meat despite the name, or from the brown color of the batter bits resembling tanuki fur.