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Japanese buckwheat noodles. They can be served either chilled with dipping sauce or in hot broth. Soba is often complimented with different toppings to represent the season it is served in, as buckwheat can only be harvested four times in the year.
It is customary to eat soba on New Year's Eve to cut off the hardships of the year as soba is easily cut while eating.
See also
This tag implicates noodles (learn more).
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