Soba

Soba is a Japanese noodle made from buckwheat flour, usually with wheat flour added. Under the Japanese labelling code, fresh soba is a mix of at least 30 % buckwheat flour and no more than 70 % wheat flour with up to 0.8 % ash, kneaded with water and cut.

For dried soba the label rules are stricter still. If there is less than 30 % buckwheat, the maker must state the actual share, for example 20 %, and below 10 % must write less than 10 %. The voluntary Japanese JAS standard for dried soba requires at least 40 % buckwheat flour for the standard grade and 50 % for the upper grade; besides buckwheat and wheat flour it allows yam and seaweed as binders and salt, but no additives. The same figure applies to instant soba: with less than 30 % buckwheat the word soba may not appear on the pack.

Buckwheat is not a cereal and contains no gluten protein; Italian pizzoccheri are also made from buckwheat flour. In Japan buckwheat is distilled into soba shōchū, and bees make buckwheat honey from its nectar.

Why it matters to you. Most soba contains wheat, so it is gluten-free only when there is no wheat flour in the ingredients. In Japan buckwheat is one of eight mandatory allergens on labels, alongside wheat, egg, milk and peanut.