Geo answer

Eat up!

Today is World Instant Noodle Day. Instant noodles were invented in the city we’re looking for in today’s Geo Quiz. The man who came up with instant noodles was named Momofuku Ando.

World Instant Noodles Association executive Norio Sakurai says Ando started working on the idea after Japan’s defeat in World War Two.

“He saw the devastation of the war, and he wanted to create something which is nutritious, tasty, and stirrable, and easy to prepare at a reasonable price.”

He did. The world’s first pre-cooked instant noodle — Chicken Ramen — was born 50 years ago today. It made its debut in a city in Japan’s Osaka Prefecture.

That’s the city we’re looking for today. About 100,000 people live there. Some of them participated in the city’s annual Gangara Fire Festival yesterday. It concluded with a torchlight procession up Mount Satsuki.

Others paid a visit to one of the city’s tourist attractions. It’s the Momofuku Ando Instant Ramen Museum. Heat up the answer to today’s Geo Quiz here …

In a moment…an Italian God of Metal. But first, we return to today’s Geo Quiz. We were looking for the Japanese city where the instant noodle was invented 50 years ago today.

Norio Sakurai of the World Instant Noodles Association reveals the answer.

Ikeda City in Osaka Prefecture, Japan.

That’s Ikeda city — IKEDA. Sakurai says it wasn’t long before instant noodles were being eaten just about everywhere.

“Instant noodles can be arranged to the local flavor and local culture, so instant noodle could spread to the world in many different cultures and eating habits.”

And who doesn’t like instant noodles?! But if there’s one thing better, its FRESH noodles. You can get FRESH noodles all over the world, too. We’ve decided to take a ramen break at the first American branch of the Japanese chain, Ippudo.

It opened in New York this year. Toshiya Suganuma manages the restaurant. And there’s one dish on the menu he’s especially proud of.

Toshiya Suganuma spoke with us from his Ippudo Noodle House in New York.