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Lesson
Real-World English
Instant Noodles
Read and Respond
Today, instant noodles are popular as a gquick meal worldwide,
but most of us don't know that they were originally invented in
Japan in 1958.
After World War II, Japan was suffering from a serious food
shortage. The Ministry of Health encouraged people to eat
bread made from wheat flour, which was supplied by the United States. Ando
Momofuku, the president of an Osaka-based food company, didn't like bread, so
he set about creating something different from the imported wheat flour.
He tried to make a food that would appeal to Japanese tastes, and his answer
was instant noodles. After months of trial and error, Ando invented a way to
deep-fry noodles to preserve them. All his customers had to do was pour hot
water over them and let them steam for a couple of minutes. This quick and easy
dish was a great success. Instant noodles quickly became popular all over Japan.
Words & Phrases > food shortage 食糧不足 > the Ministry of Health (当時の)厚生省
トwheat flour 小麦粉
> Osaka-based 大阪を拠点とした
> set about
~に取りかかる トmonths of trial and error 何か月にも及ぶ試行錯誤
> deep-fry たっぷりの油で揚げる
[Questions]
Q1. Who invented instant noodles?
Q2. Why did the Ministry of Health encourage people to eat bread after World War
II?
Q3. Why were instant noodles so successful?
