Saimin facts for kids
Saimin is a noodle soup developed in Hawaii.
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| Type | Noodle soup |
|---|---|
| Place of origin | United States |
| Region or state | Hawaii |
| Serving temperature | Hot or warm (as ‘fried saimin’) |
| Main ingredients | Dashi, egg & wheat noodles, green onions, and kamaboko |
| Variations | ‘fried saimin’, ‘saidon’ |
Saimin is a tasty noodle soup that is very popular in Hawaii. It usually has soft wheat egg noodles in a hot dashi (a type of broth). It's often topped with chopped green onions and a thin slice of kamaboko (a fish cake).
Today, you can find many versions of saimin. Some have extra toppings like char siu (barbecued pork), sliced Spam, sliced egg, or shredded nori (seaweed). If Chinese dumplings are added, it's called wonton min. Every place that makes saimin has its own special, often secret, soup recipe. But most use kombu (seaweed) and dried shrimp for flavor.
People often add Chinese hot mustard and shoyu (soy sauce) to their saimin broth. You can add a little bit to taste. Many people in Hawaii also enjoy barbecued teriyaki beef sticks or American hamburgers on the side.
Saimin was created during Hawaii's plantation era. It shows how different cultures came together in the Hawaiian Islands. It's a local comfort food that people eat all year round. You can have it for breakfast, lunch, dinner, or even as a late-night snack! Saimin was first eaten by working class people. Now, you can find it everywhere, from fast food chains to fancy five-star hotel restaurants. It's also a common snack at sports events, sold alongside popcorn and nachos. You can even buy saimin as a packaged food, much like instant ramen.
Contents
History of Saimin
What Does Saimin Mean?
The word Saimin comes from two Chinese words. The first word, 細 (xì or sai), means "thin." The second word, 麵 (miàn or min), means "noodle." So, saimin means "thin noodle."
Even though the name is Chinese, people in China might not recognize the written word. The word "saimin" was first written down in Hawaii around 1908. But people probably said it in the local dialect much earlier. In Hawaii's modern pidgin language, "saimin" is now a general term for all noodle soups, especially instant ramen.
How Saimin Started
No one knows exactly how saimin started. But it's clear that saimin, like much of Hawaii's food, came from the many workers who moved to Hawaii. These workers came from China, Japan, Korea, the Philippines, and Portugal. They arrived during the plantation era, which began in the 1850s.
A popular story says that these workers from different backgrounds would share meals after working in the fields. For example, a Korean family might have extra green onions. The Portuguese might have some extra pork from making sausage. The Chinese would share some noodles, and the Japanese would bring some dashi. They would all put their ingredients into a pot and share what they made. This is how saimin might have been born.
However, this story is debated. There are records of tension between different ethnic groups back then. People from different groups often stayed separate. This means they might not have shared meals as often as the story suggests.
One idea is that Japanese immigrants created saimin because they wanted to eat ramen. But they could only use the ingredients they found in Hawaii. This led to the creation of saimin. There are also records of Japanese immigrants selling saimin in Hawaii as early as 1915. This suggests they played a big part in its creation.
But the Japanese ramen theory has some challenges. At that time, ramen was not as popular in Japan as it is today. Also, the Japanese language didn't widely use the word "ramen" (ラーメン) until the 1950s. Before that, it was called shina soba (支那そば), meaning 'Chinese soba'. Saimin noodles look more like the curly yellow Chinese egg noodles used in wonton noodles. They are less like the straight white wheat noodles eaten in Japan. This makes it seem more likely that Chinese immigrants were the first to develop saimin.
Many old newspaper stories in Hawaii link saimin to Chinese people and their neighborhoods. These stories sometimes described saimin as a less fancy, lower-class food. Because of this, it can be a sensitive topic to say that Chinese immigrants started saimin, even with strong written proof. No matter the exact beginning, saimin is a unique dish. Its roots are deep in Hawaii's history, showing how different cultures mixed.
First Saimin Sellers
Saimin was first sold in the early 1900s from unmarked "saimin wagons." These were often an immigrant family's first business step in America. The noodles, broth, and toppings were all made by hand at home. Once everything was ready, they would wheel their wagons to places where plantation workers wanted a cheap, quick meal.
As these families earned more money, they opened fixed shops. The first saimin stands appeared near old plantation towns and farms in Hawaii by the 1930s. They fed hungry fieldworkers for as little as $0.05 a bowl.
Saimin Becomes Popular
Hawaii's economy changed from farming to services in the 1960s and 70s. Saimin stands moved away from the fields. Many more opened near sporting venues, movie theaters, pool halls, and schools. Because it was quick to make and warm, it became a popular late-night snack for young adults. Some public schools in Hawaii even started offering saimin as a regular meal option.
Saimin became a nationally known fast food when Honolulu Stadium opened. It was added to the concession stand menu there. Chuck Tanner, a retired baseball player and manager of the Hawaii Islanders team in 1969 and 1970, remembered: "During the games, fans ate corn on the cob. They had some soup... won ton or something. I don’t know. And they had these sticks with beef on them."
Saimin Today
Saimin became less popular in the 1980s and 90s. This was because other exciting noodle soups like tonkotsu ramen and pho came to Hawaii. Many saimin shops closed down. Now, saimin is a comfort food that brings back good memories for older people in Hawaii.
Famous Saimin Places
Several saimin shops and noodle factories have become important landmarks in Hawaii. They attract visitors who want to explore beyond the usual tourist spots. Many have closed, like Shiroma's Saimin in Waipahu and Washington Saimin in Makiki.
But some old places are still open today. These include Jane's Fountain, The Old Saimin House, Palace Saimin, Meg's Drive In, Shiro's Saimin Haven, Forty-Niner Restaurant, and Sekiya's Restaurant & Delicatessen on Oahu. Other famous spots are Nori's Saimin & Snacks on the Big Island, Sam Sato's on Maui, and Hamura's Saimin on Kauai. Hamura's Saimin even won a special award, America's Classic, from the James Beard Foundation in 2006.
McDonald's Saimin
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McDonald's, a huge American fast-food company, noticed how popular saimin was in Hawaii in the late 1960s. Maurice J. "Sully" Sullivan, a famous Hawaii businessman, bought and opened the first McDonald's in Hawaii in 1968. It was inside his Foodland grocery store. He opened more McDonald's restaurants. For a whole year, McDonald's Hawaii made more money than any other group of McDonald's restaurants in the world!
Sullivan wanted to serve saimin, his favorite meal, at his McDonald's restaurants. He knew it would make his restaurants even more popular. He invited leaders from McDonald's, including the owner Ray Kroc, to eat dinner at two small, family-owned saimin stands in Honolulu: Washington Saimin and Boulevard Saimin.
That night, Sullivan convinced Kroc to add a local "ethnic" food to McDonald's menu for the first time ever. Researchers worked with Washington Saimin to create a recipe for McDonald's Hawaii. Sullivan also made deals with Ajinomoto, a local Japanese company that made saimin noodles and fish cakes. They would make a special soup base for McDonald's.
Today, saimin is one of the most popular items on McDonald's Hawaii menus. Later, Sullivan also added breakfast plates with Portuguese sausage, eggs, and rice; Spam, eggs, and rice; and a "Breakfast deluxe" which combined them. He was very good at using local food trends to make his restaurants successful.
S&S Saimin: Instant Noodles
Like ramen, saimin was also made into an instant noodle in 1963. This was done by the Shimoko & Sons saimin brand, known to locals as S&S saimin. Unlike instant ramen, S&S saimin noodles need to be kept in the fridge or freezer. They are not dry. The noodles are also pre-cooked. This means you just add hot water and a separate soup base packet, and it's ready to eat! Instant saimin became a common food in many Hawaii homes because it's quick and easy to make. People can also add any toppings they like.
S&S helped make saimin very popular. The brand sponsored many local TV shows from the late 1960s to the early 1980s. During this time, S&S sent 20 children to Disneyland through a contest on a children's show called The Checkers and Pogo Show. The saimin brand also sponsored the "S&S Junk Show", a karaoke singing program that ran for 15 seasons.
A Japanese drink company called Ito En bought the S&S saimin brand in 1987. Later, in 2006, it was sold to Sun Noodle, a noodle and pasta maker based in Hawaii.
Different Kinds of Saimin
Some saimin restaurants let you choose different noodles. You can sometimes get thicker udon noodles instead of the usual thin egg noodles. Or, they might mix both, creating a dish called saidon.
There's also a version without soup called fried saimin. It's like Japanese yakisoba or Chinese lo mein. This type is very popular at carnivals, fairs, and parties. It can be made in large amounts and eaten at room temperature. Fried saimin is also served as a side dish in okazuya bento and plate lunch meals.
See also
In Spanish: Saimin para niños
