Editing Ramen (section)

===Popularization and modernization===
[[File:Shina soba yatai.jpg|thumb|Women eating ''shina soba'' at a ''shina soba'' stall, Tokyo, 1956]]
After Japan's defeat in [[World War II]], the [[USFJ|American military]] occupied the country from 1945 to 1952.<ref name="ao2018"/> In December 1945, Japan recorded its worst rice harvest in 42 years,<ref name="ao2018"/><ref>{{Cite journal|title=Need, Greed, and Protest in Japan's Black Market, 1938–1949|journal = Journal of Social History|volume = 35|issue = 4|pages = 825–858|last=Griffiths|first=Owen|date=29 August 2018|jstor = 3790613|doi = 10.1353/jsh.2002.0046|s2cid = 144266555|doi-access = free}}</ref> which caused food shortages as Japan had drastically reduced rice production during the war as production shifted to colonies in China and Formosa island.<ref name="ao2018"/> The US flooded the market with cheap wheat flour to deal with food shortages.<ref name="ao2018"/> From 1948 to 1951, bread consumption in Japan increased from 262,121 tons to 611,784 tons,<ref name="ao2018"/> but wheat also found its way into ramen, which most Japanese ate at [[black market]] food vendors to survive as the government food distribution system ran about 20 days behind schedule.<ref name="ao2018"/> Although the Americans maintained Japan's wartime ban on outdoor food vending,<ref name="ao2018"/> flour was secretly diverted from commercial mills into the black markets,<ref name="ao2018"/> where nearly 90 percent of stalls were under the control of gangsters related to the ''[[yakuza]]'' who extorted vendors for protection money.<ref name="ao2018"/> Thousands of ramen vendors were arrested during the occupation.<ref name="ao2018"/>

[[File:Shinjuku (6969833313).jpg|thumb|A mobile ramen stall (''[[Yatai (food cart)|yatai]]'') in [[Shinjuku]], Tokyo]]
In the same period, millions of Japanese troops returned from China and continental East Asia from their posts in the [[Second Sino-Japanese War]]. Some of them would have been familiar with wheat noodles.<ref name="ao2018" /> By 1950 wheat flour exchange controls were removed and restrictions on food vending loosened, which further boosted the number of ramen vendors: private companies even rented out ''[[Yatai (food cart)|yatai]]'' starter kits consisting of noodles, toppings, bowls, and chopsticks.<ref name="ao2018" /> Ramen {{lang|ja-latn|yatai}} provided a rare opportunity for small-scale postwar entrepreneurship.<ref name="ao2018" /> The Americans also aggressively advertised the nutritional benefits of wheat and animal protein.<ref name="ao2018" /> The combination of these factors caused wheat noodles to gain prominence in Japan's rice-based culture.<ref name="ao2018" /> Gradually, ramen became associated with urban life.<ref name="ao2018" />

[[File:Tonkotsu ramen - tokyo area June 20 2021.webm|thumb|thumbtime=1|A hot bowl of ''tonkotsu'' ramen in Tokyo]]
In 1958, [[instant noodle]]s were invented by [[Momofuku Ando]], the Taiwanese-Japanese founder and chairman of [[Nissin Foods]]. Named the greatest Japanese [[invention]] of the 20th century in a Japanese poll,<ref>{{cite news| title = Japan votes noodle the tops| url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/1067506.stm| access-date = 2007-04-25 | work=BBC News | date=2000-12-12}} BBC News</ref> instant ramen allowed anyone to make an approximation of this dish simply by adding boiling water.

Beginning in the 1980s, ramen became a Japanese cultural icon and was studied around the world. At the same time, local varieties of ramen were hitting the national market and could even be ordered by their regional names. A [[Shin-Yokohama Raumen Museum|ramen museum]] opened in [[Yokohama]] in 1994.<ref>''[[Japanorama]]'', Series 3, Episode 4. ''[[BBC Three (former)|BBC Three]]'', 9 April 2007</ref>

Today ramen is one of Japan's most popular foods, with Tokyo alone containing around 5,000 ramen shops,<ref name="ao2018"/> and more than 24,000 ramen shops across Japan.<ref name="bbc2016">{{cite web|last=Demetriou|first=Danielle|url=http://www.bbc.com/travel/story/20160223-is-this-japans-best-ramen|website=BBC Travel|title=The holy grail of ramen dishes|date=23 February 2016|access-date=26 August 2018}}</ref> ''Tsuta'', a ramen restaurant in Tokyo's [[Sugamo]] district, received a [[Michelin star]] in December 2015.<ref name="bbc2016"/>