Yaka mein, sometimes called Old Sober, is a beef noodle soup similar to ramen found in New Orleans, Louisiana. The dish typically has noodles, a hard-cooked boiled egg, chopped beef, and a broth made from a unique and often proprietary blend of Creole spices and seasonings.
Yaka mein was likely introduced to New Orleans by Chinese immigrants in the 1800s who were working as laborers building railroads. Chinese immigrants were also working on sugar plantations in Louisiana. These immigrants and their descendants formed New Orleans’ Chinatown. The Chinese immigrants made yaka mein, an improvised noodle soup based on a traditional Chinese soup, using locally sourced ingredients, such as spaghetti in the place of traditional Chinese noodles.
An 1871 wood engraving titled “Chinese cheap labor in Louisiana- Chinamen at work on the Milloudon Sugar Plantation.”
Courtesy of Library of Congress.
Yaka mein is an excellent example of how cultures interacted and influenced each other. As the “Queen of Creole Cuisine,” Leah Chase pointed out that in New Orleans, Chinese and African Americans lived and worked side by side, and their cultures and food traditions blended. Black patrons of Chinatown’s restaurants enjoyed yaka mein and recreated it at Creole and soul food restaurants, adding their flavors and twists along the way.
The former On Leong Merchant Association Building on Bourbon Street in New Orleans in 2010. The building was located in New Orleans’ second Chinatown. The first Chinatown was on Tulane Avenue and existed from the 1870s to the 1930s, while the second Chinatown existed from roughly 1937 to the 1970s.
Courtesy of Winston Ho. CC BY-SA 3.0.
New Orleans residents like Linda Green, known as the Ya-Ka-Mein Lady, are helping keep the delicious bowl of noodles alive. Green learned her recipe from her mother, and she has been serving the soup at jazz festivals, local museums, and pop-up events right outside her home. Green’s recipe is a well-kept trade secret made with a blend of unique spices. Green serves yaka mein with several protein choices like traditional beef, oyster, shrimp, duck, and alligator.
An undated photo of Ms. Linda Green, the Ya-Ka-Mein Lady.
Courtesy of Romney Caruso and Where Y’At.
New Orleans, Louisiana, isn’t the only place to find yaka mein. The Tidewater Region of Virginia, which includes Portsmouth, Suffolk, and Norfolk, has a similar dish known as yock-a-mein, or a box of yock. “Box” refers to the carryout box that Chinese food is served in. Like New Orleans, yock-a-mein was introduced to the Tidewater region by Chinese immigrants who moved to the area in the 20th century. Chinese immigrants were segregated and lived in African American communities and opened Chinese restaurants in those communities. As African Americans ate at the Chinese restaurants and enjoyed the dish, they took it home, making their take on yock-a-mein.
An undated photo of Park Wong, the founder of the Norfolk Noodle Company, which supplied noodles used in yock-a-mein.
Courtesy of Jenny Wong and Southern Grit Magazine.
Tidewater yock and New Orleans yaka mein are different. The Tidewater variation is made with locally produced lo-mein noodles, unlike the spaghetti noodles you would find in New Orleans. Beef, pork, chicken, and sometimes even sausage can be found on top of the noodles, along with diced white onions. Tidewater yock is broth-based too, but it also features soy sauce, hot sauce, ketchup, and cayenne pepper.
Yaka mein is a beautiful example of how dishes and food traditions migrate along with people and evolve and change, given the ingredients and regions where they end up. If you’re looking for a steaming bowl of yaka mein, check out Chef Linda Green, the Ya-Ka-Mein Lady’s Instagram or Facebook to see where she will pop up next!
A bowl of Old Sober in 2011.
Courtesy of Just Grimes. CC BY-SA 2.0.
