Japan
Napolitan
Napolitan, 5 ways
A thick-noodle ketchup pasta that grew up in Japanese kissaten (coffee shops). Boiling the noodles ahead, reducing the ketchup, and the order of the ingredients are what get you to that flavor.
Official videos by Tomomi Ogura
A representative video and official arrangements with different ingredients or pasta. Check the original videos for the method.
Cook this pasta on video
Watch the creators’ original videos for the method and finish.
Chef Ropia (Akifumi Kobayashi)A Chef's Ultimate Napolitan: How to Get That Chewy, Rich FlavorWatch on YouTube ↗
Chef Ropia (Akifumi Kobayashi)A Chef's Late-Night Meal [Napolitan]: The Umami-Bomb Napolitan You Want at MidnightWatch on YouTube ↗
Koh KentetsuMake It the Moment You Crave It! Rich and Easy Ketchup-Based Homemade NapolitanWatch on YouTube ↗
Koh Kentetsu[Popular Recipe, 4 Million Views] Super Easy! A Recipe Developer Seriously Teaches How to Recreate the Kissaten Flavor at Home — The Ultimate NapolitanWatch on YouTube ↗
Choose from the cooks’ recipes
Each card leads to its source video or recipe page. You can also load a style straight into the builder
RyujiRecipe developer Source verified
Ketchup only; low heat kills acidity, noodles pan-toasted
- Bills itself as 'ketchup only' for seasoning (though the official instructions note bouillon as a backup)
- Sausages cut on a diagonal for a wider surface
- Pan-fries the noodles for a toasty, browned aroma
FabioItalian cook (freelance chef; YouTube channel) Source verified
2.2mm at 12.5 min, 150cc homemade ketchup, yakisoba-style
- Uses homemade ketchup
- Fries the noodles like yakisoba to concentrate umami
- Two-stage cooking of cherry tomatoes, searing the cut faces first
View the original recipe Load this style
In the chef’s words
- The key is to fry it like yakisoba to concentrate the umami — a different taste from store-bought ketchup source
Tomomi OguraOwner-chef of Regalo in Sangubashi Source verified
Fusilli, tomato sauce not ketchup, 1.5% salt, sauce first
- Swaps in fusilli as the main noodle
- Bases the dish on pre-made tomato sauce rather than ketchup
- One of the few sources to state a specific salt concentration (1.5%)
References: [1]
Dry pasta simmered in 400ml tomato juice until it catches
- Reduces the tomato juice until it starts to catch, for a toasted, caramelized aroma
- States his own rich-vs-light variations explicitly
- The same channel has another 'Napolitan' with pancetta and bonito flakes
View the original recipe Load this style
In the chef’s words
- Reduce the tomato juice until it nearly scorches for a rich pasta / halve the tomato juice and thin it with water for a lighter-sauced Napolitan source
Source is a recipe page (no video)
Tsutomu OchiaiOwner-chef of La Bettola da Ochiai in Ginza, Tokyo; honorary chairman of the Associazione Italiana Cucina Italiana in Japan Source verified
Only the add-ins get fried; off-heat Parmesan-butter toss
- 'Only the ingredients get fried' — a toss-style method that never fries the pasta itself
- 30g of Parmesan for depth of flavor
- Uses a block of ham (unusual amid a majority sausage crowd)
View the original recipe Load this style
In the chef’s words
- The Ochiai style is to fry only the ingredients. The pasta is tossed in a sweet-and-tangy ketchup sauce given depth by Parmesan cheese. A silky-smooth Napolitan. source
Compared on 8 axes
Figures are transcribed as written in each video or recipe page
| AXIS | Ryuji | Fabio | Tomomi Ogura | Chef Ropia (Akifumi Kobayashi) | Tsutomu Ochiai |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pasta, portion, and boiling | 100g, thicker noodle recommended, drain lightly | 2.2mm, 90g, 12.5 min | 60g fusilli | 80g, no pre-boiling | 1.4mm, 160g for 2 servings |
| Boiling ahead and oiling | no resting time | no resting time | no resting time | none (simmered directly in tomato juice) | no resting time |
| Handling the ketchup | 4 tbsp, cook off acidity over low heat | 150cc homemade, added later and fried together | not used (80g tomato sauce + oil-marinated paprika) | 400ml tomato juice + ketchup (amount not stated) | 2 tbsp, thinned with 2 tbsp pasta water |
| Ingredients | 3 sausages (cut on a diagonal), onion, mushroom, bell pepper | 45g sausage, 3 mushrooms, 20g red onion, 1 bell pepper, 3 cherry tomatoes | 5 slices bacon, new-crop onion, mushroom, garlic | 2 sausages, onion, 4 mushrooms, bell pepper, chili pepper | 100g onion, 120g block boneless ham, 5 mushrooms, 2 bell peppers |
| Oil and butter | 2 tsp salad oil + 10g butter | 1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil + 10g butter | bacon fat + finishing olive oil | 20g olive oil | 2 tbsp olive oil + butter |
| Heat level | low heat for the ketchup, then pan-fry the noodles | sear color on cherry tomatoes, then fry everything together | low heat | reduce until it catches, then flip | medium, then low, then off |
| Finishing | grated cheese, parsley / black pepper | seared cherry tomatoes | Parmigiano, parsley | 30g grated cheese, parsley | 30g Parmesan, butter |
| Total time | 30 min | not stated | 20 min | 15 min | 15 min |
| Source check | Source verified | Source verified | Source verified | Partly unverified | Source verified |
Ryuji Ketchup only; low heat kills acidity, noodles pan-toasted
- Pasta, portion, and boiling
- 100g, thicker noodle recommended, drain lightly
- Boiling ahead and oiling
- no resting time
- Handling the ketchup
- 4 tbsp, cook off acidity over low heat
- Ingredients
- 3 sausages (cut on a diagonal), onion, mushroom, bell pepper
- Oil and butter
- 2 tsp salad oil + 10g butter
- Heat level
- low heat for the ketchup, then pan-fry the noodles
- Finishing
- grated cheese, parsley / black pepper
- Total time
- 30 min
- Source
- Source verified
Fabio 2.2mm at 12.5 min, 150cc homemade ketchup, yakisoba-style
- Pasta, portion, and boiling
- 2.2mm, 90g, 12.5 min
- Boiling ahead and oiling
- no resting time
- Handling the ketchup
- 150cc homemade, added later and fried together
- Ingredients
- 45g sausage, 3 mushrooms, 20g red onion, 1 bell pepper, 3 cherry tomatoes
- Oil and butter
- 1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil + 10g butter
- Heat level
- sear color on cherry tomatoes, then fry everything together
- Finishing
- seared cherry tomatoes
- Total time
- not stated
- Source
- Source verified
Tomomi Ogura Fusilli, tomato sauce not ketchup, 1.5% salt, sauce first
- Pasta, portion, and boiling
- 60g fusilli
- Boiling ahead and oiling
- no resting time
- Handling the ketchup
- not used (80g tomato sauce + oil-marinated paprika)
- Ingredients
- 5 slices bacon, new-crop onion, mushroom, garlic
- Oil and butter
- bacon fat + finishing olive oil
- Heat level
- low heat
- Finishing
- Parmigiano, parsley
- Total time
- 20 min
- Source
- Source verified
Chef Ropia (Akifumi Kobayashi) Dry pasta simmered in 400ml tomato juice until it catches
- Pasta, portion, and boiling
- 80g, no pre-boiling
- Boiling ahead and oiling
- none (simmered directly in tomato juice)
- Handling the ketchup
- 400ml tomato juice + ketchup (amount not stated)
- Ingredients
- 2 sausages, onion, 4 mushrooms, bell pepper, chili pepper
- Oil and butter
- 20g olive oil
- Heat level
- reduce until it catches, then flip
- Finishing
- 30g grated cheese, parsley
- Total time
- 15 min
- Source
- Partly unverified
Tsutomu Ochiai Only the add-ins get fried; off-heat Parmesan-butter toss
- Pasta, portion, and boiling
- 1.4mm, 160g for 2 servings
- Boiling ahead and oiling
- no resting time
- Handling the ketchup
- 2 tbsp, thinned with 2 tbsp pasta water
- Ingredients
- 100g onion, 120g block boneless ham, 5 mushrooms, 2 bell peppers
- Oil and butter
- 2 tbsp olive oil + butter
- Heat level
- medium, then low, then off
- Finishing
- 30g Parmesan, butter
- Total time
- 15 min
- Source
- Source verified
Remix the steps (optional)
Your picks stay in the URL, so you can share it as is
1 
Pasta & boiling Brand, thickness, salt, water volume, cooking time
Pasta & boiling Brand, thickness, salt, water volume, cooking time 2 Base Fat and the main ingredient: rendering, infusing
3 
Sauce & emulsion Where you toss, heat level, how much pasta water
Sauce & emulsion Where you toss, heat level, how much pasta water 4 
Finish Cheese, pepper, finishing oil, plating
Finish Cheese, pepper, finishing oil, plating The map of schools: where the heat is managed
For Napolitan, the fork in the road is how you emulsify and heat
Toss over direct heat
The pan stays on the flame and your hands manage the temperature. Fast, but it takes feel.
Indirect heat
Bain-marie, steam, double boiler or a hand blender. Repeatable, at the cost of one extra step.
- No styles here
Off the heat
Emulsify after killing the flame, or in a bowl with only the pasta’s residual heat. Hard to get wrong.
Gear and ingredients for this dish
Purchase suggestions for preparing this dish, including tools and ingredients.
Articles about Napolitan
1,000-Plus Test Batches: Why Ryuji Cools the Pan Before Adding Egg
Chef profilesRyuji sautés the bacon and garlic, then turns off the heat and lets the pan cool before adding the egg — a step he arrived at after testing the recipe more than 1,000 times.
Ochiai's Napolitan Never Fries the Noodles
Fabio fries the noodles themselves in the pan and Ryuji fries them too, but Ochiai takes the pan off the heat and only tosses. Five schools compared on noodle, ketchup, and frying.
The Hotel Credited with Napolitan Didn't Use Ketchup
ReadsThe Napolitan credited to Hotel New Grand in Yokohama was a tomato-sauce dish, not ketchup. The ketchup and thick noodles of today's coffee shops piled on later, via Center Grill and others.