If you’ve been to New York recently, you’ll know that Japanese ramen noodles are all the rage.

But international foodies are setting their sights on a different Japanese noodle—udon.

Compared to ramen, udon noodles are thick and chewy. They’re often served in a light broth made of fish stock and seaweed.

Growing numbers of would-be udon chefs are making their way to a school in the heartland of udon—Kagawa in western Japan.

This South Korean student says he wants to open a chain of udon shops.

Students study how to use special machinery used to make the noodles, and what goes into a tasty broth.

With interest growing worldwide, sales of the udon machines tripled in the past two years.

A Chinese student says udon isn’t yet well known there, and she wants to bring the know-how back home.

This Japanese man lives in Australia. He says he wants to ride the boom in Japanese cuisine.

He says he’ll do traditional udon as well as udon bolognese and other noodle dishes familiar to foreigners.

Will udon be the next hit noodle? Only time will tell.