Despite my half Japanese background, I only discovered sushi in my early twenties.  Recently, I traveled to Japan where I truly gained an appreciation for the cuisine and now I believe I will never tire of the endless combinations of rice, fish and seaweed.   Why do I love sushi? Trying to pinpoint any reason of taste is difficult.  This is because flavour is only one of the elements.  Sushi also represents culture and ritual through colour, balance and texture, and it is meant to engage not only your palette but to be “eaten by the eyes.”

The definition of sushi is “to sour,”  referring to the origins of the preparation method.  Traditionally, 1300 years ago, salted raw fish would ferment in between layers of rice.  Decades later, vinegar replaced the fermentation process and the resulting sour taste is closer to the sushi we eat today.

The three basic types of sushi are nigiri sushi, vinegar rice formed into a long box shape topped with raw fish; sashimi, sliced raw fish; and maki, sushi rolled inside or around pressed, dried layers of nori (seaweed).

Rice and fish are an integral part of Japanese culture, with rice considered a sacred food and where approximately 3000 different kinds of fish are consumed each day.  The waters around Japan are world famous fishing grounds and the Japanese take full advantage of their fresh, local produce. Rice and fish have been staples in their diet for centuries, and with such a strong appreciation for their food, the preparation of ingredients becomes as important as the final presentation.

Like in Japanese art and architecture, discipline, balance and elegance are represented in their cuisine.  To begin making sushi, the cooked rice is transferred to a wooden tub with sugar, rice vinegar and salt, and then fanned to a precise temperature.  The vinegar breaks down the stickiness of the rice and dissolves the sugar, which in turn coats the rice to become sticky again .  The amount of sugar controls the sour taste, while toppings, or “gu,” such as wasabi, nori, fukube (gourds) and pickled vegetables, provide balance for what the Japanese believe are the other four tastes to a balanced diet — hot, salty, sweet and bitter .  Other gu, such as Japanese cucumber, are used in maki to bring a firm, crisp texture, while colourful carrots and snow peas brighten the roll.  These contrasting textures, colours and flavours are elements that must be balanced in each dish.

How the sushi is consumed is an important process. When eating multiple plates of sashimi if moved must be returned to the exact same position on the table, showing respect for the chef.  When eating nigiri sushi, the leaner cuts of fish such as hirame or kasugo must be consumed first to keep a sharp palate, leaving fattier fish such as salmon for the end, as the rich fat globules will stick to the tongue and soften the taste buds.  Nigiri is always presented in twos for an aesthetically balanced presentation.

As the number of sushi restaurants continues to rise across North America, we must keep in mind that sushi is more than the popular California rolls & maki.  I only began to understand the subtleties of a great sushi meal after one particularly delicious spread in Hakone, Japan.  There was such care and discipline behind my meal, that I took a moment to sit back and take in the presentation, slowly absorb the tastes and textures and only then did I fully appreciate the origins of sushi.

Zschock, Day. The Little Black Book of Sushi: The Essential Guide to the World of Sushi. Page 8.Peter Pauper Press. 2005 Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sushi Zschock, Day. The Little Black Book of Sushi: The Essential Guide to the World of Sushi. Page 13.Peter Pauper Press. 2005 Zschock, Day. The Little Black Book of Sushi: The Essential Guide to the World of Sushi. Page 22.Peter Pauper Press. 2005 Lowry, Dave. The Connoisseur’s Guide to Sushi: Everything You Need To Know About Sushi. Page 4. The Harvard Common Press. 2005 Lowry, Dave. The Connoisseur’s Guide to Sushi: Everything You Need To Know About Sushi. Page 4. The Harvard Common Press. 2005 Lowry, Dave. The Connoisseur’s Guide to Sushi: Everything You Need To Know About Sushi. Page 267. The Harvard Common Press. 2005

I’ve tried a sushi roll before with fried onions so I decided to try and flip it and add fried jalapenos too.

Slice

Dunk in buttermilk (optional), flour, egg mixture (1 egg/ water/ salt) and panko then fry

Time for the sushi. We spent $23 on fish, seaweed and a 12 pack of Sapporo. This fish ($13) made about 5 orders of yellowtail nigiri and 2 rolls which is already about $40 at a sushi restaurant.

To make the spicy tuna, chop it up and add mayo, hot sauce, sesame oil, etc. The rice was made in a rice cooker and mixed with rice vinegar, sugar and salt. Add the tuna, onions, peppers and roll

It’s easier to roll the seaweed on the outside

Slice the yellowtail and add the rice with some ponzu on the plate. Usually I make this sashimi style but I think I’m going to start making it like this more…

Of course we had to make extra onion rings and jalapenos…

The fried onion and jalapenos added the perfect crunch and spice…

I have a new favorite sushi restaurant in Austin! It is Sushi Zushi on 5th Street, near MoPac. Bharat and I were going to go to 219 West but the wait was 45 minutes so Bharat mentioned sushi and I thought about the place that I always drive past after coming home from work.

I will always like Sushi Sake, near the Arboretum, but Sushi Zushi is *SO* much closer to me than Sushi Sake. Sushi Zushi has a very comprehensive menu. I’ve never seen so many sushi rolls on one menu. It’s going to take many times before I try everything on the menu, minus the food with cream cheese in them.

We shared a soft-shelled crab tempura for our appetizer. I ordered a bowl of hot udon tempura with 3 shrimp, a sushi sampler (nigiri and maki-zushi tuna, salmon, yellowtail, octopus, and shrimp, and a spicy salmon roll), and mochi ice-cream (red bean, green tea, and mango).

Dinner was spectacular.

Make sure when you go there, ask to be seated in Ryan’s section. He was a very good waiter. You can mention my name if he asks who referred you :]

One criticism, since I’m Chinese and probably few of the real Asian customers, I thought the wasabi was very weak. I had to put ALL of my serving and part of Bharat’s serving to make it to my liking.

Rating: A

There are few things I’m really good at in life, and naturally, I feed those and try to improve on them.  Now I know making sushi is NOT one of them.  How do I know this?  Maybe because I ended up with a mess of fillings, rice and disintegrated nori at every attempt.  I overfilled, under filled, rolled perfectly, only to find that my border was taken over by globs of filling, leading to gaping holes in my nori, and the inability to seal the damn rolls.  I actually had some success with with my California roll, only to find that they looked like little lumps of ‘What the %#&* are those?’ when it came time to take photos.

                               Dragon roll with yellowfin tuna and California roll

As you already know, this months Daring Cooks challenge is sushi.  Along with making proper sushi rice, we were challenged to make three rolls;  One, a Dragon roll, which is inside-out sushi (the rice is on the outside, the nori on the inside) made to look like a dragon,  some with faces, some not (My Dragon’s face was hit by a Mack Truck), with a tasty surprise filling.  Two, Decorative sushi, a nori-coated rice roll which reveals a decorative pattern when cut…and Three, nigiri sushi, which is slices of raw or cooked fish, OR whatever suits your fancy, draped over tightly formed little mounds of rice.  Before I continue..you know the drill..

The November 2009 Daring Cooks challenge was brought to you by Audax of Audax Artifex and Rose of The Bite Me Kitchen. They chose sushi as the challenge.  Thanks for a great challenge, guys!

                   “ROAR!  My head is made of pickled ginger and I have no face!”

Sushi is much appreciated for its delicate taste and exquisite appearance. Sushi actually means vinegared rice, which is the essential ingredient in every sushi recipe. Sushi is simple and cheap to make at home, needs no special equipment and is an excellent way to use left overs.

Although sushi in various forms has been around for fourteen centuries, the modern version was invented in Japan in the 1800’s where a ‘hand-formed’ sliced fresh fish and vinegared rice ball was eaten as a snack food. Nowadays, sushi is made with various seafood, meats and vegetables, raw and cooked.

                      Left to Right: Egg {Tamago), Shrimp (Ebi), Smoked Salmon

Now that you have a little background on sushi, I’ll get to my near disaster.  I admit it, I cheated a little, but not completely.  After many attempts to turn out pretty sushi, I finally waved the white flag and went to a local sushi joint to pick up some sushi grade tuna (NO WAY was I going to purchase sushi grade fish from a supermarket.  With my luck, little wormies and gut eating bacteria would inundate my beautiful fish and everyone who tried it would die).  When I was there, I got down on my hands and knees and begged the sushi chef to SHOW ME THE LIGHT!  I cried, bowed at his feet, offered up my firstborn, and pleaded for sushi mercy..OK, cease and desist on the dramatics.  (Disclaimer: the aforementioned pathetic groveling is purely for entertainment purposes only and completely fictional).  I asked him nicely if he could show me how to make these three rolls properly, and I would pay for every roll he made and I made.  Fortunately, he was nice enough to only charge me for the rolls he made, which kind of makes sense, since I think he would be utterly embarrassed to charge me for my inadequate, lumpy sushi.  Nice guy.  This little lesson took all of 10 minutes for all three sushi preps, and let me tell you, with his ingredients and equipment, especially the rolling mat (mine is akin to glued toothpicks), I was able to turn out some decent looking sushi. 

              This was supposed to be a spiral roll  Didn’t quite work out that way.

Unfortunately, since this was a last minute, pathetically desperate plea, I didn’t have my camera with me, but mark my words, I made every single bit of sushi pictured in this entry.  It was my hands that filled, rolled and sealed…my hands that carefully draped paper-thin slices of avocado over my wimpy, steam spewing dragon (no fire there), MY HANDS that proudly held pretty containers of what looked pretty close to sushi, as I exited.

A few years ago, I received a book called Sushi, American Style, by Tracy Griffith – the half sister of Melanie, minus the silicone lip injections.  This book is awesome, and every few months I would swear I was going to attempt to make these cool creative ‘raw fishless’ sushi rolls she came up with, one of them being a club sandwich roll –  layers of cold cuts, lettuce, tomato, mayo, rolled with the nori and sticky rice.  After my little lesson in sushi making, I felt confident I could pull it off.  I made another batch of sticky rice (What a drawn out preparation, and damn, that stuff is like glue to the skin if you don’t wet your hands prior to touching it.  Some construction dude could easily hang from a beam, 100 stories up, using sticky rice to to glue his construction helmet to it…for as long as need be, unscathed), did exactly what Mr. Master Sushi Chef instructed me to do, and VOILA..filling all over the place, unable to seal them, ripped nori.  WTFFFF???  Ok, breathe deep..I will do this..and I finally did, after wasting  a ton of turkey, ham, tomato, cheese, and my own wasabi mayo.  These were supposed to be spiral rolls, but I’m pretty sure the nori disintegrated underneath all the moist cold cuts prior to rolling, because my spiral looks more like a broken kaleidescope.  Regardless, it still turned out pretty nice aesthetically  I served those with a sour pickle and potato chips.  This is the kind of roll that your jockish, sushi hating ‘HE MAN’ would eat.

‘Club’ sushi roll.  Wasabi mayo, romaine lettuce, cheddar cheese, ham, tomato and turkey.

All in all, this was a great experience, as I never thought I’d ever be rolling ‘real’ sushi.  A new notch on the old culinary belt for sure.  For sushi making instructions and the recipe(s), go HERE. 

Be sure to check out the other Daring Cook’s sushi creations by going to the Daring Cooks Blogroll and clicking on the links to their blogs!

The November 2009 Daring Cooks challenge was brought to you by Audax of Audax Artifex and Rose of The Bite Me Kitchen. They chose sushi as the challenge.

Sushi is my fav food of all time! (just had to get that out) So when Sushi was chosen as this month’s daring cooks challenge i was really amped! I’ve made sushi before, as its a fav for G and my whole family, and L, so yeah pretty much everyone in my life! We love to go down to Bossa Nova, this awesome resturant where I live, on a Sunday night where they have 40% off sushi. So that’s kind of become a tradition you could say. It’s so much better to make it yourself though because you can put whatever you want in it, and eat as much as you want and then just sit back and be totally satisfied, as it looks like you spent hours slaving in the kitchen on some unbelievably difficult task! When actually it’s really simple once you know how.

G’s parents wanted to learn how to make sushi, so it was perfect timing all round, and one Sunday morning we got everyone together.

The rice from this recipe was slightly different from the recipe I’ve used before, but I actually found it tastier and stickier! So it worked well. We made dragon rolls, with salmon, tempura prawn and avo on the inside and avo on the outside. (notice how lazy i was in my presentation:) ) Spiral rolls with tuna, tempura prawn and avo, and then salmon and tuna nigiri.

Here’s the recipe we were given for the rice…

SUSHI RICE (makes about 7 cups of cooked sushi rice)

Preparation time: 1¾ hours consisting of :-
Rinsing and draining rice: 35 minutes
Soaking rice: 30 minutes (includes 5 minutes making the vinegar dressing)
Cooking and steaming time: 25 minutes
Finishing the rice: 15 minutes

INGREDIENTS:

• 2½ cups uncooked short grain rice
• 2½ cups water
• For superior results use equal volumes of rice and water

Optional Ingredients

• 3 inch (75mm or 15 grams) square dashi konbu (or kombu) (dried kelp seaweed) wipe with a damp cloth to remove white powder & cut a few slits in the sides of the kelp to help release its flavours
• 2½ teaspoons (12.5 mls) of sake (Japanese rice wine)

Sushi vinegar dressing

• 5 Tablespoons (75 mls) rice vinegar
• 5 Teaspoons (25 mls or 21 grams) sugar
• 1¼ Teaspoons (6.25 mls or 4.5 grams) salt

DIRECTIONS:
Rinsing and draining the rice

1. Swirl rice gently in a bowl of water, drain, repeat 3-4 times until water is nearly clear. Don’t crush the rice in your hands or against the side of the bowl since dry rice is very brittle.
2. Gently place rice into a strainer and drain well for 30 minutes.

Soaking the rice

1. Gently place the rice into a heavy medium pot with a tight fitting lid (if you have a loose fitting lid use a piece of aluminium foil to make the seal tight).
2. Add 2½ cups of water and the dashi konbu.
3. Set the rice aside to soak for 30 minutes, during this time prepare the sushi rice dressing.

Preparing the Rice Vinegar Dressing

1. Combine the rice vinegar, sugar and salt in a small bowl.
2. Heat on low setting.
3. Stir until the mixture goes clear and the sugar and salt have dissolved.
4. Set aside at room temperature until the rice is cooked.

Cooking the rice

1. After 30 minutes of soaking add sake (if using) to the rice.
2. Bring rinsed and soaked rice to the boil.
3. Reduce heat to the lowest setting and simmer, covered, until all the water is absorbed, 12-15 minutes. Do not remove the lid during this process. Turn off heat.
4. Let stand with the lid on, 10-15 minutes. Do not peek inside the pot or remove the lid. During this time the rice is steaming which completes the cooking process.

Finishing the rice

• Turning out the rice

1. Moisten lightly a flat thin wooden spatula or spoon and a large shallow flat-bottomed non-metallic (plastic, glass or wood) bowl. Do not use metallic objects since the vinegar will react with it and produce sour and bitter sushi rice.
2. Remove the dashi konbu (kelp) from the cooked rice.
3. Use the spatula to loosen gently the rice and invert the rice pot over the bowl, gently causing the cooked rice to fall into the bowl in one central heap. Do this gently so as not to cause the rice grains to become damaged.

• Dressing the rice with vinegar

1. Slowly pour the cooled sushi vinegar over the spatula onto the hot rice.
2. Using the spatula gently spread the rice into a thin, even layer using a 45° cutting action to break up any lumps and to separate the rice. Don’t stir or mash rice.
3. After the rice is spread out, start turning it over gently, in small portions, using a cutting action, allowing steam to escape, for about a minute.

• Fanning & Tossing the rice

1. Continue turning over the rice, but now start fanning (using a piece of stiff cardboard) the rice vigorously as you do so. Don’t flip the rice into the air but continue to gently slice, lift and turn the rice occasionally, for 10 minutes. Cooling the rice using a fan gives good flavour, texture and a high-gloss sheen to the rice. The vinegar dressing will be absorbed by the hot rice. Using a small electric fan on the lowest speed setting is highly recommended.
2. Stop fanning when there’s no more visible steam, and all the vinegar dressing has been adsorbed and the rice is shiny. Your sushi rice is ready to be used.

• Keeping the rice moist

1. Cover with a damp, lint free cloth to prevent the rice from drying out while preparing your sushi meal. Do not store sushi rice in the refrigerator leave on the counter covered at room temperature. Sushi rice is best used when it is at room temperature.

* Tip: To make sushi rice: for each cup of rice use 1 cup of water, 2 Tbs rice vinegar, 2 tsp sugar, ½ tsp salt and 1 tsp sake. For superior results use equal volumes of rice and water when cooking the sushi rice since the weight of rice can vary. Weight of 2½ cups of uncooked rice is about 525 grams or 18½ ounces.

* Tip: While the rice is draining, soaking and cooking prepare your rice vinegar dressing, sushi fillings and toppings.

Dragon Rolls (also called Caterpillar Rolls)

Preparation time: 30 minutes, plus 1¾ hours to make the sushi rice
Cooking time: about 5 minutes (grilling the eel)

Yield: 2 inside-out (uramaki) sushi rolls

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 sheet 7”x8” (17.5cmx20cm) of toasted nori (dried seaweed sheets), cut into halves
• 1/2 Japanese cucumber
• 2 cups of prepared sushi rice
• Glazed Barbecued Eel (ungai) (about 3½ ounces or 100 grams)
• 1 Avocado
• Vinegared Water – ½ cup of water combined with a dash of rice vinegar
• Various small amounts of sauces to use as the flames of the dragon (or legs of a caterpillar)

Optional

• 2 tablespoons (25 grams or 1 oz) Fish Roe (Fish eggs)

DIRECTIONS:
1.Cut cucumber into strips ¼ inch (6mm) x 7” (175mm) long, then salt, rinse & dry the strips.
2.Grill (broil) the eel for about 2-5 minutes until bubbling. Cut into two lengthwise strips.
3.Halve, pit and peel the avocado. Cut the avocado halves into thin even 1/8 inch (3 mm) slices. Fan out the cut avocado into a 7 inch (175 mm) overlapping pattern.
4.Cover bamboo mat with plastic wrap. Place a sheet of nori shiny side down, lengthwise, on the edge the mat.
5.Moisten lightly your hands in the bowl of vinegared water.
6.Place one cup of rice on the nori and gently rake your fingertips across grains to spread rice evenly. Do not mash or squash the rice onto the nori, the rice should appear loosely packed and be evenly distributed over the entire sheet, you should be able to see the nori sheet in a few places.
7.Flip the rice-covered nori over (so the bare nori is now on top) and place on the edge of the mat closest to you.
8.Arrange one of the eel strips across the length of the nori, not quite centred on it but a little closer to you. Place half the cucumber sticks next to the eel.
9.Lift the edge of the mat closest to you with both hands, keeping your fingertips over the fillings, and roll the mat and its contents until the edge of the mat touches straight down on the nori, enclosing the fillings completely. Lift up the edge of the mat you’re holding, and continue rolling the inside-out roll away from you until it’s sealed. Tug at the mat to tighten the seal. If the rice doesn’t quite close the roll add more rice in the gap and re-roll using the mat to completely cover the inside-out roll. Place the roll on a damp, clean smooth surface.
10.Spread about 1 tablespoon of the optional fish roe along the entire top of the rice-covered roll. Using the plastic covered mat gently press the fish roe so it adheres to the rice.
11.Slide a knife under one fan of avocado and transfer it onto the top of an inside-out roll. Gently spread out the avocado layer to cover the entire roll. Lay the plastic wrapped mat over the avocado-covered roll. Squeeze very gently to shape the roll.
12. Lay a sheet of plastic wrap over the roll. Slice the roll into 6-8 equal, bite-sized pieces, wiping your knife with a damp towel before each slice. Discard the plastic wrap. Repeat the above to make one more roll.
13.Arrange the cut pieces on a serving plate with the sauces so the finished dish appears as a dragon breathing fire and flames (or a caterpillar with many legs).

* Tip: The most common mistake is having too much filling the golden rule is less is more when it comes to making sushi it is easier to roll an under-filled roll than an over-filled roll.

* Tip: Dampen your knife with a moist lint-free towel before every cut – this prevents the sushi rice from sticking to your knife.

* Tip: Excellent videos on making Dragon Rolls
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pQZGRohVNFQ
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fo55iBN9FQs&feature=related

PART 3 : Spiral Sushi Roll
This is easiest ‘decorative’ sushi roll.

Preparation time: 15 minutes, plus 1¾ hours to make the sushi rice

Yield: One Roll, cut into 8 pieces

INGREDIENTS:

• 2½ cups prepared sushi rice
• 2 sheets of toasted nori, each sized 7”x8” (17.5cmx20cm)
• Six assorted fillings, each filling should be the size of a pencil (see note below)

DIRECTIONS:
1.Join 2 sheets of nori by moistening the adjacent edges and overlapping them about ½ inch (12mm).
2.Place this double sheet shiny side down on a rolling mat, part of the nori will extend beyond the mat.
3.Using moist fingers place 2½ cups of rice on the nori and gently rake your fingertips across grains to spread rice evenly, leaving ¼ inch (6mm) nori showing on the both ends of the sheet. Do not mash or squash the rice onto the nori, the rice should appear loosely packed and be evenly distributed over the entire sheet, you should be able to see the nori sheet in a few places.
4.Using your fingers form six grooves (in the same direction that you will be rolling the mat) at even intervals across the bed of rice. Make the first groove about 2 inches (50 mm) from the edge of the nori sheet. Form the grooves by pushing the rice away, do not mash or squash the rice, leave a loose one grain layer of rice in the bottom of the grooves. Level the areas between the grooves where you have pushed the rice.
5.Place your fillings in the grooves. Fill the grooves a little higher than the surrounding rice bed.
6.Then roll the sushi up from the edge closest to you, this will form a spiral pattern of nori, rice and fillings inside the roll.
7.Slice into 8 pieces with a very sharp wet knife, wiping the blade with a damp cloth after each cut.
8.Place the pieces on a platter and garnish.

NOTE:
Make each groove about a finger-width wide they will hold about 1-2 tablespoons of filling. Use fillings that compliment each other and are highly coloured. Use parboiled vegetables cut into strips, seafood, left over eel, smoked fish or chicken, whole cooked beans, edible flowers etc….

Nigiri Sushi
Nigiri sushi is the type of sushi most often made in sushi bars. In Japanese, nigiri means “squeeze”.

Preparation time: 30 minutes, plus 1¾ hours to make the sushi rice

Yield: 14-16 pieces of sushi

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 cups prepared sushi rice
• 8 pairs of assorted toppings, 200 gms/7 ozs total of fish, meat or vegetables (see note below)
• 1 tablespoon Wasabi (paste, reconstituted powder) or any other paste to adhere topping to rice

Optional

• Garnishes such as Ginger (pickled), chilli strips, vegetables flowers etc
• Thin strips of nori or vegetables (for tying topping on)

DIRECTIONS:
1.When handling sushi rice, make certain your hands are very clean. To keep the rice from sticking to our hands moisten your hands with vinegared water.
2.Form nigiri sushi by scooping up a small amount (about 2 tablespoons) of rice with your forefinger and second finger of your right hand and placing it in your cupped left palm.
3.Use the fingers and thumb of your right hand to form it into a long, narrow mound (about 2 inches x 1 inch wide or 50mm x 25mm) in your cupped palm.
4.Press enough to make the rice hold firmly together. Place the nigiri on a damp cutting board flat side down. Don’t let sushi touch or they’ll stick to each other. At this point, you can cover the sushi with plastic wrap, and they’ll keep at room temperature (not the refrigerator) for several hours.
5.Smear a thin line of wasabi on top of the rice and place the topping piece on it. You may need to press the topping down lightly with your fingers and adjust the shape of the rice accordingly to form an attractive piece of nigiri sushi. If your topping is very loose like fish roe you can place a strip of nori (higher than the rice) around the nigiri and form ‘battleship’ sushi. The cavity that the nori forms holds the topping so it does not fall off.
6.Garnish as desired and use strips of nori (or vegetable) to tie the topping to the nigiri if needed.
7.It is customary to make nigiri sushi in pairs, so make two of each variety.

* Tips: A great video on making nigiri sushi
http://www.howcast.com/videos/270-How-To-Make-Sushi
A great web page on slicing fish for nigiri
http://www.sushilinks.com/sushi-recipes/how-to-buy-fish/index.html

Bueno aunque les parezca raro hoy pondré una receta de cocina que se llama Nigiri y que me encontre en un blog, muchos de ustedes la conocerán y la habrán probado, y bueno los que la quieran hacer en casa aqui estan los pasos, si hacen me invitan.

Degustacija hrane i poseta suši baru Moon.

Kako je krenulo ovde u poslednje vreme samo pišem o hrani. Ali šta ću, kad sigurno ima onih koji nisu bili na ovim mestima, pa da znaju šta da očekuju. Iskreno, poseta i degustacija hrane u Moon-u jednostavno je morala da se napiše jer neko će tamo otići i prvi put probati suši i steći će neku nerealnu sliku o ovoj hrani, s obzirom da ovaj restoran na dobrom mestu i ima dobru reklamu.

Moon Sushi Bar

Ali ajde da započnemo sa lepim i pozitivnim stvarima, pošto je ipak ovo novi restoran.

Prvo, restoran se nalazi u Eurocentru u koji se može ući iz Dečanske ili Makedonske. Ako ulazite iz Makedonske odmah ćete u donjem delu da naiđete na njega, pošto je onako u uglu. Crvena boja preovlađuje na zidovima, a negde i bela. Lepo je, nije ogromno ali ima mesta (ne kao onaj bar Tokyo). Lepo je uređeno sa ukusom. Jelovnik je kao i sam website dizajniran sa ukusom, sve se lepo vidi. Cene nisu zaista strašne kad se upoređuje sa Ikkibarom i sl. to im nije loša strana. Sem sušija imaju i sendviče i salate kao za doručak i dodatak. Od pića imaju sveže sokove i gazirana pića, sake nemaju niti druga alkoholna pića.

Kad je u pitanju suši , postoje prvi put dva tipa sušija – klasičan i internacionalni (mada sam video neke pojedinačne primere u DjuDju to je srećom bilo kratkog daha). Kad oni kažu internacionalni pre svega misle na nigirije i makije sa začinjenom piletinom, ajvarom, nekim pršutama, sirevima, paštetama, paradajzima i slično….hm.  Ja kad idem u restoran ili bar sa željom da jedem suši ja hoću da jedem isključivo klasičan suši što podrazumeva tradicionalnu sirovu ribu i sve ostalo što ide. Ako mi se jede začinjena piletina ili nekakve pršute, sirevi i sl. svakako neću da trošim pare na pogrešnom mestu, nego ću otići tamo gde to i služe ili prodaju. Još svo to meso ili sir na kockicama lepljivog pirinča da umočim u soja sos? Ne, hvala! A ako je to kao način da se prilagodi suši onima koji ne jedu sirovu ribu tj. kojima se ne sviđa to, po nekoj logici zašto bi onda jeli te komadiće sa uobičajenom hranom? Neću sad da previše tu kritikujem jer se sigurno nisu prvi  dosetili toga, ali konkretno iz moje perspektive meni se to ne dopada ni kako zvuči ni kako izgleda.

A što se tiče klasičnog sušija, on je divan na prvi pogled i u meniju i kad ga srede. Sve je sjajno dekorisano i napravljeno. Njihova ponuda se razlikuje kao i sam izgled nigirija, makija, temaki, california, rainbow itd. Nigiri im je drugačiji , manje pirinčane kockice su u stvari rolovane pa je onako umesto pravougaone kocke kao valjak na kome je suši. Maki im je manji. Sve to i nije problem da nešto drugo nije bilo u pitanju.

Sve je lepo bilo dok se nije probalo, kad se probalo, lepo je postalo bezveze…. Moja prvobitna ushićenost se pretvorila u agoniju jedenja. MIslim, zaista … nisam probao neukusniji suši. Da budem precizan i u ovome, riba je sveža i ok, lepi račići i sl. stomak je miran bio kasnije ali posle toliko probanih sušija proteklih godina ovaj je bio najneukusniji. Soja sos im je loš a i još nešto je falilo,  tako da nisam uživao uopšte.  Jedva sam ga pojeo i čak mi je ostalo (što obično nije slučaj). Ne znam šta su radili ali bi svakako morali nešto da isprave ili ako ne znaju šta nek pogledaju konkurenciju. Iako se jednom desilo u Ikkibar delti da im suši ne bude baš kako treba ipak nije bio neukusan. Ovaj je poneo neslavnu titulu neukusnog kod mene, pa zaista ne razmišljam o tome da posetim ovaj polu Mesec ponovo u nastupajućem periodu.

Takođe savetujem da oni koji hoće da daju pare za suši ,ako im je prvi put ili drugi, a problem im je sa novcem, nek  ga daju na proverena mesta kao što su Ikkibar ili Tokyo sushi bar (eventualno Ginger) da ne eksperimentišu (pošto volim da probam i check-iram nove stvari ^^.)  Ne pričam zato što želim nekog da reklamiram već zato što se tamo može naći ono što se traži a kvalitetno je. Što se mene tiče što više japanskih  restorana to bolje ^^ (U Moskvi kažu svaki drugi je japanski restoran?! Da ne kažem u Pragu koliko ih je! ^^) . Ali da budu što bolji i kvalitetniji u svemu, ne samo u dizajnu i izgledu, apsolutno je sve bitno.

Svaka čast ovom sushi baru što je na lepom i dostupnom mestu, super dizajniran, fino osoblje prijatni mladići i zgodne devojke , lepe slike ali to nije dovoljno, hrana mora da ima neki ukus!

Možda će neko reći, hej , pa dešava se , nije bilo ovoga onoga, nije sve bilo kako treba, nije tako svaki dan nismo imali ovo ono. E ja to ne znam, ja sam tu prvi put, potencijalni stalni gost, a oni su novi, tek otvoreni. Ako sad u samoj žiži svoje promocije, kad treba privući što više ljudi dozvoljavaju da prave male (ali ipak velike) greške to svakako nije za pohvalu. Tako samo mogu da izgube eventualno poverenje bilo koga ko im dođe. MIslim, to samo ovako kažem ako kojim slučajem možda njihov suši nije takav svaki dan. Ali imao sam prilike, kao što rekoh gore, pa sam video kad nekima nije sve savršeno određenog dana, pa ipak to je to, nije perfect ali znamo se, to je to. To je sushi.

E da još jedna  rečenica – ko ne koristi Kikkoman soja soseve ne mora ni da otvara japanski restoran ili suši bar (Ne kažem da ovi ne koriste Kikoman ali ako ga koriste onda je iz 1908.).

Ocene ( od 5 do 10) :

sushi: 6

izbor pića: 7

usluga: 10

atmosfera: 9

cene: 10

Eto toliko. ^^

evo vam i sajta malo da gledate www.moon-sushi.rs

Ginger restoran azijske kuhinje

Restoran Ginger koji se nalazi u okviru Grand Kazina Beograd je novi restoran  koji je otvoren ovde u poslednjem periodu. Imao sam priliku da ga posetim i osetim, u ovoj prvoj poseti, čari sušija. Sam restoran se nalazi na prvom spratu kazina. I da, ono što je vrlo interesantno – restoran nije odvojen od kazina, što važi i za ostale restorane u kazinu, već je deo kazina. To je možda mali nedostatak koji se lično meni ne sviđa, a i ima cenu koju plaća za to, što ću i reći dalje u tekstu.

Imaju dva menija meni sa hranom i specijalitetima iz raznih delova Azije (nemojte da pomislite da je to neki mega veliki meni, ali ima iz svakog dela po nešto) i meni sa sušijem. Petkom   ima specijalan meni koji podrazumeva da za 999 dinara imate kompletan obrok.  Tad bife ne radi tj. glavni meni ne postoji osim sušija. Znači ništa drugo ne poslužuju osim glavnog menija. Mislim, za cenu je poprilično dobar i zanimljiv obrok od supe pa do slatkiša. Onaj ko hoće suši naručuje suši i obično te kombinacije ne spadaju u specijalne ponude restorana. Trenutno jedine supe u meniju koje sam video su japanska ramen supa i tajlandska supa sa od kokosovog mleka sa kukuruzom šečercem.

Bio sam u petak, i s obzirom da sam hteo suši a ne meni, suši sam i naručio. Meni podrazumeva rolnice one maki, zatim obrnute maki rolnice koje podsećaju na kalifornijeske po izgledu i načinu motanja ali  samo su male kao maki , zatim nezaobilazni nigiri i tempura rolnice (ove zadnje nisam probao pošto mi se tempura nije dojmila). Iskreno, suši meni im je onako asketski. Dosad najmanji izbor ribe i opcija koje sam video. Nigiri ima samo sa 3 vrste ribe – crvena tunjevina, losos i orada. Dok sve pomenute vrste rolnica imaju malo više kombinacija  osim ove tri vrste ribe pa dodatak krastavca ili rotkvice, avokada, đumbira, gambora, surimija … Postoje i specijalne Ginger rolnice koje su skuplje a imaju više sastojaka u sebi. Takođe u meniju imaju i kao set suši obroke sa pomalo od svake vrste sušija ali po meni nije im neki izbor setova. Više se isplati kombinacija ovih odvojenih, mada to komplikuje neke stvari (mislim praktične). Pre svega nigiri set je od 3 rolnice, a sve ostale vrste rolnica podrazumevaju 8 komada u setu. Tako kad iskombinujete malo ovog malo onog i plus ako vas ima  dvoje od mogućih četvoro osoba za  stolom, to može da napravi popriličnu gužvu na stolu. Pošto su malo nepraktični ali vrlo izdašni (u pogledu vasabija i đumbira, LOL) to otprilike izgleda ovako: svaki set ima svoj drveni poslužavnik  tako ako hoćete recimo 6 nigirija po osobi i bar 16 makija (8+8) na stolu ćete igrati domine sa svim tim drvenim setovima pošto su drveni poslužavnici niski i tako napravljeni da se mogu spojiti.  Na svakom je uredno bio vasabi i đinđer. Tako da prvi put smo imali vasabija koliko duša poželi (čak i previše) a da o đumbiru ne govorim (Ginger nego?!). Dosad nisam imao prilike da imam toliko wasabija na tanjiru, Ikki bar i Ikki Delta obično štede, kad pomislim na one njihove sushi setove sa malo wasabija za čitav onaj set onda zaista ovo odobravam. Daću im 10 za nepostojeću kategoriju – izdašnost. Sjajno!

Sam nigiri je opet priča za sebe. Prvi put smo naišli na kockasti nigiri. Znači kockica pirinča i isto tako na njemu kocka sirove ribe malo je kraći i deblji od standardnog. Zanimljivo, mada više volim uobičajen izgled nigirija, ipak neću reći da je to neki nedostatak. Ali ono što je bilo te večeri jeste pirinač koji se runi sa nigirija. Dobro je dok ga ne umočiš u soju  a kad se to uradi mora da se pazi  da se ne raskomada. To nije bio slučaj sa maki rolnicama ali tu igraju ulogu listovi dobrih starih nori algi, pa toga i nema. Možda zbog specijalnog menija su malo podbacili sa sušijem, pa neću im to uzeti kao neki veliki minus, ipak prvi put sam ovde . Jelo je bilo sasvim ok. Samo zbog ovog pirinča a i ograničenosti ribe ocena će ići na 8 ali u suštini ako nisu takvi svaki dan onda ocena ide gore.

Ostalu hranu iz Japana a i drugih delova Azije bih rado probao, ono što su pripremali to veče jako je lepo mirisalo, skoro sam pomislio da sam možda pogrešio što nisam naručio . Restoran što se tiče hrane je definitivno originalan po ponudi, sushi mu je ograničen u izboru ali opet ima nešto što drugi nemaju.

Što se tiče osoblja…. E, pošto je to sve povezano sa kazinom i svim ostalim , konobara desetak a nigde ih nema. Na početku večeri manja gužva pa još se i navataju, ali kako vreme prolazi izgledi da ih pozoveš sve su manji jer iz bara odlaze na sve strane po gornjem delu kazina (što je izuzetno bezveze). Umesto da imaju par konobara  koji se drže isključivo teritorije restorana, nego oni trče nervozno na sve strane tamo negde među slot mašine. Kakva neorganizacija!  Tako da ih se mora navatati da ti dođu i sklone poslužavnike  nakon jela ili da naručiš bilo šta još, a to je nedopustivo. Pritom kazino i nije gore bio tako pun, a restoran je bio delimično pun. Tako da mogu zamisliti kako je kad je gužva (ako se dešava nekad tako nešto). Oni jesu ljubazni ali to ne pije vodu. Ovaj segment ipak ne mogu da oprostim za prvi put u ovom restoranu, tako da usluga ide u minus to jest dobiće 7 jer neke stvari treba da se srede.

tempura maki rolnice

Kad je u pitanju piće, oni imaju razna pića a najviše vina na flašu i na čašu. Mislim da se više isplati flaša, jer po ceni čaša je mogu reći skupa ali malo sipaju. Manje nego inače. Koktel lista je proširena ali to se ne vidi u koktel meniju koji je ograničen ali su kokteli lepo servirani kako treba. Nemaju sake. Mislim da bi mogli da budu malo up-to-date sa kartom pića. Ali neću ni to da uzmem kao minus za prvi put.

I pored kazina koji vas opkružuje, restoran generalno jeste lep, lepo uređen i ima neke drugačije stvari koje drugi nemaju. Muziku koju puštaju je vrlo interesantna i neobična, neki azijski chillout something, prija. Toaleti su im besprekorni, sve je kao da ste u nekom hotelu. Well, i to ga će biti uskoro…

U svakom slučaju treba ga posetiti ali ako jedete suši izaberite neki drugi dan pa vidite. I jeftino je generalno što je isto jako dobra stvar.  Uostalom googlajte Grand Casino Belgrade i vidite cene sušija sve piše.

*Da uđete u restoran morate da se registrujete u prijavnici Kazina dole, dobijete karticu (liči na karticu za telefon sa čipom) i 300 kredita na njoj za besplatno piće (dobrodošlice) bilo koje – u čaši (ali ne naručujte flašu, sumnjam da su to računali. LOL).

* ne računajte na to da nosite fotoaparat u restoran. Zbog glupe povezanosti istog sa okolišem, sasvim je logično da ćete ga ostaviti u sigurne ruke recepcionara. E sad ako imate mobilni možete da probate da slikate. Mada kamera (onih okruglih ) ima koliko i sijalica na plafonu. Polje pečuraka , I would said. Tako da ništa od mojih fotki, sve fotke su sa neta.

Ocene:

sushi: 8

**ostala hrana: 9 (ocena na osnovu gledanja i mirisanja trenutne ponude)

izbor pića: 9

usluga: 7

atmosfera: 9

cene: 10

** kategorija se uzima sa rezervom zbog nepotpunog ocenjivanja

O  Sushi foi popularizado e agora está na boca do povo. Só em Florianópolis, são mais de 15 estabelecimentos que preparam a comida Japonesa, mas o preço é bem salgado: em média, gasta-se de R$40,00 a R$50,00 por pessoa. Há um mito enorme no preparo do Sushi, mas na verdade ele é bem simples, sai muito mais barato, e você pode abusar da criatividade. Um kit básico para preparação inclui a esteira para enrolar o sushi e a faca específica, que deve ter a lâmina fina e afiada. A faca mais barata custa R$50, a esteira em torno de R$8 e há ainda a forma de Nigiri que também está na faixa de R$8 (todos os preços aqui de Floripa). O preço do salmão vai variar se você for comprar no Mercado Público ou em outra peixaria, mas o quilo está geralmente R$20.
O Arroz deve ser japonês também, e custa cerca de R$3 o quilo. O vinagre de arroz no mercado está R$4, e para os que gostam de raiz forte, é possível compra-la em pó (R$17,90 300g) e preparar a mistura, ou em pasta (R$5,90 43g). A alga marinha custa R$15 o pacote com 50 folhas, mas há a opção do pacote com 10 folhas, caso queira fazer menos sushis.
O tutorial de fazer sushi você pode baixar na internet, mas o fato é que fazer sushi em casa é muito mais barato. Como o gasto com material é apenas uma vez, as próximas vezes que fizer sushi, pode gastar de R$10 a R$20 por pessoa.
E aquela história de que mulher não pode preparar sushi? É, as mulheres tem a temperatura corporal maior em 1º do que os homens, e os japoneses acreditam que isso influencia o sabor final do sushi. Verdade ou não, eu nunca vi mulheres preparando sushi. Nem aqui, nem em outros países que visitei.

Nozomi

When Nozomi first opened, I used to come here a lot because their sushi rolls were cheap, tasty and HUUUUGE. As my taste buds migrated to preferring nigiri, I stopped coming here.  Last week, I wandered back for dinner last night with a friend. I noticed that while they still had their mile-long list of specialty rolls and non-sushi menu, they had added an “all you can eat” sushi option for $25-ish. Starving, my friend and I chose to try it out. BIG MISTAKE. I’ve been to different sushi restaurants in San Diego that had all you can eat options and was never disappointed…till now.

Nozomi - nigiri (scallops, salmon, albacore, hamachi, tuna, unagi)

Nozomi - Rolls (Dragon and ???)

The nigiri and some of the rolls are half-portions, meaning instead of the usual two pieces of nigiri, you only get one. Not really a problem…just got to remember to mark twice as much as you wanted. The huge issue was the quality. It was like they wanted to get rid of whatever old fish they had lying around. The nigiri didn’t taste fresh at all and frankly, some of it was disgusting. The rolls were better because there were other things like sauce to mask some of that fishy flavor.

I ordered an amaebi nigiri and this was probably the most foul thing of the night. There was still a piece of shell. The flavor seemed…off and I almost spit it out. The shrimp head wasn’t fried enough either.

The quality of Nozomi seems to have gone down and yet this place was packed. Frankly, even though the rolls were still okay, after that horrible nigiri experience, I’m not sure I’m keen on coming back here.

The location in the La Jolla/UTC area (Nozomi 2) seems to still retain some sense of fish quality as only a couple of weeks before, I shared a sashimi platter with a coworker and was quite happy with it. I think I’ll stick with that location instead of the Convoy St. one. Also, there seems to be some differences in the menus between the two Nozomis.

I would have given Nozomi a higher rating before but after this visit, they only get 2 NOMs from the Catty Critic.

Nozomi
4637 Convoy St
San Diego, CA 92111
(858) 569-7773

Photographed by Kyoto Song

Yummy!having sushi @ Ginza Restaurant, Rome.

– License

.. y se llama Sushi!

Este típico plato de comida japonesa me vuelve loca, podria comerlo hasta reventar, y aun asi seguiría queriendo repetir!
Normalmente todo el mundo asocia el sushi con el pescado y el marisco crudo, también puede llevar verduras o huevo o incluso cualquier otro acompañante y no necesariamente sin cocinar, puede ir hervido, marinado o frito.

La palabra “sushi” hace referencia a la preparación del arroz, cocido adobado con vinagre de arroz, azúcar, sal y otros ingredientes.. y luego el acompañamiento puede ser preparado de diferentes formas , para todos los gustos!

Generalmente nos lo encontraremos en raciones pequeñas, aproximadamente del tamaño de un bocado y puede adoptar diversas formas.
Si se sirven el pescado y el arroz enrollados en una hoja de alga nori se le llama maki (rollo).
Si se trata de una especie de albóndiga de arroz cubierta por el pescado hablamos de nigiri.

Algunos consejillos sobre como comer Sushi:

• Los elementos básicos para degustar sushi son: un plato, hashi (o palillos de madera), hashioki (o posa-palillos), wasabi y gari (o jengibre curtido).

• Se aconsejan comerlo con palillos o cubiertos de madera, o directamente con la mano; pero se debe evitar el uso de utensilios metálicos como tenedores, cucharas o pinzas, ya que los mismos alterarían el sabor de la comida.

• Para comenzar vierte la salsa de soja en un pocillo pequeño. Luego se toma un poco de wasabi con un palillo y se diluye en la salsa de soja.

• Tomar una pieza de sushi con los palillos y untarlo dentro de la salsa de soja , pero sin mojarlo por el lado del arroz, para no descomponer la pieza.

• Llevar la pieza completa a la boca y comerla de una vez.

• Cuando no se estén usando los palillos, dejarlos sobre el hashi-oki o sobre el plato.

• No se considera de buena educación dar comida a otro comensal con los propios palillos, ni jugar con ellos, mantenerlos separados, pinchar la comida, o moverlos por el aire.

• Entre bocado y bocado se puede comer trozos de gari, que ayuda a limpiar el paladar de los sabores.

• Tratar de dejar el plato completamente limpio de alimento, especialmente de arroz.

• No comer wasabi en gran cantidad porque es muy picante

Por si algun@ todavia no controla el rollo de comer con palillos aqui teneis unas pequeñas instrucciones, en cuanto le coges el tranquillo es pan comido!

A parte de la comida, me encantan todas las chorradas con forma de sushi o similar o cualquier cosa estilo o diseño japones con ojos..

Siempre me llamó la atención el arte que tienen los japoneses a la hora de preparar algunos platos, hacen verdaderas esculturas con verduras y arroz, aún recuerdo un restaurante al que nos llevaban mis padres de pequeñas a mi hermana y a mi a comer.. me flipaban los pájaros que hacian de zanahoria.. algunos incluso me los lleve a casa escondidos en el bolsillo envueltos en una servilleta guarrona.. imaginaros como llegaban a mi casa los pajaritos..y mi bolsillo..jajaja..

El caso es que este arte tradicional japonés se llama Bento, es el arte de colocar, llenar y decorar la comida en cajitas o paquetes para llevar.
Esta tradición se remonta al s.XII.

En estas cajitas/fiambreras que la gente suele llevar tanto al trabajo como a la escuela, tienen diferentes y pequeños departamentos que llenan con la comida dandole formas alucinantes.

Es una forma de cocinar colorida, divertida, variada, equilibrada y muy imaginativa!
Algunas son autenticas maravillas y da incluso pena hincarles el diente.
Vereís como se os hace la boca agua.. Ñam,Ñam!!

I used to go to Katsu just about once a week with my co-workers when I worked in El Segundo.  They are one of my favorite sushi places to go for lunch and you’re right by the beach.

All lunches usually come with salad and miso soup.  I love the dressing on the salad.  Ponzu with olive oil.  It’s very light but flavorful.

I always, always go with the chirashi.  You get a great mix of fish and everything is so fresh, I love it!!  I always save my hamachi slices for last because those are the best.

Boyfriend went with a nigiri/spicy tuna roll combo.  Aren’t they beautiful??  His lunch came with salad and miso soup as well.  The meals also both came with green tea ice cream for dessert!  What a perfect meal.  It’s calming to look at the ocean out the window while eating and also makes you feel good about the fish being fresh.

306 Rosecrans Ave.  Manhattan Beach, CA

Pretty.

Fresh.

Perfectly sized.

Delicious.

Natalie took me out to Sushi on the Run on Tuesday for the most amazing lunch special ever.

Unlike many places where the fish is tinier than the rice it is served with, the sashimi here dangles off the sushi rice, which incidentally is just as tasty as everything else served up here. Furthermore, a tiny dab of wasabi is tucked into each piece of nigiri, so bursts of heat regularly shoot up your nose and into the back of your brain. High-quality horse-radish. Goodbye sinus.

The chef puts everything directly onto your plate as soon as he’s done (hence the eight person limit in this joint) so the service is speedy and about as personal as you can get with the preparation of your food.

Good lord, these pictures are making me salivate.

I decided on Friday night, that we’d have Family Sushi Night. Sammi was excited and decided to sleepover another night since she wanted shrimp nigiri. The girl is a shrimp fiend. As well as noodle-addict.

Saturday morning, we went in search of fresh fish and other fixin’s we’d need for handrolls. We came home with lots of goodies and settled in for an afternoon of Super Mario Bros.

Kim came home and prepped the rice. Everyone else helped out in the kitchen too. Sammi helped me chop up ahi for spicy tuna, mom helped julienne and wash veggies. I guess the men didn’t do much, but that’s probably because we wouldn’t let them!

On the menu: shrimp nigiri, bluefin tuna nigiri, giant clam, spicy tuna, udon noodles (for the addict), furikake wonton chips and various accoutrements for handrolls – shiso leaves, daikon sprouts, pickled cucumbers, julienned cucumbers.

So.Yum.So.Good.