Each bite is made to be eaten immediately
- “Sushi is like French fries,” says Tyson Cole of Uchi. “It's best eaten right when you make it. Every minute after you make it, it's dying.” This means that preparing sushi at a master level requires incredible multi-tasking to complete a plate of nigiri with timing that preserves the integrity of each bite, as well as laser focus on each piece.
- A master understands that smell is a crucial element of taste. “A piece of mackerel is going to have a stronger aroma and you don't want it to turn guests off, so I put some ginger, green onion, lemon juice on top,” says Taichi Kitamura of Sushi Kappo Tamura. Some other scent-balancing pairings that our chefs suggested were garlic with bonito and extra wasabi with uni.
- How you slice, season, and form fish for nigiri depends on the fat content and texture of each individual species. “For a fish that's not that fatty, white fish or flounder for example, I cut it paper thin because it's all muscle,” says Cole. For fattier fish, the size of the slice is adjusted, but also the seasoning. “For fattier fish, I use two to three times more wasabi than I do with lighter flavored fish. On a piece of toro, I use four times as much,” says Kitamura.
- Keeping knives sharp is a craft all in its own. “Master sushi chefs will always sharpen their knives every day before service,” says Katsunori Kawaguchi of MOzen Bistro. This is important to ensure that cutting is a finesse action and not one driven by power. “If you use too much pressure while cutting the sushi it will affect the texture,” says Kawaguchi.
No comments:
Post a Comment