Chef’s cutting board

Established restaurants across the country adding sushi menu

Cultural News, July 2007

By Andy Matsuda

    We’ve got a very busy month on hand.  On top of our normal classes, we’re doing double-time on private sessions, not just in double the amount of classes, but in half the amount of time due to the large number of interested students with time constraints.  The start of this month alone sees me wrapping up a rushed private session for a chef from Denver, just in time to start up a private session for a chef from Ohio.

     Both chefs are coming from established restaurants, but with the boom in sushi across the country, they are trying to stay ahead of the competition by learning everything from the proper way to make rice to creating fusion sushi rolls.

    Before I move on, I should mention that late last month I was asked to appear as an expert on the Rolonda Watts Radio Show.  It was really a great experience as I took calls from across the United States with questions about fish, the history of sushi and talked about the 50-year evolution of the California Roll.

   One call came in from Oklahoma where a gentleman wanted to know if he could use the freshwater fish he caught to make sashimi.  As many readers may recall, using freshwater fish for sashimi can be very dangerous as, unlike saltwater fish, freshwater fish are not able to fight off many of the bacteria that are harmful for human consumption.

   At the end of July we will head up to Santa Barbara to meet with the Sea Urchin Commissioner who is hosting a private barbeque for those who have been working to spread the word on this very unique species.  We have a few new dishes prepared to introduce to the commissioner, and if he likes them, we may soon unveil them to the general public.

  Andy Matsuda is founder and Chief Instructor of the Sushi Chef Institute in Los Angeles. For information about the school, visit www.sushischool.net.