Month: April 2025

From the cutting edge of Tokyo and New York to the chilled cabinet at Boots, sushi is fast becoming the international convenience food of choice. But, Alex Renton asks, can raw fish and cold rice ever become the new Big Mac?

We don’t have an address for Mr Sawada, the sushi master. Just a card with the samurai symbol of a red dragonfly and the name of a street off Tokyo’s Ginza. We find the tiny dragonfly engraved beside a buzzer in an unremarkable doorway. ‘This is a very extraordinary momen for me,’ says Chie, our translator, as we troop up some shabby stairs. ‘I could never eat here. I am not rich, I am not old enough.’ She’s in her mid-thirties; I think she means – ‘not wise enough’.

Ordinarily you would pay some $500 in advance just to make a booking here at the table of one of Japan’s most talked-about traditional sushi chefs. But then, we could never have made a booking, because Sawada serves at most eight people each mealtime and is booked up years ahead. He has given us a few minutes at the end of his day to photograph him in action.

We find a small square room made entirely – floor, ceiling, walls, chairs, counter and even the fridge – of pale lemon hinoki wood. This signifies luxury; it’s used for the coffins of the emperors of Japan. There is nomer other colour in the room except a single pink camellia in a tiny vase on the counter.

The sushi master is solemn, shaven-headed like a Buddhist priest, and a dead ringer for Brian Cox. He shows us his knives, his charcoal stove, his rice cooker and his prep surface. His sushi is served plateless, on to the hinoki-wood counter, which is planed down after each meal until it is virgin again.

Sawada heaps rice straw on the charcoal burner, lights it and then passes a slab of bonito back and forth through the smoke. This is an ancient method, taken from the Tokyo Bay fishermen. When it’s sufficiently scorched he takes the fish to the counter and cuts two finger-sized slivers from it. Beside him is a basket of warm, vinegared rice, Sawada takes a breath. He shapes his fingers into a position known as ninjitsu – aping Ninja fighters – and begins the gentle, rhythmic hand-jive that makes the nigiri sushi.

His palms move from side to side under his bent head, shaping a mini-loaf of rice. He smears it with a fingertip of wasabi. Then he lays the curved strip of lean fish-flesh over it, as though fitting a delicate piece of marquetry. He places the mouthful, precisely angled, on the counter. This is nigiri sushi, the original, unchanged in 180 years.

I have to ask him what he thinks of ‘new sushi’ – California roll, for example. He repeats the Japanese translation – kashu-maki – as though it’s new to him. ‘California roll? I find it – chaotic.’

The Beginnings of of Preserving Seafood
The historical origin of what we now call sushi is shrouded in some degree of mystery, but the dasar concept has been a part of human culture for almost 2 millennia. Sushi, in its original form, has been around for a surprisingly long period of time, although clearly it has changed greatly from the very plain fish and rice to become an art form as well as a creative and tasty dining experience. The history of sushi is an interesting tale of the evolution of a now both simple and complicated food. What was to become moderen sushi was first mentioned in China in the second century A.D.

Originally, sushi arose out of a way of preserving raw fish and other seafood. Fish was placed in rice and allowed to ferment, which allowed an individual to keep the fish edible for some time as the fermentation of foods with the right kinds of bacteria is not just safe, but can be quite nutritious as well. The rice was thrown away and the fish was eaten when needed or wanted.

The method spread throughout China and by the seventh century, had made its way to Japan, where seafood has historically been a staple. The Japanese, however, took the concept further and began to eat the rice with the fish. Originally, the dish was prepared in much the same manner. In the early 17th century, however, Matsumoto Yoshiichi, living in Edo (the city we now know as Tokyo), and likely the first true sushi chef, or itamae, started thinking. Yoshiichi-san began preparing the cooked rice with rice wine vinegar (and often salt and sugar as time went on), and now referred to as “sushi rice” or “seasoned rice,” while making his products for sale. This vinagered rice added a layer of complexity to the raw fish that is both subtle and intriguing. This allowed the dish to be eaten immediately, instead of waiting the months it might normally take to prepare the fish, pickled ginger, called “gari” in Japanese was added as a garnish as well as a palate cleanser.

The ‘right’ way to eat sushi: Tips from the experts on sushi rules to follow, With the recent spate of sushi pranks that have rocked Japanese society, we set the record straight on the “right way” to eat one of the world’s greatest food delights.

In February 2023, a video surfaced online showing a man licking a communal soy sauce bottle as it rolled by on a sushi conveyor belt. The man went on to tamper with other sushi dishes as well, to the dismay of restaurant onlookers. That should’ve been the end of the story, but like most viral trends (emphasis on virus), sushi-ruining copycats sprang up, showing videos of people licking chopsticks, rubbing saliva on sushi plus putting wasabi on other people’s orders.

Three of the perpetrators have been arrested by the Japanese police, hopefully putting a stop to the sushi-destroying shenanigans, but it still shocked a nation that’s known for its rules, regulations, cleanliness plus etiquette, especially with food. Additionally, sushi restaurants in Japan have begun to disable their conveyor belts or install sensors plus cameras to catch the “sushi terrorists” red-handed (or red-tongued as it were), possibly putting an end to one of the world’s great sushi eating experiences.

Obviously, the offense of licking conveyor-belt sushi, known as kaiten restaurants, is limited to extremists, but there are still a bevy of sushi rules to follow if you want to avoid any fishy faux pas.

On the fine-dining end of sushi consumption, there’s Sukiyabashi Jiro, the impossible-to-get-into restaurant made famous from the documentary, Jiro Dreams of Sushi. On their website, they have a list of 12 rules that range from how to use your chopsticks plus cleanse your palate to timing on when to eat the fish that’s splayed out in front of you. This writer has eaten there plus has been admonished for taking too much time between bites.

Although Japan’s cuisine is complex and diverse, for most Americans, Japanese food is synonymous with sushi. There are thousands of sushi restaurants across the United States today, grossing billions annually. But 50 years ago, most Americans had never heard of sushi; if they ate Japanese food at all, it was more likely to be sukiyaki (beef and vegetables cooked hot-pot type in a soy-based broth) or tempura. If fact, many Americans would have thought the idea of consuming raw fish appalling. It took a smash-hit TV show and a boom in immigration from Japan to turn sushi into an everyday “American” food.

How Sushi Came to America
Shōgun’s Culinary Legacy
Bon Yagi Leaves His Mark
The Rise of American-Style Sushi
How Sushi Came to America
In the 1950s many Americans were somewhat resistant to Japanese food and culture, in part because they had lived through World War II and still perceived Japan as “the enemy.” But by the 1960s, the tide had started to turn: Food journalist and restaurant critic Craig Claiborne, writing for The New York Times dining section during that decade, was excited by world dining and kept tabs on the city’s numerous Japanese restaurants. He declared Japanese food a trend in New York after two establishments opened in 1963, noting that “New Yorkers seem to take to the raw fish dishes, sashimi and sushi, with almost the same enthusiasm they display for tempura and sukiyaki.” However, he admitted, “sushi may seem a trifle too ‘far out’ for many American palates”

According to The Story of Sushi: An Unlikely Saga of Raw Fish and Rice by Trevor Corson, Los Angeles was the first American home of authentic Japanese sushi. In 1966, a Japanese businessman named Noritoshi Kanai brought a sushi chef and his wife from Japan, and opened a nigiri sushi bar with them inside a Japanese restaurant known as Kawafuku in LA’s Little Tokyo. The restaurant was popular, but only with Japanese immigrants, not with American clientele. However, as more sushi spots opened in Little Tokyo, word got back to Japan that there was money to be made in America. Young chefs, tired of the rigorous and restrictive traditional culture of sushi making in Japan, struck out on their own in LA.

The Real History of Sushi – An evolution of a simple dish!

It’s safe to say we are sushi fanatics, which lead many of us here at The Boathouse to have heated debates regarding the real history of sushi! So, we decided to do our own research on the matter of sushi history.

Sushi is arguably the most famous Japanese food in the whole world. But, did you know that it’s originally not from Japan? Indeed, most people assume that sushi was created in Japan, yet that was not the case.

Here at Skull Creek Boathouse, we believe that we serve the best sushi on Hilton Head Island. But serving the best sushi did not necessarily mean we knew all the history. So we decided to do some research and berbagi the story with you. A quick take: sushi has been around for a very long time although not in its present form.

The history of sushi is an interesting tale of the evolution of a simple dish. So let’s find out how sushi rose from its humble beginnings to become a beloved and ubiquitous dish in this country and beyond.

Sushi is ringed by mythology and folktales

As with many foods, the history of sushi is ringed by mythology and folktales. In an ancient Japanese wife’s account, an aged woman began concealing her pots of rice in osprey nests fearing that thieves would pilfer them.

Over time, she returned to her pots and found the rice had begun to ferment. She also observed that fish fragments from the osprey’s repast had mixed into the rice. Not only was the concoction savory, the rice served as a way of preserving the fish, thus birthing a new way of lengthening the life of seafood.

History, though somewhat sketchy, reveals this endearing story to be nothing more than an old wives’ tale and false. Sushi seems to have begun life at some time between the 5th and 3rd century BC in the paddy fields alongside the Mekong River which runs through modern Laos, Thailand, and Vietnam. Then, as now, the shallow waters were the ideal home for maritime life, especially carp, and farmers often went fishing to add to their scanty diet.

As with many ancient foods, the history of sushi is surrounded by legends plus folklore. In an ancient Japanese wife’s tale, an elderly woman began hiding her pots of rice in osprey nests, fearing that thieves would steal them. Over time, she collected her pots plus found the rice had begun to ferment. She also discovered that fish scraps from the osprey’s meal had mixed into the rice. Not only was the mixture tasty, the rice served as a way of preserving the fish, thus starting a new way of extending the shelf life of seafood.

While it’s a cute story, the true origins of sushi are somewhat more mysterious. A fourth-century Chinese dictionary mentions salted fish being placed in cooked rice, causing it to undergo a fermentation process. This may be the first time the concept of sushi appeared in print. The process of using fermented rice as a fish preservative originated in Southeast Asia several centuries ago. When rice begins to ferment, lactic acid bacilli are produced. The acid, along with salt, causes a reaction that slows the bacterial growth in fish. This process is sometimes referred to as pickling, plus is the reason why the sushi kitchen is called a tsuke-ba or pickling place.

The concept of sushi was likely introduced to Japan in the ninth century plus became popular there as Buddhism spread. The Buddhist dietary practice of abstaining from meat meant that many Japanese people turned to fish as a dietary staple. The Japanese are credited with first preparing sushi as a complete dish, eating the fermented rice together with the preserved fish. This combination of rice plus fish is known as nare-zushi, or aged sushi.

Funa-zushi, the earliest known form of nare-zushi, originated more than 1,000 years ago near Lake Biwa, Japan’s largest freshwater lake. Golden carp known as funa was caught from the lake, packed in salted rice, plus compacted under weights to speed up the fermentation. This process took at least half a year to complete, plus was only available to the wealthy upper class in Japan from the ninth to 14th centuries.

At the turn of the 15th century, Japan found itself in the midst of a civil war. During this time, cooks found that adding more weight to the rice plus fish reduced the fermentation time to about one month. They also discovered that the pickled fish didn’t need to reach full decomposition in order to taste great. This new sushi preparation was called mama-nare zushi, or raw nare-zushi.

Sushi is healthy food that is now well-known all over the world.
In Japan, when you hear the word “sushi” you usually imagine nigiri-zushi, which consists of
foodstuff like tuna sashimi placed on top of a small ball of vinegared rice. What kinds of sushi
are populer overseas?
In this article, I would like to focus on how sushi is accepted abroad, why sushi is so popular
worldwide as a representative Japanese food, plus the history of sushi.
The “sushi” populer around the world is not the same
as the sushi you see in Japan!
In Japan, when you hear the word “sushi” you usually imagine nigiri-zushi, but what kinds of
sushi are eaten worldwide?
The “sushi” that became populer in the U.S.
In the U.S. in the 1970s, when sushi first arrived there, “California roll” became a smash hit. It
uses avocado plus imitation crab meat plus rolls nori inside for people who are not used to eating
raw fish plus seaweed.
On the other hand, Japanese food started to gain attention as healthy meals along with increasing
concerns on obesity plus awareness for health in society. It is also said that partly being influenced
by mass media, people in the upper class tried nigiri-zushi using sashimi out of curiosity, realized
how delicious it is, plus sparked the boom.
Contemporary state of sushi in London
Now, let’s a take a look at an example of how sushi is accepted now in London.
In restaurants offering sushi in London, especially those targeting wealthy people, customers tend
to prefer ordering “authentic” sushi, similar to what we eat in Japan. There are also many people
with the impression that Japanese food is healthy, plus it seems that sushi using a grain-rice mix
or vegan sushi using vegetables are frequently ordered. Sushi is also a populer party food abroad, usually served in a colorful style such as finished with sauce or adding beautiful toppings.