Andy Matsuda - Lets Make Sushi!

Hello! My name is Andy Matsuda. After working as a sushi chef for many years, I decided to open the Sushi Chef Institute 20 years ago with the hopes of bringing professional chefs, and anybody who wanted to learn about it, closer to Japanese cuisine. I am excited to now share some of my knowledge in this book. The following pages describe the basic techniques and preparations for making traditional sushi in Japanese food culture. It is said that the sushi boom began in America about 50 years ago; since then, its become a nonstop industry that continues to grow. In 1981, when I came to the United States, I could see the sushi boom very much alive among the people eating in Santa Monica sushi bars and not only in Little Tokyo, but in downtown Los Angeles where it all started. This phenomenon continued to expand even more across the West Coast after the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics, and Japanese food culture started to prosper all over the world.

In the Western food scene, instead of Japanese edomae sushi, which is mostly simple sushi rolls, and hako zushi (pressed sushi), which uses fresh, raw and sometimes cooked or cured fish and seafood, special locally inspired rolls, such as , became a major trend and opened the doors even more for Japanese cuisine in Western culture. Now, we are entering an era in which people from different cultural backgrounds have incorporated sushi into their diet often, from once or twice a month to every week! In that sense, I was inspired by the sushi roll culture, which sparked the sushi boom here in the United States, to share my knowledge in this book so that as many people as possible can feel closer to the Japanese cuisine they love.

This book will teach you to easily make sushi at home. It is for those who have never made or eaten homemade sushi. My goal is to share with you an attainable and simple way to bring sushi to your table. Ill share my simple techniques for making sushi rolls, nigiri and sashimi. Hopefully, youll be able to incorporate new healthy meals into your diet and enjoy a fun activity that you can share with your family and friends, that brings you closer to each other in the process. My hope is that, with this book, children who have grown up with Japanese anime and manga will become closer to Japanese food culture, and maybe become their own artistic sushi chef.

With this book, I aim to expand your knowledge of sushi and the many forms it takes today, from raw fish to cooked fish and vegetables. Ill show you how sushi can become a part of your healthy diet. There are endless possibilities with this cuisine. I will take you step by step through my techniques so you can bring this piece of Japanese culture into your home. If some of the ingredients are not available in your area, you can always create your own sushi rolls with the products your local market has to offer.

Yarimashoo! (Lets get to it!)

THE ESSENTIAL TOOLS & INGREDIENTS

Before going into more detail about the modern tools you will be using, I want to share a story. My first sushi tool was a yanagi knife. It was a gift from my master, and I still have it. In the beginning, I had no idea how to maintain the knife and I messed up a few times. But I didnt give up and kept sharpening the knife for a long time. I have many fond memories with my first knife. It was the only knife I brought with me to the United States in 1981; we became immigrants together. I hope you can make beautiful memories with your sushi tools, too!