With the hot summer months about to hit Santa Clarita, the demand for Sushi increases tremendously and it is important to understand the true essence of quality sushi.
Most people are unaware that 95 percent of the sushi served in this valley (and throughout the United States) is pre-processed and frozen. Most sushi restaurants also use frozen Tuna, Salmon and other fish that has been artificially dyed and treated with color preservatives. Finally, numerous half-price, or all you can eat sushi restaurants use water-injected frozen fish that expands the cells of the sushi to make it look much larger and also seems more tender because of all the water content – making poor quality fish taste better and filling you up quicker.
All of these restaurants have one thing in common – No true concern about the quality of fish, and no concept of the true art form of sushi that originated and is still only able to be perfected by Japanese Master Sushi Chefs.
In Japan, a sushi trainee undergoes years of rigorous training to begin to understand the art form of sushi preparation before they can even earn the right to be called a sushi chef. Japanese trainees must first master basic knife cutting skills, and then they are only allowed to cut one variety of fish every day, six or seven days per week for up to one year. Until the Master Chef is confident in the fish cutting skill of the trainee, they are not allowed to progress to cutting more complicated fish. Why is cutting so important? Because the way that each fish is cut specifically affects both the flavor and tenderness of the sushi you experience. Also, the Japanese believe fish cut incorrectly is bad luck. Just mastering the skill of making sushi rice can take over a year due to the incredible process of precise amounts of select rice, water and hand made vinegar recipes passed down for centuries. Most trainees take five to six years before they are allowed to earn the title of sushi chef and actually stand before a customer to prepare sushi.
Next to cutting and preparation skills, fresh whole fish is the true essence of the sushi experience. It is impossible to duplicate the flavor of sushi prepared from a fresh whole fish, versus the frozen pre-processed fish loins that 95 percent of the restaurants use. Whether it is “flash frozen” or not, frozen fish loses a tremendous amount of flavor, texture and tenderness. Why do all these restaurants use frozen fish – very simply because the cost is dramatically lower than fresh fish, waste is minimal because they can store it for months and months, and because quite frankly their chefs have no skill or training on how to correctly cut fresh whole fish.
Sake Bistro & Sushi is proud to feature the freshest sushi from around the world. Receiving fresh whole fish deliveries four times per week, the fish is expertly and correctly prepared under the knife and guidance of Master Japanese Chef Katsu Hanamure, who has over 30 years experience, most recently 11 years as master and executive chef for world famous Nobu and Matsuhisa. Enjoy Lunch or Dinner at Sake’s stunning sushi bar and let Chef Katsu show you the true Japanese art form of sushi.
Open Tuesday through Sunday at 11:30 a.m., Sake Bistro & Sushi is located at 23889 Newhall Ranch Road in Valencia. For more information, please call 661-255-SAKE and visit www.sakebistro.com.