“In Japans your education never ends. In 2012 I was introduced to a nigiri hand technique that takes 20 years to master I think that is fascinating” – Zoë Escher
2019: Zoë was the judge for the daily newspaper Politiken in connection with testing food for their readers.
2016: Zoë held the official opening speech and opened the fair Formland Spring in Messecenter Herning in Denmark. At the opening of the fair there were 49 people from the press, 20 VIP and 271 exhibitors.
2015: Zoë has made sushi and Japanese dishes as private dining at home of US ambassador in Denmark Rufus Gifford.
2013: Rated as Denmark’s sushi expert no. 1 by gourmet supermarket chain Irma. Zoë was also guest judget at Masterchef Denmark season 3. Zoë has made sushi and Japanese dishes as staff food to the 3 star Michelin restaurant
Zoë is known from Danish magazines and TV such as Copenhagen Food, ALT for Damerne, Berlingske, Femina, IN, Mad & Bolig, TV3 and the consumer council magazine “THINK”.
Reference: Restaurant Geranium***, A.P. Møller – Mærsk, Hugo Boss Nordic, Novo Nordisk, Ikea, Novartis, Velux, Takeda Pharma, Haldore Topsøe, Dansk Byggeri, Deloitte, Gorrissen Federspiel, Beierholm revision, Symphogen and many more.
In the classes, that I hold there have always been fewer attendants compared to other culinary schools. This means that my students get more out of the course when there are not so many participants.
Including Covid-19, I have sharpened the number of attendance I will continue to do so regardless of how the infection developed in Denmark. There will be no more than 9-10 participants.
There are several benefits to
There will be plenty of space between the attendances
I have more time for the participants
The attendances also get to try more
_
Zoë has lectured and held sushi courses for A. P. Moller – Maersk, Hugo Boss Nordic, Novo Nordisk, Novartis, Velux, Gorrissen Federspiel, Beierholm revision, Elbek & Vejrup and many more.
Unless you work in a fish shop it can be hard to tell when a fish is fresh. One of the area where you should not compromise is the freshness of the fish. There are several reasons for this.
Sushi made with fresh fish have a fantastic taste.
You also avoid your guests or yourself get sick.
_
Zoë has lectured and held sushi courses for A. P. Moller – Maersk, Hugo Boss Nordic, Novo Nordisk, Novartis, Velux, Gorrissen Federspiel, Beierholm revision, Elbek & Vejrup and many more.
Every year I travel to Brussels in December and spend a few days in the company a delgation of high-grade Japanese Kendo teacher.
A couple of years ago I asked them,
What is the most important thing when you buy sushi?
They all said that sushi rice cooked to perfection is the most important thing for them. None of them are interested in eating sushi rice which has a consistency like pudding. They are also not interested in eating sushi rice that is still uncooked in the middle.
For Japanese, they are the perfect sushi ripe firm but soft in consistency. It is consistency that can be difficult to hit if you are not used to boiling sushi rice.
_
Zoë has held sushi courses and cooking classes for A. P. Moller – Maersk, Hugo Boss Nordic, Novo Nordisk, Novartis, Velux, Gorrissen Federspiel, Beierholm revision, Elbek & Vejrup and many more.
In 2012 I visited my Japanese sushi chef instructor Toshi in Los Angeles. I got some private lessons in his restaurant where he introduced to a nigiri technique that takes 20 years to master.
One day one of his talented Japanese sushi chefs showed me 2 different kinds of tuna. Tuna is called toro and the piece on the left side is matured up to 3 weeks before it is used for sushi.
_
Zoë has lectured and held sushi courses for A. P. Moller – Maersk, Hugo Boss Nordic, Novo Nordisk, Novartis, Velux, Gorrissen Federspiel, Beierholm revision, Elbek & Vejrup and many more.
It depends a lot on how it is used in sushi. You have to think that seafood has a completely different texture than fish. Most fish fillets are quite firm in the meat.
If you look entirely at seafood they remind you most about a bag of mixed candy. Seafood comes in many different sizes, tastes and texture. It is the raw material that is the hardest to use for sushi.
Some seafood used in sushi restaurants outside Europe are very difficult to prepare for sushi, it requires you as a sushi chef to use many different Japanese cooking techniques.
The consistency of seafood is also very different. Some shellfish have a very hard surface while others are very soft. In order for this type of raw material to become a gastronomic experience, you need to know which Japanese cooking techniques are best suited to it.
At the Sushi course for beginners the attendance learns to prepare the most sought after raw materials for sushi.
_ Zoë has held sushi courses and cooking classes for A. P. Moller – Maersk, Hugo Boss Nordic, Novo Nordisk, Novartis, Velux, Gorrissen Federspiel, Beierholm revision, Elbek & Vejrup and many more.
The Japanese are the population of the world who live the longest in the world and for good reason. The Japanese eat large amounts of seaweed and it is not only when they are having sushi.
There are many different types of seaweed depending on whether it is to be used for soups, cold dishes, hot dishes, a starter or a salad.
The different types of seaweed produced to be consumed are very healthy. Seaweed used for sushi is the vegetable in the world that contains the most minerals and vitamins.
So with a very small amount of money the Japanese can eat large quantities of vegetables.
_
Zoë has lectured and held sushi courses for A. P. Moller – Maersk, Hugo Boss Nordic, Novo Nordisk, Novartis, Velux, Gorrissen Federspiel, Beierholm revision, Elbek & Vejrup and many more.
Toshi is a well known Executive sushi chef and sushi instructor in Los Angeles. He has almost all the movie companies in Hollywood as customers and do also have celebrities as private clients. He has 40 years of experience as a Executive sushi chef.
Toshi has a Japanese approach to sushi and a way of life. The Japanese culture is very result-oriented when it comes to work and sport. If I pracise kendo in Japan my progress will be tested every day.
When having af teacher like Toshi there are a few Japanese rules that I must follow. When I address him I must call him Toshi sensei or sensei. Sensei means teacher in Japanese.
When I show up in his restaurant I have to say “Ohayogozaimasu” which is a way greeting each other in Japan. Toshi speaks a little English and when he speaks you must be quite. When answering Toshi you say “Hai” which means yes in Japanese. He do not wants to hear the word Yes.
Toshi will test your skills or creativity every 14 days.
In a skill test you are tested on the following,
How sharp your sushi knife is? The level of your sushi techniques? The presentation of the sushi you have madee? How long it took you to make the sushi? How clean your chef uniform is? How clean you have kept your work space?
The result of such tests is placed on a wall in the kitchen so everyone can read it.
He will also test your performance in the sushi bar. He will look at how you work as a sushi chef and how you handle customers.
Beside thay you will also have to learn all the ingredients and raw materials in Japanese.
In 2012 I was in LA where he introduced me to a nigiri technique that takes 20 years to master.
I have learned a lot from him. When I go to LA in September I look forward to learn new things.
_ Zoë has held sushi courses and cooking classes for A. P. Moller – Maersk, Hugo Boss Nordic, Novo Nordisk, Novartis, Velux, Gorrissen Federspiel, Beierholm revision, Elbek & Vejrup and many more.
Japanese sushi chefs are stricter when it comes to handling raw materials to sushi.
There are several reasons for this.
Japanese sushi chefs have a completely different view of sushi and, the ingredients used for sushi. Sushi is a dish that you do not fry or cook as we know from dishes such as lasagna.
Sushi is a dish that is cooked as little as possible, which means that it places greater demands on the way in which food is prepared. This applies right from the purchase of fish and vegetables, storage, freezing, preparation of raw materials and preparing the food.
Japanese sushi chefs have a more in-depth knowledge of the different fish species for sushi because it takes longer to be trained for sushi.
At Sushi course for beginners you will learn how to handle raw materials and make sushi like Japanese sushi chefs in Japan.
_
Zoë has held sushi courses and cooking classes for A. P. Moller – Maersk, Hugo Boss Nordic, Novo Nordisk, Novartis, Velux, Gorrissen Federspiel, Beierholm revision, Elbek & Vejrup and many more.
When making sushi the knife play an important role.
The secret to tasty nigiri include your ability to cut fish to perfection.
The more a clean cut you can make the more tasty is nigiri pieces too. The reason is that even the smallest “wrong” section of a fish or vegetables can be tasted.
It is also important to know the structure of the fish as it has a direct impact on how clean a cut you can make. If you cut the filet the wrong way the whole filet can fall apart.
The Japanese use very few ingredients when they make nigiri and because of that you will be able to taste everything because nothing can be hidden.
_
Zoë har holdt foredrag og afholdt sushikurser for A.P. Møller – Mærsk, Hugo Boss Nordic, Novo Nordisk, Novartis,Velux, Gorrissen Federspiel, Beierholm revision, Elbek & Vejrup og mange flere.
Yes, there is a difference in quality in Japan. As in Denmark, the quality of sushi differs but the range is much bigger.
At the lowest level, you will find Running sushi, which most people outside of Japan have heard of. In Japan, most of the students eat at running sushi.
In Japan, there are several levels of gastronomy. Most people in Denmark consider three star Michelin restaurants as the highest. In Japan, the level is also very high but there is a level above Michelin restaurants. Yes, you heard right!
This is because there are restaurants that the Michelin Guide has not discovered.
There are also restaurants that are so popular that they are removed from the guide.
There are restaurants that are so in demand that they are unable to accommodate the many guests.
There are also chefs who are so high in age that they have chosen to slow down and only cook for their regular’s guests. The type of restaurants tourists rarely hear about.
_
Zoë has held sushi courses and cooking classes for A. P. Moller – Maersk, Hugo Boss Nordic, Novo Nordisk, Novartis, Velux, Gorrissen Federspiel, Beierholm revision, Elbek & Vejrup and many more.
