“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
2023: As a Digital Marketing consultant, Zoë helps entrepreneurs to become visible in the digital world. https://seooptimizer
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 Japan sake is served in several different ways. The older generation +55 years often drinks sake on weekdays and at special events.
During the week sake is typically served at the evening meal. How many glasses they drink depends on the percentage of alcohol. Generally speaking the percentage of alcohol in a bottle of sake is higher than in a bottle of wine.
As a rule of thumb if the percentage of alcohol in a bottle of sake is roughly the same as a bottle of wine the Japanese do enjoy a few glasses.
If the alcohol content is significantly higher and I am thinking of a bottle of booze the Japanese drinks small amounts of sake in the mug which is the size of a shot glass.
In the last newsletter of the year I will talk about how the younger generation prefer to drink sake.
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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.
Thursday and yesterday I was in Belgium where I practiced kendo kata with my Japanese kendo sensei whom I have known since 2001. He and a delegation of eight high-graded Japanese were teaching at the annual Belgian winter seminar.
It was quite nice to revisit many of my Belgian friends who I have known for many years.
Several of the Japanese kendo teachers know that I am Japanese-trained sushi chef. This year there were more of them who would like to read and see pictures of my Japanese sushi chef teacher. The Japanese kendo delegation thinks it is great that I am sushi chef.
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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.
In Europe wine is divided into champagne, white wine, red wine and dessert wine.
In Japan sake is divided into four main categories respectively Kun-shu, Sou-shu, Jun-shu and Jun-shu. Juku-shu is a category which is reserved for sake which has been aged for a long period of time.
Beside that there is also sake with bubbles and sake which is served for dessert. In addition, varying alcohol content also depend on which type of sake we are talking about. You can get sake with an alcohol content that matches a bottle of vodka. Therefore it does matter how sake is drunk. In Japan sake is drunk in several different ways.
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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.
In Japan Christmas is not celebrated in the same way as in Europe. The Japanese do not celebrate Christmas by eating Christmas dinner as we know it in Europe.
The Japanese do enjoy going out and eat a nice dinner with colleagues, family and friends. Eating a meal together is a social event as the Japanese enjoy while they eat many small meals which is very normal in Japan.
In a restaurant at dinner the Japanese prefer to drink beer it is the most preferred beverage at evening meals throughout Japan. The beer selection is not as large as in Europe the beer you find in Japan is very similar to classic beer in Denmark.
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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.
I noticed a growing interest and more people want to serve freshly made sushi quality in their homes.
Beside surprising guests with something new and exciting there are some of my attendants who see it as a great opportunity to learn the Japanese techniques are about to make tasty sushi.
I like to put together a menu where guests and the host prepare sushi in the Japanese way. That will give visitors a gastronomic experience with another dimension.
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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.
10 years and four months ago I was trained to become a sushi chef & sake sommelier at the California Sushi Academy. Toshi my Japanese sushi chef sensei (with 35 years of experience) is very Japanese in his approach.
Every 14 days we were tested. Our skills were tested, how fast we were, how sharp our knives was how clean our chefs uniforms were, how clean our workstation was and the presentation of the sushi pieces we should make. Then Toshi made a list which he hung on the wall so we could see what number we were on the list.
In the picture Toshi is examining how sharp my sushi knife is.
I can just add that I was number two in the final test.
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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.
Yes, there may be large differences in sushi rice.
Most people would probably think that the quality is not as crucial.
Like so much else the quality of the sushi rice has just as much impact on how tasty your rice will.
There is a big difference how much rice should be washed, how much water to use and how long they should be cooked. The cheaper rice you use the harder it make good sushi rice.
It is worth spending a little extra money on buying rice of good quality.
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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.
Vegetarian sushi is a much underrated dish in Europe.
Vegetarian sushi what is prepared with care have a fantastic taste and flavors.
In Denmark the selection is quite small and there is not really a menu for vegetarians.
There may be several reasons for that.
It’s much more complicated to make sushi with vegetables than sushi with fish.
The vegetables need to be prepared using different techniques so they do not lose their crispness, but will enhance their flavors.
The presentation of vegetarian sushi is at least as important. Making vegetarian sushi takes about twice as long to make as it may be the reason that it takes up so little on the menu.
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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.
The most exclusive sushi restaurants in Tokyo are very different compared to European sushi restaurants.
The size of a Japanese sushi restaurant can vary widely but often the restaurants are very small. There are no more than 6 – 15 seats in the restaurant and there are several reasons for that.
In the capital Tokyo living there 20 million. Since there are many people in a very small geographic area many Japanese families live in small apartment or houses and they are expensive.
Besides the many people there must also be room for many restaurants and shops.
On most streets have at least one restaurant so in addition to fierce competition between the restaurants.
Japanese do not compromise on the quality of food and service. Tokyo is the city of the world with the highest quality and service. They do everything they can to provide the best possible service.
The fierce competition for food combined with a high restaurant service ensures their survival. In Japan there are many restaurants that live by the motto, rather small but good.
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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.
As always it is very important to use as fresh vegetables as possible.
When you make vegetarian sushi you must remember that the vegetables are the star and that they are the focal point of the entire menu.
The ideal is to buy organic fresh vegetables either from a farmers market or at a greengrocer.
At a farmers market is often more greengrocer who compete for essentially the same goods. So the quality and variety is greater. By shopping a farmers market you will find that the raw materials in season are cheaper and of better quality than those vegetables that can be bought in a supermarket.
However, there is a raw materials as well be worthwhile to buy a week before it is used like avocado.
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Zoë has lectured and held sushi courses for A. P. Moller – Maersk, Hugo Boss Nordic, Novo Nordisk, Novartis, Velux, Gorrissen Federspiel, Accenture audit Elbek & Vejrup and many more.
In Japan sake is served in several different ways. The older generation +55 years often drinks sake on weekdays and at special events.
