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What was your impression when you first tasted sushi in Tokyo?

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In 2004, I traveled to Tokyo for the first time on a training session. My Japanese kendo teacher Hirakawa sensei had arranged that I was going to practise in Tokyo’s best kendo club.

As it was my first trip to Japan, I was told that I was going to take the bus from Narita Airport to the Sunshine Hotel in Tokyo where I would be picked up by 2 members from the Kendo Club Yushinkan Dojo.

When I arrived at the hotel we walked directly into the hotel to have lunch at one of the hotel’s many restaurants. In the restaurant I was served sushi and it was my first meeting with Japanese sushi.
I clearly remember the experience. The quality was different and the sushi pieces tasted more fish than what I had experienced in Denmark.
I was also surprised at how many different kind of seafood are used for sushi.

That it would later go to be my way of life I did not really think so at that time.

You can read more about Sushi course for beginners

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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.

What kind of fish do the Japanese prefer?

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The Japanese have a slightly different view of sushi.

In Japan it is believed that all types of high quality fish can be used for sushi. This means that most sushi restaurants have 15-20 different fish on the menu. With such a large selection the Japanese prefer to eat nigiri.

But before a fish enters a sushi bar the quality of the fish has to meet the specific criteria.

On the class Sushi for beginners you will hear the quality of the fish is decided.

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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.

How do you use tofu in the Japanese cuisine?

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RamenIn Japan soya products such as tofu, soya sauce and miso is eaten in large amounts. It is a healthy source of protein.
If you take the product tofu.The selection of tofu in Japan is very high. You can get many different types of tofu at different price ranges and qualities.

In Japan you can get several type of tofu where the consistency is very different some types are soft while others are firm. To determine which tofu buy you have think of the dish you are making since some tofu are suitable to fried on a pan.

There are more and more Japanese household who makes their own tofu. It is cheaper you also have a freshly made tofu.

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Zoë gives lectures and has held sushi courses for A. P. Moller – Maersk, Hugo Boss Nordic, Novo Nordisk, Novartis, Velux, Gorrissen Federspiel, Beierholm revision, Elbek & Vejrup and many more.

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Gem

Gem

What is Japanese chef’s view of animals?

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In Japan, the Japanese population and Japanese chefs have a different view of animals.

In Japan, the Japanese will only eat meat from happy animals. If the animal in question is not happy, the Japanese will not eat it.

In addition, it is very normal to use the whole animal for cooking. If you take for example a fish it is normal that all parts close to what is in the intestines are used in Japanese cuisine.
The different parts of a fish are cooked in different ways. You will find that the different parts are part of different dishes.

This is one of the reasons why the Japanese cuisine is so big and varied.

You can read more about Sushi Chef & Sake Sommelier Zoë Escher where participants get a deeper insight into different fish used for sushi.

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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.

Are there any advantages to using Japanese ingredients?

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Without a doubt yes.
Ingredients have different flavors and taste according to the world they come from. The fewest are aware that Japan, Korea and China produce seaweed to sushi.

Here I think the variety used to produce the tang, the taste and the quality. The same applies when it comes to pickled ginger, soy sauce and vinegar.

Sushi is a nice and delicate eating so it is worth paying to buy ingredients that emphasize the fine shades of the food without dodging or dominating.

Read more about Sushi course for beginners

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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.

How often are raw jellyfish eaten in Japan?

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More often than most people know.

At Japanese restaurants, you don’t place a freshly caught squid on the plate and send it directly to the guests. You would never do that.

A raw squid that often comes from China is “prepared” with the same care as any other raw material. Very few people discover that they have eaten squid. It took me 10 years to discover that.

For several years I had noticed that I was served something indefinable on a regular basis. It tastes fine and repared in a delicate way so I could not figure out what it was. In Denmark we do not have waterman on the menu.

One evening when I was dinning in Tokyo a Japanese friend told me that it was a jellyfish that I was eating.

Read more about Sushi Sushi Chef & Sake Sommelier Zoë Escher

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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.

Which vegetable is really good for sushi?

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Farmers markets

There are several different vegetables that are suitable to be used for sushi.

In Denmark you can get different kinds of asparagus it is a vegetable that thrives in Denmark. The asparagus season is in spring. In Copenhagen you can go to the farmers market that sells different kinds of asparagus with unique aromas and flavores.
The supermarket usual has one kind of asparagues.

Asparagus is vegetable that is perfect for sushi since you can use it in different ways.

The season in spring is quite short so I encourage you to buy different varieties of different quality and enjoy the different flavors of taste. You don’t necessarily have to make sushi. You can also steam them quite easily and eat them with a little butter and salt.

Read more about the sushi class Sushi for beginners

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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.

Sake is more sophisticated than “ordinary” wines

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The Japanese rice wine sake has more dimensions than classic wines as we know it in Europe. Sake wines have a nice and a more silky smooth texture. Sake is not “heavy” that you can sometimes experience with wine.

The variety of aromas is greater in your wines. Some sake wines have a depth that you do not find in wines and other sake types smash your tongue.

And yes in some countries you can get sake with bubbles which is Japan’s interpretation of champagne.

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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.

Warm evenings, sunshine and sushi

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Spring are here and summer is approaching with rapid steps.

The warm evenings offer barbecues, salads, fruit pies and not least sushi. There are quite a few people who prefers to eat dishes are not as heavy in the stomach as winter food.
Sushi is a diner that is ideal for the warm evenings with a good glass of white wine. With sushi, it will never be boring there are unlimited possibilities in the composition of a dinner.

More and more people are on making their own sushi with their favorite ingredients. At the Sushi course for beginners the attendances learn to use Japanese cooking techniques for preparing sushi.
They learn and about Japanese food stages they have to go through from raw materials, cooking of sushi rice, preparation of vegetables and fish, and step by step to making tasty sushi rolls.

You can read more about the class Sushi for beginners

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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.

Which countries produce seaweed for sushi?

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There are several different countries that produce seaweed for sushi.
Growing seaweed on the seabed is done with the same care and dedication as organic strawberries are produced in Europe.

The countries that produce seaweed for sushi are China, Korea and Japan. I have tasted different types of seaweed for sushi from the 3 different countries and there is a great difference in appearance, consistency and taste. Some types of seaweed taste a lot of sea but others are more neutral in taste.

Personally, I am mostly for seaweed types that do not taste too much of sea and which are crisp in consistency.

At the Sushi course for beginners the attendances learn more about seaweed for sushi.

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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.