Sushi Master Aoki-san

We frequent this restaurant so regularly we knew where to head straight to as soon as we arrived.

Sushi bar is barely one tenth the size of the restaurant but it is a much cosier spot to sit at while enjoying our private session with chef Aoki-san. He is probably the best sushi chef we have come across with so far. It is a privilege to be able to order sushi directly from him, to learn something from him and to see him in action up close. 

Aoki-san knew I like to blog about food so he generously offered a sweet chance for me to snap some pictures of him slicing up the 8 kilo Tasmanian salmon for later use in preparing sushi. It is truly an eye-opening experience!

Well apparently there are many types/grades of salmon - one ocean differs to another - male and female are tagged with different prices. The process of deboning and slicing the salmon requires a real skill and an incredibly sharp knife. A good quality natural sharpening stone from Japan can sometimes cost up to a million dollar (but people tend to use it for samurai swords instead of cooking knives).

The sushi presentation reflects the innovative side of Aoki-san. The selection of raw fishes (sashimi) may differ depending on what are available on the market in that particular season. 

The traditional way of kick starting a sushi feast always commences from raw fishes; then proceed with the stronger-flavoured cooked items (such as unagi). Pickled ginger is there to cleanse your taste buds if needed. I had this strong rejection to wasabi a long long time ago but now I have grown into loving it!

At dinner tonight, Aoki-san surprised us with his own originality - cabbage maki roll with tuna, plum (umeboshi), cucumber and sesame seeds. Call me stupid but I just liked the way he said "my pleasure" as he served it to us. It was such a privilege. Anyone sitting at vicinity probably were quite envious of us.

Some other classic dishes we ordered tonight - dobin mushi (teapot soup), soramame (broad beans) and mozuku (seaweed in vinegar).

 

The broad beans are supposed to be Aoki-san's favourite dish.

They are nicely boiled and grilled to flavour. Alex likes this dish a lot too.

Personally I prefer mozuku the seaweed dish...

Japanese food has so much depth and history behind it.

It is probably one of the best cuisines all around the world other than Chinese food.

(Surprisingly living in a Western country I don't fancy eating Western food at all!)