What if I told you that before the 1950’s, sushi, both within Japan and without, was little more than a street food? Wouldn’t it blow your mind to know that a type of food that has become one of the world’s top cuisines came from such humble beginnings?
Sushi has been adopted by so-called sushi bars across the world, and just like any other food, different restaurants do this with varying levels of success. Some restaurants, like Jiro’s in Tokyo — often regarded as the best sushi restaurant in the world — put the utmost care into every piece of sushi they make. Others manage to get away with borderline repulsive food. Here are three tips to ensure you find good sushi restaurants that are more like the former than the latter.
Three Things You Should Look for to Find the Best Sushi Restaurants
- The Rice is Perfect, Every Time
- Fine Sushi Restaurants Won’t Emphasize Fresh Fish
- They Make Sure You Try It Their Way
As the popular Japan-focused blog They Call Me an Egg writes, sushi is all about the rice, not the fish. Even the word “sushi” is made up of characters meaning rice and vinegar. Subsequently, any restaurant counting itself among the ranks of good sushi restaurants should place an emphasis on washing, cooking, and seasoning each grain perfectly. You’ll be able to tell when you taste their food.
It might seem counter intuitive but as Anthony Bourdain points out on his popular CNN show “Parts Unknown,” you don’t actually want the freshest fish to go into your sushi. The reason? Fresh fish is pretty bland. Just as steak enthusiasts know that beef needs to be aged to bring out the flavors, so, too, does fish need to be allowed to age to develop better flavors. Any good sushi restaurants worthy of the title will know that.
We have a nasty habit of taking whatever piece of sushi we’re given and slathering it with an unholy slurry of soy sauce and wasabi. Sushi chefs put a lot of thought into what types of seasonings and how much to use on their sushi, and those at the best restaurants will insist you try it their way before ruining it with your brine of terror. This is a sign they know how good their sushi is.
Are you a sushi fanatic? What do you look for when you’re searching for good sushi restaurants? Let us know in the comment section below. Check out this site for more.
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