Sushi Specials

Thirty years ago, most Americans hadn’t heard the word “sushi” and would never have considered eating raw fish—wrapped in seaweed, no less. Nowadays, you can hardly swing a mackerel without hitting a sushi restaurant in any urban neighborhood or suburban strip mall. Going out for sushi is getting to be as commonplace as grabbing a pizza, and it shows no signs of letting up.

In Sushi Specials, master sushi chef and restaurateur Oyamada Yasuto shares his expert technique so home cooks can recreate his jewel-like creations. With plenty of elegantly styled photographs, he discusses the necessary ingredients and offers recipes for basic building blocks, popular sushi and sashimi dishes, and his own “Japanese fusion” entrées.

While many cooks may never have the skills or gumption to attempt more than a simple plate of sashimi or sushi, readers will see more complicated presentations of such dazzlers as Crunchy Spicy Tuna or the Tuna and Egg Omelet Maki featured on the front cover with its exquisite mosaic design. The book is also useful for describing the various kinds of sushi—gunkan (nori boats topped with rice and soft ingredients), inari (fried tofu pockets filled with sushi items), and nigiri (rice ovals with fishy tops). Whether this book serves as a how-to cookbook or as a field guide to restaurant outings, Sushi Specials is an excellent choice for all sushi lovers.
—Foreword Reviews