Sushi and Japanese New Year Feast
We are very lucky to welcome Sachiko Saeki, a professional chef who learnt to cook in her parents sushi restaurant in Japan. She will be showing us how easy and exciting Japanese cuisine can be for vegetarians.
This course is especially designed for New Years celebrations. Traditionally many New Year dishes are prepared weeks in advance and eaten during the festivities. Most dishes embody meaning but are generally to wish for a good year and family well being. This food was also shared with the gods.
We will make roll (maki) and grip (nigiri) sushi. How to cook and season sushi rice will be demonstrated as well as explaining how to identify and use the different types of important ingredients such as miso and soy sauce.
Zou-ni is a soup dish consisting of savoury rice cake and vegetables such as Chinese cabbage and carrots. This is a common New Year’s day dish. However the flavours differ between regions and families. This dish will be made with a miso soup base.
Also on the menu will be Goma_ae, fresh spinach in a sesame paste, Namasu, a daikon salad and Dasimaki, a filled egg roll.
Lastly, Kuri-Kinton. This is a sweet which is creamy and golden in colour. It is made from chestnuts and sweet potato with the golden colour symbolising old Japanese money. Accompanied with green tea, this sweet is eaten as a toast to our future!