Love is all we need when making sushi

Happy valentine's day.

These photos, however, are not taken on valentine's day.

Nonetheless, every time I see them, they remind me one thing. That is, more than fresh fish, more than techniques, more than knife skills, love important when making sushi.

I always believed love comes first before fresh fish.

"Love is a many splendid thing. Love lifts us up where we belong. All you need is love!"

Without love, no matter how fresh your fish is, no matter how skilled you are slicing fish, your sushi will not taste the same. In fact, without love, I say, there is no reason to eat the sushi, there is no reason to make sushi.

In a Japanese food drama, Osen, the main character whispers, “Let it be delicious. Let it be delicious,” as she grinds a fresh wasabi. It’s my favorite scene from that drama. You can see she is putting love into wasabi. A lot of love. When she serves it, it makes the eater happy. Love lifts us up where we belong. Yes indeed.

Some of the clients told me, “Kaz this is the best sushi I’ve ever had.” I know my sushi tastes great, but when I hear these comments, honestly, it is a humbling experience. I do admit I am not the best sushi chef around. I am not the best culinary instructor either. My cooking skills are average. I probably don’t have the best taste buds or sense of smell in the world. Regardless, many clients told me how great my sushi was. All I can say is because love is a many splendid thing. When you have love, you think of others. When you think of others, you want to please them. You want to make sure you give your best. You want to make sure whatever you do, would help them be happy. You want to assure every little step you take, are the right steps. When you have love, everything you do is for the others, as well as for you. So, nothing is hard even when it is. Nothing is oh, I have to do this. You do what you do because you have love.

Yes, all we need is love.

That is how I make every piece of Nigiri. That is what I think of every time I slice the Tuna. “Let it be delicious. Let it be delicious,” I whisper like Osen, as I pour sushi vinegar over cooked rice, mixing it to make sushi rice.

So, I invite you to experience the love some of our past clients have experienced. Please come and attend one our public sushi classes in San Francisco and Santa Clara/San Jose.

Plan a sushi class for your team building event. Better, yet, let us come to your next celebration event. I will bring a lot of fresh fish, and a ton of love for you.

Remember: Love lifts up where we belong.