At Sansei Seafood Restaurant & Sushi Bar—a destination spot in Hawai‘i for locals and tourists alike—Chef Dave “D.K.” Kodama’s exciting culinary style wins rave reviews and attracts fans in ever-increasing numbers. In this collection of popular restaurant dishes, D.K. begins with a primer on making sushi at home, describing basic ingredients and techniques and presenting easy-to-follow instructions for combinations familiar and new. Small- and large-plate recipes follow, with award-winning favorites such as Mango and Crab Salad Hand Roll with Thai Vinaigrette, Japanese Calamari Salad, and Asian Rock Shrimp Cake with Ginger-Lime-Chile Butter. A selection of sweet plates includes restaurant classics as well as timeless dessert recipes from D.K.’s mother. With recipes that are uniquely multicultural and wonderfully original, D.K.’S SUSHI CHRONICLES FROM HAWAI‘I presents a fun, friendly, and very personal look at a brilliantly conceived facet of Hawai‘i regional cuisine. More than 125 recipes emphasizing fresh local ingredients. Sansei Seafood Restaurant & Sushi Bar is the winner of six consecutive Honolulu magazine Hale ‘Aina Awards. It’s also one of Bon Appetit’s Favorite Asian Restaurants and Travel + Leisure named it one of the Best Sushi Bars in America. D.K. worked and trained with notable chefs, including Nobu Matsuhisa, before opening his own restaurants.

User Ratings and Reviews

3 Stars DK’s Sushi Chronicles
Cookbook was shipped quickly…however, was shipped in a soft package envelope so ended up bent and tattered by the time I received. They should ship in cardboard box to avoid damage and if that is an extra charge they should offer the option to the customer. Very unprofessional!!!!!

3 Stars Sushi
This book took really long to come in…almost a month. But it’s good if you have company alot and want to impress them.

5 Stars Best Sushi Book Ever
We purchased this book after eating at Sansei in Maui and Oahu our first time to Hawaii and love the book. If you have never eaten at Sansei you are really missing out. Chef DK has created an amazing menu. Everything is delicious. If you are heading to Maui or Oahu, make sure you put Sansei down as a “to-do” while you are there. On Sunday and Monday night they open at 5PM and everything on the menu is 50% off for one hour. You have to get their by 4PM or so in order to get in, but it is well worth the wait.

Chef Kodama and Bonnie Friedman share all of Chef Kodama’s secrets and do a great job illustrating how to create traditional and contemporary Japanese cuisine. They explain how and why each ingredient is used and translate ingredients throughout the book so you don’t have to keep looking up terms when trying a new recipe. The book is simple enough for beginners to follow, yet offers some contemporary (and slightly more complex) dishes for the advanced chef.

If you love sushi and want to start making it at home, by this book.

4 Stars excellent even for beginners
For beginners, there’s a nice introduction to different basic japanese foods and rolling techniques with pictures. There are recipes for sushi, and small and large entrees. I’ve been to one of the two Sansei restaurants on Maui and the recipes from this book definately cover some of the best things on their menu. The only minor change I could see to make it better is more information about using pre-made grocery store sauces instead of making everything from scratch.

5 Stars Excellent food
I’ve been to his restaurant in Maui and the food was fabulous. So good in fact that I bought this book. While I could use more examples of fish to swap for things only a Hawaiian can get I find the recipes so easy a beginner can use them to make some fantastic food. I highly recommend this book.

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Technorati Tags: Asian Restaurants, Basic Ingredients, Calamari Salad, Cardboard Box, Chef Dave, Crab Salad, Culinary Style, Dessert Recipes, Destination Spot, Hawaii Recipes, Honolulu Magazine, Matsuhisa, Regional Cuisine, Restaurant Dishes, Restaurant Sushi, Rock Shrimp, Sushi At Home, Sushi Bar, Sushi Bars, Sushi Recipes

User Ratings and Reviews

5 Stars Fantastic Book for leaning WWII History – while having fun!
What a great book to teach children about WWII while having fun at the same time! I highly recommend this book to parents (and teachers!)who want to involve their children in entertaining, stimulating activities that engage the mind as well as the hands. Extremely well written, with easy to perform projects. Excellent job!

K.S. Barone, teacher and parent

5 Stars Truly A Great Resource For Parents, Teachers and Ultimately, Kids!
This book is very good for brief interesting facts on WWII both on the home front and the basics of the war. It enlightens and expands the notion of what the war must have been like for many Americans. The projects are very clever and easy to make which can be a relief to kids and parents under pressure.

5 Stars Excellent Resource
The author has synthesized the history of WWII into an informative and fun easy-to-read activity book. I highly recommend this resource for children and adults.

5 Stars learning can be fun!
I used this book with my middle school social studies classes. It was the state testing week,and I wanted to continue the curriculum but not ruffle any feathers with more concepts. We were in the middle of our World War II unit. I selected some of the projects that we did in small groups, individually or with the whole class as an extension of our regular curriculum. We made silly putty, folded origami cranes, made WWII airplanes, and THE BEST was the individual recreations of the Rosie the Riveter propaganda poster. Each student posed as Rosie,and now I have a great set of things to display for our spring open house. The information in the book is entertaining to read, and the projects are simple, doable, and beneficial. I would highly suggest any social studies teacher of any level (elementary-high school) take a look at this book.

5 Stars Interactive learning
What a great way to spend an afternoon teaching and learning with your child. We enjoyed the historical lessons and thought provoking perspectives. I would highly recommend it. T. Kearney – parent

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Technorati Tags: Barone, Causes And Effects Of World War Ii, Deck Of Cards, Effects Of World War Ii, Flip Book, Franklin D Roosevelt, Having Fun, History Of Wwii, Interesting Facts, Jewelry Pin, Kids And Parents, Learning Can Be Fun, Life In The 1940s, Military Technologies, Parents And Teachers, Ration Book, Resource For Parents, Victory Garden, Winston Churchill, World War Ii

Among the many authentic flavors of Japan, tsukemono, or pickled vegetables, has been a must for everyday meals and with tea. For most of the Japanese nothing can replace enjoying plain hot rice with tsukemono, and dinner is not complete without it as the final course. Today most dishes are available at Japanese grocery stores or specialty supermarkets, but they often lack the seasonal quality and freshness of true tsukemono.

The term tsukemono covers a wide range of dishes from a marinated salad to preserved foods. Traditional tsukemono such as takuan or umeboshi might seem difficult to prepare but Quick & Easy Tsukemono makes these and many more, easy with its simple step-by-step, full-color photo instructions. There are myriads of methods to make them, some as simple as just rubbing fruits and vegetables with salt just before serving, while other require several days to fully marinate. Packed with over 73 mouthwatering recipes for easily preserving fruits and vegetables, Quick & Easy Tsukemono is the perfect book for beginning cooks and seasoned foodies alike.

User Ratings and Reviews

5 Stars just what i wanted!
this book tells you and shows you what you need to know about making many kinds of japanese pickles, and also the korean kim chee and some american varieties. you will need some things like rice bran or rice koji for some of the most delicious ones, but please check out “bob’s red mill” for rice bran. and gem cultures where they will sell you some culture to make your own rice koji from rice that you can order from bob’s. both are on the internet. and you can make a lot of the pickles with just stuff you can get at most modern usa stores.

the little tsukemono book is very sweet. i just need a little asian grocery with everything to go with it. or a place that sells the seeds to grow things, especially shiso. but still, you can make much.

5 Stars Recommended for gourmet pickling enthusiasts
From garlic pickled in honey, to sweet and sour shallots, stuffed cucumbers, and so much more, Quick & Easy Tsukemono: Japanese Pickling Recipes is packed from cover to cover with colorful photos, intriguing dishes simply not to be found elsewhere, and preents them with a lively presentation which lends to easy home pickling for even the most novice kitchen chef. Even home cooks used to traditional pickling dishes will find plenty that will be new to them here; for Tsukemono’s Japanese emphasis is very different from American pickle recipes. Quick & Easy Tsukemono is unique and enthusiastically recommended for gourmet pickling enthusiasts!

4 Stars Korean Kim-chee and traditional Japanese side dishes
No Japanese meal is complete without tsukemono. Whether you are having a traditional dinner, some sushi, a bowl of udon or even a plate of curry rice, in a Japanese home or restaurant a small dish of pickled yummies will always be set aside your plate, providing a colorful and flavorful accompaniment.

Continuing the “Quick and Easy” series of Japanese cooking, chef Ikuko Hisamatsu has laid out almost 100 easy-to-follow tsukemono recipes that allow you to prepare these necessary side dishes, using seasonal Japanese ingredients which complement the various meals of Japanese cuisine. In addition to the common tsukemono, there are five Korean kim chee recipes, some dessert items like pineapple in lemon, fish side-dishes like salted squid, and some original creations like garlic in honey and garlic in miso.

The ingredient list might require a Japanese or Asian grocery store, unless you have ready access to daikon, shiso leaves, kombu, ume and the like. Required Japanese spices are things like miso, sake-kasu, karashi, wasabi and yuzu citron. Nothing terribly rare, but exotic enough that they probably won’t be found at a regular grocery store.

The recipes are easy to follow. If you have never done any pickling before, you can expect some trial and error before you get it exactly right. There are some overall tips for pickling, and advice as to the specific equipment you will need. Pickling does require some special equipment and preparation, so it is not really a “grab and go” type of cook book, although there are simple recipes that you can try right away. The length of time for the recipes vary, and you are probably better off trying a one hour pickle before tackling the two-month long fermentation of the delicious ume boshi.

A necessary book for anyone serious about cooking authentic Japanese meals.

4 Stars Easy and inspiring
I love this little book. Very simple instruction, great illustrations – has moved me up to another level of food fermentation. Great stuff

5 Stars Best English-language source for tsukemono
This is a fantastic collection of recipes. I began making Korean kimchi and wanted a Japanese counterpart as the fiery nature of the Korean kitchen was getting to me! This book is the answer. I am literally eating a bowlful of Tsukemono as I write this. Lovely–and low carb too, for people with that interest. Tsukemono or kimchi, a bowl of rice and te protein of your coice round out an easy to prepare (ahead) meal.

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Technorati Tags: Asian Grocery, Authentic Flavors, Color Photo, Everyday Meals, Freshness, Fruits And Vegetables, Fruits Vegetables, Japanese Grocery Stores, Koji, Korean Kim Chee, Mouthwatering Recipes, Myriads, Photo Instructions, Pickled Vegetables, Pickles, Pickling Recipes, Preserving Fruits, Rice Bran, Takuan, Usa Stores

NEW TASTES IN GREEN TEA is an original cookbook that ushers an underappreciated flavor into the kitchen as a beverage and a cooking ingredient. The range of recipes is startling. Green Tea Latte, Matcha Smoothie, or Iced Matcha au Lait take “the greens” in new directions. Mouthwatering recipes for gratin, quiche, pastas, and desserts will enliven the adventurous cook’s culinary repertoire.

While breaking fresh ground, NEW TASTES IN GREEN TEA also covers the basics. Author Mutsuko Tokunaga, vice president of the World Green Tea Association, introduces the reader to the most popular types of traditional tea, the fine art of brewing a perfect cup, and the ins and outs of tea lore. Lavish images by two top food photographers provide the perfect visual accompaniment for making green tea a part of everyday life.

This book arrives at the perfect time. With the growing awareness of the health benefits of this popular beverage, and the emergence of such innovative teas as vanilla hojicha and mango sencha, green tea is finding a place in more and more households. On the health front, the beneficial properties are almost too numerous to count. It is said to restrict the increase of blood cholesterol, control high blood pressure, lower blood pressure, refresh the body, deter food poisoning, help prevent cavities, fight viruses, and freshen skin.

Whether you are looking for a bevy of palate-pleasing drinks or savory new food recipes, NEW TASTES IN GREEN TEA is a must-have for anyone seeking to appreciate the versatility and elegant flavorings of one of the world’s most healthful beverages.

User Ratings and Reviews

5 Stars Detailed Information on Green Tea
This book will answer a lot of questions regarding green tea and its properties. The recipes included in the book are extremely easy and appetizing. We use this book as reference in our Tea Boutique all the time; it’s a great addition to your tea library.

5 Stars Ambrosial
If you are crazy about green tea, especially matcha, you will be pleased with this.

5 Stars interesting material, good writing, good illustrations, pleasant graphic design
I learned a lot about green tea from this book. It is a pleasant read and good reference.

5 Stars A beautiful and informative book for the tea connoisseur
This book is not only gorgeous in presentation, but very informative in the history of green tea, how it is cultivated, healing properties and more. The recipes are very tasty and creative. This is a must have for anyone who loves green tea.

5 Stars Introducing the reader to the most popular types tea
Enthusiastically recommended for gourmet kitchen cookbook collections, New Tastes In Green Tea: A Novel Flavor For Familiar Drinks, Dishes, And Desserts by renowned Japanese food stylist Mutsuko Tokunaga (who is also the Vice President of the World Green Tea Association) covers all the basics in the course of introducing the reader to the most popular types of traditional tea, the fine art of brewing tea, as well as tea lore and the history of tea. Tokunage then goes on provide this full range cookbook with a culinary wealth of new recipes for drinks, savory and sweet dishes, and complete tea menus. From Green Tea Gnocchi; Green Tea Croquettes; and Matcha Seafood with Mushroom Gratin; to Salmon and Sencha Pie; Matcha Chiffon Cake; and Matcha Tiramisu, New Tastes In Green Tea is a unique compilation that will be deeply and enduringly appreciated by gourmets with an appreciation for culinary elegance, as well as family kitchen cooks with an interest in providing the beneficial properties of green tea to their loved ones.

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Technorati Tags: Beneficial Properties, Bevy, Blood Cholesterol, Cholesterol Control, Culinary Repertoire, Drinks Recipes, Flavorings, Food Photographers, Food Poisoning, Food Recipes, Green Tea, High Blood Pressure, Hojicha, Lower Blood Pressure, New Directions, New Food, Perfect Time, Tea Association, Tea Latte, Traditional Tea

What would it be like to host an event catered by Nobu and Thomas Buckley, the executive chef of Nobu Miami? Now, food lovers and chefs everywhere can party like celebrities with Nobu Miami: The Party Cookbook, a visual treat and a celebration of the dazzlingly original fusion cuisine served in the Miami outpost of Nobu’s restaurant empire.
The book introduces an exotic line-up of finger foods and party dishes with South / American and Japanese influences, at the same time that it conveys the sparkling, sun-kissed atmosphere of the restaurants Miami Beach location. The recipes are simple and take advantage of fresh, local seafood like Florida pompano and conch.
More than 70 party recipes, some created especially for the book, are featured. The recipes themselves are complemented by comments, anecdotes and sidebars by Nobu and Buckley, in which they explain what inspired them to create particular dishes. They also offer useful tips on cooking technique. The gorgeous, full-color photos are by James Beard Award-nominee Masashi Kuma.

User Ratings and Reviews

5 Stars Another excellent, beautiful cookbook…quality presentation, photos to match the recipes featured! Awesome!
If there is one thing that I thank my grandfather for, it’s the appreciation and passion for food. As a chef, his influence of cooking has inspired a few of us in the family. And for me, watching the Food Network and various cooking shows on other networks and purchasing cookbooks is a part of my life because of my passion for food.

Martin Yan once told people that its the love of food and the experience of people eating food. Having passion and part of that passion for me is learning a variety of cooking styles, recipes and cooking for family and friends.

Learning about cooking is important and learning from talented chef’s and giving the reader the opportunity to recreate their popular dishes is challenging but also quite fun. And learning from the best like Nobu Matsuhisa when it comes to Japanese cuisine or a twist on Japanese cooking is challenging and fun. But the good thing is that Nobu Matsuhisa is one of those chef’s that is willing to share with you his recipes in another spectacular cookbook titled “nobu miami – THE PARTY COOKBOOK”.

Nobu Matsuhisa is a world renown chef and his first restaurant Matsuhisa was opened in Los Angeles in 1987. In 1994, actor Robert De Niro persuaded Nobu to open Nobu New York City and then in 2000, he and Giorgio Armani opened Nobu Milano. In 2001, Nobu opened Nobu Miami Beach and joining him was Englishman Thomas Buckley who became Nobu’s executive chef (he was Nobu’s Senior Sous Chef at Nobu London and helped open Nobu Milano and Ubon By Nobu in London).

Nobu has around 21 restaurants worldwide and has released several cookbooks over the years and similar to a few of his other cookbooks, they are very coffee table-like. They are just beautiful and “nobu miami – THE PARTY COOKBOOK” is beautiful!

When you first open the book up, you see these large photos in full color, photographed beautifully and almost making it look like a creative photo book because the photography and the book’s overall presentation is quite beautiful.

Nobu inspired by the seafood and fruits from the Caribbean and South America and its accessibility were prime keys in the various ingredients featured in this book. But essentially, the book is Japanese cuisine, the food is fusing Japanese and South American cultural flavors.

Buckley explains that the cookbook returns to Matsuhisa’s first culinary adventures in Peru and South America, revisiting some ingredients, finding new items and portray them in the famous “Nobu Style”.

The book is broken down into seven chapters. The first five main chapters are:

Finger Foods

You will find plenty of recipes in this chapter alone. In fact, nearly 90 pages are dedicated to finger foods in all. For each recipe, two pages are dedicated. One for the recipe itself and the other featuring a full page photograph.

There are recipes such as smoked tofu with tomato, shiso and basil and black grouper cheeks with Jamon IBerico and Caigua Salsa that absolutely looks mouth watering. Octopus carpaccio with yuzu mojo and kobe burgers that simply look delicious.

With so many recipes featured, Nobu and Buckley then get into “Florida Deep Fries” with deep-fried Biscayne Bay Shrimp, scallops and stone crab claws. Spotlighting the seafood but also giving his own twist such as the typical “fish and chips”, Nobu’s fish and chips feature a twist of salt, green tea powder and curry powder on sweet potato fries. Also, utilizing tomato powder for color.

Luncheons

From Rack of lamb with shiso panko crust, Gregorio’s artichoke noodle salad and more. What I like is how for some recipes, Matsuhisa explains certain things that they do at the restaurant such as capping the bones or for Gregorio’s artichoke salad, what kind of noodles they use and so forth.

Intimate Dinners

With recipes such as the steamed Chilean sea bass with dry miso or the uni-crusted Florida spiny lobster, there are plenty of awesome recipes, so many beautiful dishes.

Nobu Classics

Recipes such as black sea bass with jalapeno miso, creamy spicy key largo pink shrimp, Matsuhisa features several of his classic dishes in this chapter.

Desserts

For desserts, banana harumaki with sesame ice cream, nobu “cigars” with milk chocolate miso mousse, alfajores and many more.

The additional chapters are on additional recipes and cocktail recipes. The additional recipes are a compliment to the main dishes featured. For example, you will see Matsuhisa mention adding 10 garlic chips to the recipe and you can turn to this chapter to figure out how to make garlic chips. So, there are quite a good number of these additional recipes.

And also for each recipe featured with a cocktail, you also get to learn how Nobu makes cocktail recipes such as the Melbourne Mule, Strawberry Bloody Mary and more.

And once you are completed with the dishes, right at the end of the cookbook is a glossary that is like a cookbook dictionary of terminology in alphabetical order.

For example, if you wondered what is “conch”, you can go to the glossary and find that it’s a mollusk with a single, large, spiral shell and it’s pronounced as “conk” and more.

The Nobu cookbooks are always well done. I really like how he introduces the dish, gives a recipe, sometimes adding a little big more background on the dish or its ingredients but Matsuhisa writes a little about his past experience as a cook, his restaurants and a few pieces that are quite inspirational, especially for those who are inspired by his cooking and wanting to become a chef.

“nobu miami – THE PARTY COOKBOOK” is just well done. Photos are large and beautiful, text is easy to read and you get your money’s worth for the content featured.

With that being said, compared to other cookbooks out there, one may wonder how they can even make this food if they live in another part of the country or world and don’t have access to certain ingredients featured in this cookbook.

For those who are passionate about cooking and enjoy looking for alternate ingredients, that is great but for those who cant’ find the ingredients in their local area, I’m sure that this book can be difficult for them. Some spices can be purchased online but depending on your geographic area, the dishes featured on this cookbook may be too difficult for some to recreate. Especially for those wanting the same taste

Also, it’s not exactly a low-priced cookbook. For those understanding that Nobu is a restaurant typically serving gourmet food from celebrities to upper class groups and a chef and its restaurants that emphasizes its quality of food and ingredients, the book’s quality must match the chef’s cuisine quality and for Nobu Matsuhisa, it’s about high quality.

This book features prime ingredients to recreate tasty and delicious food that some may have tried at his restaurant or for those that just heard about how fantastic Nobu’s dishes are or have a passion for Japanese cuisine incorporating South American/Caribbean ingredients and want to recreate it themselves.

As mentioned, the book comes off like a beautiful photography book that I wouldn’t be surprised if someone kept on their coffee table. It’s not just a cook book but it can be admired because of its overall presentation and beautiful photography. So, the quality of the book matches the quality of his food.

I own a lot of cookbooks and I have to say that Nobu Matsuhisa’s cookbooks are one of the classiest cookbooks out there. I can easily recommend this book for those familiar with Nobu’s food or his cuisine but for those that are buying this for the main reason of wanting to own a “Japanese cookbook” to learn how to make basic sushi, sashimi or miso soup, this book may not be what you are looking for.

This is a book that extends to Nobu’s brand of food which is using high quality ingredients, especially in the case of this book as its food is based on cuisine courtesy of nobu Miami and incorporating Nobu’s past and present Japanese/South American recipes.

So, if you wanted to make “Crispy Biscayne Bay Shrimp”, you can try this recipe which needs a cup of sake, potato starch, salt, lemon and peanut oil but then you will see that you need 2 tsp. of shichimi spice powder. If you live in an area that has a Japanese or Asian grocery store, you may be able to find the shichimi powder easy. But if you don’t, fortunately, you can purchase it online but you will run into several recipes that require certain spices or ingredients not normally found at a local grocery store.

But I would assume most people who are interested in Nobu’s book are familiar with the quality of the food and really want to create some of those fantastic dishes featured at his restaurants and both Nobu and Buckley deliver!

Overall, “nobu miami – THE PARTY COOKBOOK” is definitely awesome in presentation, a beautiful book with many photos that showcases the beautiful dish and also features plenty of recipes that will definitely satisfy the Nobu fan.

5 Stars Japanese & Florida fusion cooking
This is a great cookbook. So few cookbooks out there are this good. Now I was hesitant at first because other Nobu cookbooks have been reviewed as being too difficult or the items are not easy to find. This time its different. It does help to live in Florida. Certain recipies do call for Key West conch and pink shrimp from Key Largo and if you live anywhere in Florida or have access to Florida seafood then pick up a copy of Nobu Miami.

Skimming through the book, the photos are gorgeous, which should satisfy even the most harder skeptic after reading the price. I think its worth the price you pay for it. Its filled with recipes and side stories from Nobu and Executive Chef Thomas Buckley, who runs the Nobu Miami restaurant in beautiful upscale South Beach. Nobu has a heartwarming piece about how hard it was to start out as just another sushi chef in Tokyo. Years learning how to prepared sushi where met with diappointment as he was used as a gopher by the other chefs. He wanted to quit many times but each time he failed he decided not to quit. Since those humble beginnings, he has opened Nobu restaurants all over the world.

But enough about the celebrity chef and more about the recipes. At first glance, they don’t appear that hard to put together, especially considering the easy access to all the seafood mentioned.

In the Tampa Bay area, the Cuban influnece is really strong, so a typical Cuban meal would be pork marinated with Mojo seasonings with a plate of black beans and rice. Nobu does a Japanese twist with that old standby in creating Seared Striped Bass with Black beans and rice. There’s also numerous variations on how to cook Florida lobster from the Keys. If you’re a scuba driver, go Lobstering and try out the spiny lobster tempura. I love stone crab claws and when I go over to St Pete beach, its the first thing I look for. There’s a wonderful recipe for tempura stone crab claws. In fact all the food photos in this book make me wanted to take the 4-four drive into Miami and just eat at Nobu’s.

The cookbook covers finger foods, luncheons, intimate dinners, Nobu classics, desserts, and pages of additional recipes (if all the other recipes aren’t enough.) Even the cocktail recipes look worth trying out.

I like the first section on finger foods the best. It was a good idea that the book publishers placed it upfront because in Florida, year round the weather is mild, so a lot of people entertain at home. You sit outside, inside a screened-in back patio (the only way to dine outside without monster-sized moustiques dining on you) usually with a big outside grill and entertain while you eat. The finger foods all have very little prep time so you can whip up a batch and move on to other things. The next section was the intimate dinners. I like the recipe for “Havana Club” roast duck, Ceviche soup, and my favorite being the Pumpkin mini-chawan mushi. The last one makes great use of a hollowed out pumpkin for the soup bowl. I love dishes that take natural items and transform them into something practical. On a side note, there’s a great Vietnamese restaurant on Gandy Blvd (South Tampa area) that has excellent homemade coconut ice cream served in a coconut shell. Its those little artistic touches that really make the differences. Even for those who ignore stuff like that would probably miss it, if it was just coconut ice cream thrown in some ordinary white bowl.

If you already know the basics of Japanese cooking then you can make most of the recipes here.

I recommend this cookbook to anyone that love Japanese cooking and wants to take that next plunge into a Floridaesque fusion.

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Technorati Tags: Award Nominee, Beach Location, Color Photos, Exotic Line, Finger Foods, Florida Pompano, Food Network, Fusion Cuisine, James Beard Award, Japanese Influences, Martin Yan, Nobu Miami, Nobu Restaurant, Party Dishes, Party Recipes, Presentation Photos, Quality Presentation, Restaurant Empire, Talented Chef, Thomas Buckley

Sales of Japanese kitchen knives are booming in the U.S. But how many people have the skills to use these superbly-crafted tools to full advantage? Now, internationally renowned chef Hiromitsu Nozaki shares his expertise and insights in a book that will help anyone who owns a Japanese knife to maximize its performance.
In Japanese Kitchen Knives, Nozaki teaches the reader how to use usuba, deba and yanagiba, the three main traditional Japanese knives. He explains many essential techniques, such as the importance of understanding blade angle and point of force, and illustrates these lessons by working with ingredients familiar to western readers, like carrots and rainbow trout. Color photos and Nozaki’s commentary further clarify the process, and the pictures are taken from the chef’s perspective for easier understanding (most other books take photos from the reverse perspective). Each technique is accompanied by recipes that require its use, and all recipes are very simple, using easy-to-acquire ingredients. Other sections include a look at artisanal Japanese knife-making and information on sharpening, storing and identifying the variety of Japanese knives. Specialty knives are shown on location, from the unique unagi eel knife in an unagi specialty restaurant to the colossal tuna filleting knife in Tsukiji fish market.

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Technorati Tags: All Recipes, Blade Angle, Carrots, Color Photos, Eel, Fish Market, Insights, Japanese Kitchen Knives, Japanese Knives, Japanese Recipes, Perspective, Rainbow Color, Rainbow Trout, Renowned Chef, Specialty Restaurant, Trout, Trout Photos, Tuna, Unagi Eel, Western Readers

The specialized cuisine served at Kyoto’s famed Kikunoi restaurant is a feast for the eyes as well as the palate, and Kaiseki, by owner / chef Yoshihiro Murata, is at once a cookbook and a work of art. This sumptuously illustrated volume features—in seasonal format—the style of cooking that began as tea ceremony accompaniment and developed into the highest form of Japanese cookery.

Kaiseki celebrates the natural ingredients of each season with a spectacular presentation. After a front section explaining the history and components of kaiseki cuisine, Murata introduces his establishment’s impressive menu. With candor and insight, he shares his thoughts on ingredients, preparation methods and the philosophy behind his dishes. He explains how the cuisine has changed over the years and continues to do so. His professional and personal accounts are enlightening; ranging, for example, from how some dishes evolve in the search for the proper combination of ingredients to a description of a learning encounter with a zen master.

Approximately twenty dishes from each season, chosen by chef Murata, have been lovingly and carefully photographed to convey the experience of being an honored guest at his restaurant. Also included are the exact recipes direct from the Kikunoi kitchen, and a glossary of kaiseki terms.

“It seems fitting that Kyoto should be the home of a cuisine, which, like the city itself, is born of an intimate communion between the work of man and the gifts of nature. This is what makes Yoshihiro Murata a truly unique chef.” —Ferran Adrià [elBulli]

“Chef Murata represents the best of a rarified area of Japanese cuisine: he has a firm commitment to traditional excellence along with a desire to always look for something fresh and innovative.” —Nobu Matsuhisa [Nobu]

User Ratings and Reviews

5 Stars Stunning.
This is the most beautiful cookbook I own. Stunning photography and lovely design captures the spirit of this immaculate cuisine perfectly. Many of the ingredients used in the recipes will be hard to find if you’re not living in Japan, but this is unlikely to be a book you’ll cook from on a daily basis anyway. It acts more as a source of inspiration and has changed and informed the way I think about technique and presentation, not just of Japanese food, but everything I cook. A must-buy.

4 Stars A new look at an old tradition
This is a beautiful book. It looks at the Kaiseki meal (which comes from the food served during the Chaji, or tea ceremony, and how it has evolved into a seasonal culinary art form. Mr. Murata shows his skill at creating food that evokes the culinary traditions and the seaonal landscape of Japan while transforming this artform into his own unique expression of Kaiseki. It’s a beautifully put togheter book. the recipes are surprisingly easy to follow and offer great results. As a History buff, I would like more back ground on Kaiseki and it’s relationship to the tea ceremony as well as the seasonal, traditional foods. Still, this is a great book and a welcome additon to your cookbook collection.

2 Stars Culinary disappointment
Kaiseki is reputedly an exquisite Japanese cuisine that I had hoped to explore in this volume. The book is lavishly produced and a feast for the eyes. The next time I am in Kyoto or Tokyo, I will book a table.

Unfortunately, the ingredients needed for most of these dishes are either unknown or unavailable to the Seattle area where fresh seafood abounds. If you have ready access to sea bream milt, salted cherry blossoms, fresh sea cucumber roe, and tosa-zu vinegar jelly, ingredients from the first four recipes for illustration, then you should have this book in your kitchen. No substitute ingredients or resources are provided. Although lavishly produced, it is destined for a dusty corner of my pantry, being fairly useless as a practical resource.

4 Stars A beautiful reference book
A beautiful book. My criticism would be that there are a lot of ingredients that I wouldn’t be able to find easily, but lovely descriptions of the food and culture of kaiseki.

5 Stars For looking, not cooking
There is no way anyone outside of Japan will be able to make any of the recipes in this book. Don’t even try. Just enjoy the beautiful photos and the charming descriptions of a very exotic cuisine that is inaccessible even to the Japanese!

I rated it high because most people will never get the chance to have a Kaiseki meal so this is the next best thing. Just gorgeous.

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Technorati Tags: Candor, Elbulli, Exquisite Cuisine, Firm Commitment, Gifts Of Nature, Impressive Menu, Intimate Communion, Japanese Cuisine, Murata, Natural Ingredients, Nobu Matsuhisa, Personal Accounts, Photogr, Proper Combination, Spectacular Presentation, Tea Ceremony, Traditional Excellence, Volume Features, Yoshihiro, Zen Master

This is a comprehensive and beautiful guide covering all aspects of Japanese cuisine, from its history and underlying philosophy, to its unique ingredients, methods of preparation, and cooking techniques.

User Ratings and Reviews

5 Stars Clear, Concise, and Well-Organized
As a cookbook author, I often use other works for research. I am working with a Japanese chef on his book, and I felt I needed a brush-up on Japanese ingredients. This was mainly because so many new foods have been introduced to America since I first shopped for them in San Francsico when I was learning Japanese food basics in my youth. I flipped through many books, including the ones I had already, and this book blew the others out of the miso soup, hands down. The book does the reader a great service by giving two in-depth, encyclopedic sections on Japanese cooking equipment (including food culture)and ingredients. While these two sections take up half of the book, you won’t be flying blind, mixing up udon and soba or the different kinds of miso. The writing is excellent, and the recipes interesting and only mildly challenging. If you are in the market for a primer on Japanese food, look no further.

5 Stars Great book and detailled introduction into Japanese cooking
Japanese Food and Cooking is what I would call a school book for Japanese cooking. Important ingredients from spices to fish, meat and vegetables are explained item per item. You will also learn the typical courses of a Japanese meal. Finally you will learn the preparation of meals and the required traditional cooking equipment. Presentation of the meals and the typical tableware to be used is also explained in detail. Creative people will start developing their own cooking ideas after working with this book. Less creative people will have to purchase additional Japanese recipe books but will go back to this book to find explanations for what they need to successfully purchase the ingredients and to prepare the meals they find in the recipe book. For me this is the basis for authentic Japanese cooking and I believe it must be the first book to own if you want to start to become a non-Japanese Japanese cook.

5 Stars Beautiful book
Comprehensive with many beautiful pictures. Deserves a place on the coffee table for everyone to see. Contains all the information you need plus many great recipies.

5 Stars Love Sushi!
I’ll be breef. Excellent book with large picture to the point reciepts and durable cover. I love it!!!

5 Stars Super book on Japanese cuisine
And I should know because I think I have all of them!

The photos are stunning and this is one of the most extensive books on Japanese food that I’ve found. I will admit, Japanese cookbooks written by Japanese are really the best. The few books I have written by Western authors pale in comparison. They also tend to have fewer photos for some reason.

Alot of Japanese food and the ingredients are kind of odd. Some may not appeal to Western tastes so there are substitutions which is a great idea. There are some things the Japanese love and eat which will never translate to the Western palate such as devil’s tongue jelly and natto. Eww. They taste terrible (though actually it is the texture of both that really offend!).

This book however tastes great. If you are going to own one Japanese cookbook – it should be this one.

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Technorati Tags: Cookbook Author, Cooking Equipment, Cooking Spices, Different Kinds, Fish Meat, Food & Culture, Food & Culture, Food Basics, Japanese Chef, japanese cooking, Japanese Cuisine, Japanese Meal, Miso Soup, Recipes Cooking, Recipes Food, San Francsico, Tableware, Traditions, Typical Courses, Vegetables

A comprehensive and authoritative guide to the healing powers of Japanese foods, this book includes an in-depth look at over seventeen traditional ingredients, including miso, shiitake, toasted sesame oil, tofu, amazake, and seitan. Each food item is given its own chapter, which includes a detailed discussion of the nutritional and medicinal benefits, how to make it or buy it, cooking with it, and recipes featuring it. This book also features a pronunciation guide, which is great for ordering from restaurants or shops, and a guide to composing meals.

User Ratings and Reviews

5 Stars Great Reference and Recipes
Wonderfully straightforward and informative, I learned much about the beneficial properties of the foods discussed in the book. Every recipe I’ve tried is concise and the results have been universally splendid.

5 Stars Food is Medicine
I tend to be highly skeptical about this kind of book, mainly because they usually present some sort of idealized fantasy of a health-conscious and simple Japan where everyone is deeply in tune with the rhythms of nature, whilst I know from many years of experience living in Japan that your average Japanese person is much more likely to sit down to a steaming pile of fried chicken, reconstituted ramen and a few cans of beer rather than ocean-harvested kombu and mountain vegetables gently simmered followed by a sweet cup of amazake. However I was pleasantly surprised when the authors stated up front that “Japanese people don’t eat this way”, and acknowledged that many of these foods will be more readily available in an American health food store than in a Japanese supermarket.

With that fresh start, I was able to enjoy “Japanese Foods that Heal” for what it is, a brilliant guide to eighteen traditional Japanese ingredients that are powerhouses of health, with medicinal properties that strengthen the human body and provide resources and defenses against all manner of illnesses. Each ingredient is considered in-depth, talking about the traditional harvesting/creation methods, the known medicinal properties of that ingredient, and the traditional healing powers associated with it. The authors are careful to state what is a proven effect of the food and what is only a “potential” effect. Some of the foods, such as miso and green tea, are quite familiar and well-known for their health value. Others, such as soy sauce and the sweetener mirin, were more of a surprise, as I had not thought of them as having any particular value other than as a flavoring agent. Some of the ingredients I had never heard of, such as seitan and mizu ame, which the author admits you would need to either make yourself or find at a specialized store.

While there are recipes for each ingredient included, “Japaneses Foods that Heal” cannot really be considered a cookbook. About five or six simple recipes with no photographs are all you get for each item, and the bulk of the text is educating you about the food itself. While the recipes are easy to make and delicious, I was more intrigued by the concept put forward of using these foods in regular recipes replacing items of little nutritional value, such as refined salt or white sugar, with more nutritious substitutes like mirin or the salty picked-plum umeboshi. Definitely something to give a try.

The only drawback to this book is that the authors reinforce the stereotype that eating healthy means eating expensive. When they talk about soy sauce, they are quick to distinguish between the mass-produced condiment available anywhere, and the healthy, hand-processed variety only made in few places and only available at specialty stores for quite a bit more than you would expect to pay. The cheap stuff, they say, isn’t worth your time. The same story is told for almost every food, with a lengthy description of its traditional, healthy processing method followed by a disclaimer saying how the majority is now chemically produced in factories, and you will have to search out and be prepared to pay for the good stuff.

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Technorati Tags: Amazake, American Health, Authoritative Guide, Beneficial Properties, Brilliant Guide, Fresh Start, Healing Powers, Health Food Store, Japanese Foods, Japanese Person, Japanese Supermarket, Kombu, Living In Japan, Miso, Mountain Vegetables, Powerhouses, Pronunciation Guide, Sweet Cup, Toasted Sesame Oil, Traditional Ingredients

When it was first published, Japanese Cooking: A Simple Art changed the way the culinary world viewed Japanese cooking, moving it from obscure ethnic food to haute cuisine.

Twenty-five years later, much has changed. Japanese food is a favorite of diners around the world. Not only is sushi as much a part of the Western culinary scene as burgers, bagels, and burritos, but some Japanese chefs have become household names. Japanese flavors, ingredients, and textures have been fused into dishes from a wide variety of other cuisines. What hasn’t changed over the years, however, are the foundations of Japanese cooking. When he originally wrote Japanese Cooking: A Simple Art, Shizuo Tsuji, a scholar who trained under famous European chefs, was so careful and precise in his descriptions of the cuisine and its vital philosophies, and so thoughtful in his choice of dishes and recipes, that his words–and the dishes they help produce–are as fresh today as when they were first written.
The 25th Anniversary edition celebrates Tsuji’s classic work. Building on M.F.K.Fisher’s eloquent introduction, the volume now includes a thought-provoking new Foreword by Gourmet Editor-in-Chief Ruth Reichl and a new preface by the author’s son and Tsuji Culinary Institute Director Yoshiki Tsuji. Beautifully illustrated with eight pages of new color photos and over 500 drawings, and containing 230 traditional recipes as well as detailed explanations of ingredients, kitchen utensils, techniques and cultural aspects of Japanese cuisine, this edition continues the Tsuji legacy of bringing the Japanese kitchen within the reach of Western cooks.

User Ratings and Reviews

5 Stars You’ll Never Achieve The Simple Art of Japanese Cooking
This book is part of cooking history. The Introduction alone, by M.F.K. Fisher, is worth the purchase price. She lays the background for how this book came to be published: Tsuji, a Japanese chef, was interested in food beyond Japan’s borders, and he thought that Japanese cooking could add value to cooking in the West. Although are not written for quick and easy preparation, Tsuji’s goal was to interpret the history and traditions of Japan’s isolated cultural heritage to chefs and cooks in America, France, and other parts of the world with little exposure to a philosophy of food that took single ingredients as the focus. Fresh vegetables, a small amount of just-caught fish, or carefully rationed meat could serve as the center of a meal with many intricately simple accompaniments, all prepared with an eye for balance and beauty. In this way, Tsuji gives the west an entirely new way to cook food. “You eat with your eyes first” has since become popular in recipe books and on pedagogic cooking shows, and we can see its origins in the delicate preparations valued by Japanese Cooking.

5 Stars The definitive book on traditional Japanese cooking
Like Tanizaki’s “In Praise of Shadows” this book can easily be renamed “In Praise of Traditional Japanese Cooking.” As the author points out, the best traditions and customs are still not lost, but they have been preserved and practiced by a few exclusive restaurants, which the ordinary Japanese (or tourist) is unlikely to be able to visit.

Besides the nostalgic (and sophisticated) overtone, the book is actually practical if you manage to find the ingredients. After couple of months of exploring different stores, I was able to find almost everything I needed from katsuo-bushi, mirin and mochi to agar-agar used in Japanese sweets. For example, if you manage to find azuki beans and mochi, you will be able to make most of the desserts described in the book. I have already tried several recipes (miso soup, steamed salmon among others) and they all turned out to be fantastic. The meals are very light, always cooked with minimum treatment of the ingredients so the nutrients are preserved. If you try to eat Japanese at least once a week, then konbu, wakame and nori are supposedly good sources of B12 otherwise available mainly in meat.

One thing that I found particularly valuable about this cookbook is that it provides detailed instructions on how to cook the meal based on what ingredients you find. Say you find dried shiitake instead of fresh ones and cannot read the label (in Japanese) about how to prepare the dried mushrooms. Well, the book has it all. The same goes for dashi,and many other major ingredients. Tsuji is very clear on what you are likely to find on the (US) market, and what not, and if the ingredient is difficult to find, in most cases he suggests a substitute for it (although reluctantly). I hope you will enjoy this meticulous cookbook, it is indeed special.

3 Stars too traditional, too discouraging for a casual chef with a day job
If you ever wondered about the flavorings and cooking methods underlying authentic Japanese cooking, this book tells all, how the broth and soup were created, what the ingredients probably were, etc. That is all good to know, and heightens appreciation when I go to a restaurant.

However, this book is not for home cooking, especially if you are someone with a day job with limited time to cook. The recipes are discouraging in that they take way too much time and steps to prepare. For most of these recipes, I would have to make the fish or sea kelp based stock ahead of time, but the author also cautions that the stock would not taste good if made too many days in advance.

There are no shortcuts offered. The author’s message is, to taste good, it’s all meticulous craftspersonship and the freshest ingredients. That may be true.

I personally need a cookbook that allows for an occasional bouillon cube to be used, allows for frozen ingredients, allows for some reality of daily life.

Again, it *is* a good reference book for how it should be.

5 Stars THE Japanese cookbook for westerners
This is the best reference I know of for westerners on Japanese cooking. I appreciated the book’s very readable tone, its thoroughness, the depth of its discussion. But what I loved even more was the book’s respect for Japanese food. And in turn its respect for us readers.

I notice that some have criticized this book for choosing authenticity above ease or convenience. While those criticisms are valid in that they are honest, informative to potential buyers, and well-meant, I have to take issue – I believe that this book’s unwillingness to substitute ease for authenticity is really one of its greatest strengths. Not because authenticity is something one should strive for all the time – it’s not. But because it keeps the book from becoming dated. Good cooks will always be able to make their own substitutions in technique and ingredients based on what is most available to them. This book would have been horribly dated and even tacky if it offered suggestions and recipes to make Japanese food based on what you could find in an American supermarket in 1980. Instead, by introducing the least compromised version of Japanese food to Western readers, building a real understanding of that food, and then trusting readers to apply their own judgment, this book has become the single best reference for Westerners looking to learn Japanese cooking and remained so for almost 30 years.

Which is another great reason to buy Japanese Cooking, A Simple Art – it will undoubtedly be just as useful in another 30 years as it is now.

5 Stars The Joy of Cooking, Japanese edition
People call this the Bible of Japanese cooking. They’re mostly not kidding. This is hands down the most comprehensive and detailed Japanese cookbook in English. It’s The Joy of Cooking Mark II, only for Japanese food.

If there’s anything you want to know how to cook and it’s not in here, you’re probably going to have to find a Japanese language cookbook that contains it. You might be able to find your missing recipe on a web page in fascinatingly worded English painstakingly put together by a native Japanese speaker, but otherwise, this is the book to look in for the broadest range and the greatest depth. It’s a gourmet’s cookbook. Some of the recipes are intimidatingly complex. But a large percentage of them aren’t intimidating at all. It’s a fabulous book. Ask for it for a birthday present or something. I sat down and read it end to end like a novel, and never got bored.

(Full disclosure: I’ve semiprofessionally taught Japanese cooking classes.)

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Technorati Tags: Culinary Scene, Culinary World, Detailed Explanations, Eloquent Introduction, Gourmet Editor, Haute Cuisine, Household Names, Institute Director, Japanese Chef, Japanese Chefs, japanese cooking, Japanese Cuisine, Japanese Kitchen, Kitchen Utensils, M F K Fisher, Ruth Reichl, Shizuo Tsuji, Simple Art, Traditional Recipes, Twenty Five Years