As promised, here’s a lighter reading, one that brings us back to food, globalization, and culture.
Sasha Issenberg and Trevor Corson were interviewed in Slate magazine about their books on sushi; their conversation with the interviewer covers a little of the origins and history of sushi, as well as its subsequent globalization.
I’ll bring in Issenberg’s book to read you a couple of excerpts. I also look forward to hearing what your experiences of sushi are: Do you eat it at all? Do you have it from delis and supermarkets, or at fancy sushi restaurants, or in-between sort of places? Do you think of it as a luxury food, or a lunchtime food, or as an exotic, strange thing that Other People eat?
I think that Sushi is healthy food since it isn’t cooked with much oil as Chinese foods. Most of sushi are made from fresh foods such as shrimp, or fish. It’s very interesting in the article when he said about the tuna. I think that salmon is the most primary fish which made the sushi. However, Japanese never used this kind of fish to cook. Instead, they used the tuna, and make sure the temperature frozen enough to preserve fish fresh. I tried the sushi couple times, but I don’t really like it because it isn’t tasty, and I don’t get used to eat raw food without cooking. Today, more Japanese restaurants open in the US since it is concerned as a new, healthy, and it’s good for people who want to have diet meals.
Sushi is the first choice for me if I cannot get regular rice, but I really don’t think Sushi can be a regular meal for me everyday as rice. Usually Sushi is cold when sold to us, which might be bad to your stomach. On the other hand, Sushi is raw food without cooking, so it is possible to leave bacteria inside. By the way, most Chinese food in America are developed to be American style, which use a lot of oil to cook, they are quite different from original Chinese food in china, they are basically no longer Chinese food.
Just like “Chinese food” here isn’t really what the Chinese eat, a lot of the ethic foods are tailored to fit the palettes of the people in different countries. Some foods need getting use to and sometimes the ingredients used in traditional dishes may not be readily available, so variations are made in many dishes. Even McDonald’s need to flexible – they are everywhere, but a Big Mac in the US will taste differently from one made in Italy.
when i was in China, sushi is kind of formal food for me, because if i want to eat sushi, i have to go to Japanese restaurant. after i came in America, sushi is seems like a very easy food, and people can easily have it in many places. once i asked my japanese friend if she likes sushi in America or not, she told me that she thought the sushi in America is more delicious than that in Japan, and she said that there are lots of kinds sushi in Japan, so sometimes she confused to choose one, but in American, the kinds of sushi is limited, so her always focus one that she likes, and then she felt easy and good……
from xiaoshu zhu
I must say of all classes I’ve attended, this class to me was the best. I never had tried sushi before this class and after it, first thing i went and tried was vegetarian sushi. I absolutely loved the sushi and the concept of the way it was made.
I love sushi but never thought of where the tuna, salmon fish come from. It is interested to learn the origins of sushi, how it was first transported to America, and how it has been globalized. I’m happy that food is one of our themes being discussed in this class. 🙂