Sushi Award 2008 -Seven Sushi Samurai -

Find out what happened when the world’s top sushi chefs battled it out to decide the best of the best

An Enchanting Evening of Culinary Innovation

On Monday 6th October, Bloomsbury’s London House played host to the Sushi Awards 2008, welcoming 322 connoisseurs, food journalists and lucky members of the public to watch seven world-class sushi chefs battle it out to win the prestigious Sushi of the Year 2008 Award. From five different countries and representing five different nationalities, these Seven Sushi Samurai wowed the crowd by each preparing and serving an original sushi dish right before their eyes. As a glittering panel of five expert judges retired to consider how they would be awarding their votes, the rest of the guests were free to enjoy the Sushi Samurai’s inventive creations, which ranged from a dish made of rice alone, a Nordic-themed reindeer sushi, and even a multi-layered sushi served in a hot soup!

Seven Ways to Win

Kusakabe’s winning dish, Seven “Rice” Samurai – ecology, used seven different methods (fermentation, frying, toasting, sautéing, roasting, freezing and extraction) to transform rice into an innovative sushi dish packed with different flavours, textures and temperatures, discarding no part of the grain during the cooking process. Overcoming the initial scepticism of guests and judges, Kusakabe stormed to victory by showing the exciting and varied ways to work with rice, as well as highlighting the timely global issue of minimizing waste and showing concern for the environment – and of course seven of his own skills as a chef!

“A complete experience in a single mouthful”

The dish received unanimous praise from the judges, Jun Tanaka summing it as “a complete experience in a single mouthful”. Kusakabe also spoken of his determination to highlight the crucial role of rice in sushi, and indeed much of Japanese cuisine, saying “the Japanese eat rice everyday – it’s the cornerstone of our cuisine. I wanted to see if I could come up with a sushi that demonstrated all aspects of this most important of ingredients. I also wanted to emphasize the truth of a common saying amongst sushi chefs – that the heart of sushi is found in the rice.”

The dazzling 2008 line-up

California, USA Mitsunori Kusakabe Sushi Ran

A largely self-trained sushi genius who holds the 6th American Sushi Skills trophy and has carried his skills around the globe before bringing them to his Michelin-starred restaurant.

Seven "Rice" Samurai -ecology-

From the seedling to the grain, rice is an amazing ecological resource, and this is Mitsunori’s message to the world. He will perform seven tricks on rice – ferment, deep-fry, grill, roast, boil, freeze and extract – to create this sushi.

A comment from the winner:

“I’m delighted to have won. I decided on my theme of Seven “Rice” Samurai – ecology because ecology and thinking about the environment are issues about which the entire world is concerned. So it seemed particularly appropriate for an international event like the EAT-JAPAN Sushi Awards 2008.”

Mr. Kusakabe received the Sushi of the Year 2008 Award trophy and a year’s supply of Kikkoman Soy Sauce.

Malmö, Sweden Pontus Johansson Sushibaren

This inventive and talented young sushi chef joins us after being selected as sole winner of the Nordic Sushi Championships from sushi bars across Scandinavia.

Northern light

For his dish, Pontus has come up with a distinctively Swedish sushi, most notable for its inclusion of reindeer as its core component, alongside other unusual ingredients such as yoghurt, crème fraiche, Blenheim orange (Swedish autumn apple) and dried lingonberry, with an elderflower garnish.

New York, USA Bryan S. Emperor Mr.Jones

This flamboyant Wall Street banker recreated himself as a high-flying Japanese chef, winning the US Sushi Championship and wowing America with his unique culinary style.

Sakura Smoked Duck Sushi with Foie Gras and Balsamic Vinegar

With no fish featuring in this modern creation, the unusual choice of duck breast is given a distinctively Japanese flavour from being smoked in cherry blossom wood chips.

London, UK Shinya Ikeda Yumi

Beginning his career in Japanese cuisine in Japan when he was 15, Ikeda has been head sushi chef at London’s established Yumi restaurant since 2002.

Touch of Avant-Garde

While this sushi may appear more traditional than its ultra-contemporary competitors, this lightly grilled marinated salmon topping with its accompaniment of tosa-vinegar jelly and black olive gives it an edge of avant-garde-like innovation.

Hokkaido, Japan Takayuki Nakamura Otaru Masazushi

Having dedicated almost his entire life to sushi making in Japan's seafood mecca, Hokkaido, this as yet undiscovered chef has honed his skills to the highest level.

Jewelly Fish

Smoked salmon, Dover sole and cod liver topped with cubes of cucumber, paprika and jelly gives this stunning sushi the appearance of a bejewelled fish, with cucumber pieces for a tail.

London, UK Silla Bjerrum Feng Sushi

The first ever female chef to contest the Sushi Awards, Silla has been making sushi for 15 years, in both London and Tokyo. Silla is a co-founder of London-based chain Feng Sushi.

Cornish Mackerel with Danish Tamago Nigiri

Scandinavian influences of seasonal fish and vegetables are present in this dish of line-caught Cornish mackerel with herbed egg ‘stand’ – a Danish version of tamago – alongside horseradish infused cucumber pickle.

Moscow, Russia Denis Yun Yakitoriya

Despite his youth, this talented chef at one of Russia’s biggest names in sushi restaurants is two times winner of the prestigious Sushi Skills Contest at the Moscow Food Show.

United Flavour

Despite the differences between Russian and Japanese cuisine, in this dish Denis aims to find a unity. Using crab, salmon and sea bream, a Russian taste is incorporated with an essentially Japanese concept and tradition.

Please note: Denis was unfortunately unable to attend. His dish was recreated according to his original recipe by one of EAT-JAPAN’s Sushi Masters, Takanori Kurokawa, from Soseki restaurant in London.

2008 Judging Panel

The 2008 judging panel was composed of leading chefs, food journalists and culinary connoisseurs. We were delighted to welcome the following five guest judges to cast their expert eye over the 2008 entries.

Prue Leith OBE

Prue has had a long and distinguished career in food, catering, education and business, earning her a high profile as a cookery columnist and TV presenter. We were delighted to welcome her to the EAT-JAPAN Sushi Awards 2008 for the first time, as the chair of our judging panel.

Henry Harris
Chef Patron, Racine

Henry is Chef Patron of London’s Racine restaurant in Knightsbridge, as well as a successful author, food writer and TV personality. He has been a long-standing supporter of the Sushi Awards and we were thrilled to have him with us again for the 2008 event.

Jun Tanaka
Head Chef, Pearl

Jun has perfected the art of fine French cuisine and now enjoys great success as both head chef of London’s glamorous Pearl restaurant and a popular TV chef. His enthusiasm and culinary expertise has been invaluable to the success of the EAT-JAPAN Sushi Awards for the past three years.

Kyle Connaughton
Head Chef of Development,
the Fat Duck Experimental Kitchen

Kyle is a professionally trained sushi chef with a wealth of diverse restaurant experience in LA, Japan and the UK. His familiarity with the art of sushi makes him the perfect addition to our expert panel.

Nick Vadis
National Chairman, Craft Guild of Chefs

Nick trained in culinary arts in the Royal Navy, going to become the Executive Chef at Compass Group. Nick also joined us for the first time this year to cast a fresh eye and perspective over the chefs’ culinary creations.

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