September 24, 2018

TOKYO: Temari Sushi Class with Japan Cross Bridge by LocalBites

One of the highlights of my Japan Trip is round was to attend the cooking class hosted by LocalBites.
I have been to Japan many times and I have also tried out different types of dishes that Japan offers. Often, I will come out with a Must-Eat List when I am travelling to Japan, hunting them throughout the trip. However, I have never really experienced a cooking class, except the cooking class I attended during the student exchange programme in Fukuoka during my high school year, and that was the Japanese Almond Tofu Dessert as I recalled.

Thanks to LocalBites and Japan Cross Bridge for the opportunity, I was able to learn another skill, enhanced my experience and understand further about Japanese culture.

LocalBites Japan

A platform that offers a variety of cooking classes in Japan to both foreigners and Japanese. There are many cooking classes available such as sushi class, izakaya style Japanese cooking, wagashi making class, ramen class and you can even find kawaii bento class here. Also, it is not just limited to Tokyo, but Nagoya, Kyoto, Osaka and other area. I have selected the Temari Sushi Making Class by Japan Cross Bridge for my love towards sushi and Temari Sushi is pretty cute and fancy!

Use this code: V43U-6Q7A to enjoy 5% off on any of the classes from LocalBites!!!

On the cooking class day, the teachers were waiting at Meguro Station, Central Exit with the signage “Sushi Lover”. With other students, we walked over to the apartment where the class was held. The journey was about 5 minutes’ walk from the station.

The friendly teachers, Shihomi and Ayumi- sensei are Japanese twin sisters who are professional sushi chefs, teaching and sharing on making authentic sushi and also other Japanese cuisine. They both have a very long working experience as a chef abroad and so Their English are very fluent. Besides that, they are good in traditional Japanese art and crafts too!

Prior to the cooking class, we were asked to clean our hands and worn the traditional Japanese apron “Samue”. As I was on a joint class with the other students, I got to learn about slicing fish and making roll sushi too!

Before making sushi, one question:

Do you know what is Temari Sushi?

Temari Sushi is a kind of sushi, where Temari is traditional Japanese hand ball, often very colourful and charming and you may usually find it as decorative ornament in souvenir shop. It is believed that Temari Sushi was for Geisha in Kyoto, where Geisha couldn’t open their mouths wide due to the elegant make-up, especially not to lose their lipstick. So, Temari Sushi is made, in a smaller bite size as compared to regular sushi and they could eat the sushi in one bite.

Shihomi-sensei first demonstrated how to make sushi rice, with the proportion of vinegar.

She then demonstrated how to slice the fish and we were all given the chance to slice with her sashimi knife.

And made sushi rolls!

It’s our turn! Here is my sushi roll 🙂

Next up, time for Temari Sushi!
They prepared me a number of ingredients such as raw seafood that includes salmon, tuna, boiled shrimp and scallops; and various condiments such as sesame, seaweed, egg slices, flower-shaped radish and cucumbers, ebikko and many more to decorate the sushi.

If you signed up the Temari Sushi class, here are all the ingredients you will be able to see.

As for Sushi Class, there will be lesser ingredients for Temari Sushi but you are given the chance to learn how to slice the fish and make maki (sushi roll).

Shihomi-sensei demonstrated one round on making Temaki Sushi, I then started to make my Temari Sushi balls. It was pretty easy at first, but to ensure each size of the sushi balls were equal, it could be a little tough. Temari Sushi making is pretty zen and meditating. You will just stay focus, and dive into your own artistic world! Just use your imagination and art sense to design your very own piece of sushi. You can have smiley face on the sushi, or cross-section…. Just any pattern you would like to have. Even if you are not an artistic person, just mix and match the colours available, you will simply have pretty outcomes.

The final part of Temari Sushi was unwrapping and decorating. I then arranged the sushi balls on the plate and started decorating…

And ta-daaaa… here’s my final work!

Pass or not???

I couldn’t help taking photos of my work and the other students’ work. They were all very colourful and pretty. We had a great time making our sushi at class and finally enjoyed what we made together. The sushi tasted super good!!! And our sushi was made a set with miso soup, pickled ginger and tea.

Made new friend from Hong Kong!

Itadakimasu!

After lunch, I was presented with a certificate and photograph of myself with my artwork! Yes I am now certified to make Temari Sushi, are you interested to try my work? Haha.

Before the leaving, sensei also gave us the recipe of cooking rice, making sushi rice, making maki and Temari Sushi with step by step guidance and the history of sushi. Worry not if you have forgotten how to make them, you can always refer back the recipe and cook for your friends and family!
If you are a fan of sushi and wanna learn to make sushi, do check out this activity on LocalBites Japan. The whole session took about 3 hours to complete and I am pretty sure you will have the time to complete it while you are travelling in Japan. Let’s pick up a class from LocalBites to make your trip memorable!

This is the activity I took. Temari Sushi Class –> https://localbites.jp/en/menu/64

Whereas the other students booked this Tuna and Salmon Sushi making –> https://localbites.jp/en/menu/65

If sushi is not your thing, check out other activities available on their website. You will be able to find out something you wish to experience. I am now eyeing on the cute cartoon character bento making and the home cooking, maybe that will help to level up my bento skill next!