My exposure to all sorts of ingredients in
Japan and also my basic foundation allows
me to transform anything to the way I want
it to be. As long as that quality was there,
I knew that my understanding of sushi
and what it represents would allow me to
achieve something here.”Our native fish species offered a different
repertoire from the one Araki was used to
in Japan, but he was unfazed. “I’ve always
believed that the one ocean is connected. I try
to use local fish as much as possible – from
Cornwall, Scotland – such as wonderful sea
bass, eels, salmon from Scotland, scallops,
clams. Unlike other Japanese chefs who can
feel quite overwhelmed by fish they don’t know
once they move out of Japan, I’m the complete
opposite. I believe sushi is determined by
freshness in the initial stage and handling andI don’t want to fly fish halfway round the world
just to serve it here.
“I’m very unprejudiced when it comes to fish
but tuna is heavily integrated into our menu. All
the fish is as important as the next, from the
cheapest sardine or mackerel to abalone and
tuna it all has to be respected and transformed.”For such an illustrious chef I wondered if
the first time he’d merged fish and rice into
maki had been a seminal moment. Chef
Araki chuckles. “I was five or six and my
father was having a drinking party with
his friends. He was showing me the sushi,
asking me if I could make it.” He becomes
animated at the memory. “I was very
anxious... a matter of self-confidence. Can
I really do this? Of course I failed the first
time. It looks really easy, but when you try
to make sushi you realise you have to getthe balance of moisture right and make
sure it’s not all stuck to your hands. Then
you become nervous and, as your body
temperature rises, the fish in your other hand
starts to get warm. You need to work quickly
otherwise the fish may start to smell.”Asking chef about his knives, I was given a
glimpse of his passion for the tools of his trade,
as he pottered off, returning with a clutch of four
long shiny knives looking like Wolverine. Placing
them on the table between us, he described
them: “This one is Masamoto, a seventh-
generation brand – he’s one of Japan’s premier
knife makers, in the heart of the fish market in
Tokyo. I just leave it to him to make me what he
chooses, a piece of work he’ll be proud of. These
are honyaki sashimi knives, made by only a few
craftsmen in Japan who also make ceremonial
swords. They’re used to cut boneless fish and are18 taLk to the chef: Mitsuhiro araki by Jo Lamiri