Sushi For Dummies
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To store fresh seafood that you've bought for sushi, you must follow some storage guidelines. All fresh seafood needs to be stored chilled — either in a refrigerator, freezer, or container of ice — to keep it tasty and safe for you to eat:

When you get your raw fish home, here’s what do to:

  • Immediately put the fish in the coldest part of your refrigerator (usually the bottom portion) until you serve it. Don’t stack anything on top of the fish.

  • Handle the fish as little and as gently as possible to prevent smashing or bruising the flesh.

  • Quickly rinse blocks of fish and fillets in a bowl of lightly salted cold water (2 teaspoons salt to 5 cups ice cold water) just before preparing it to eat. Pat it dry with paper towels.

These tips can keep shellfish safe until serving time:

  • As soon as you get live or shucked shellfish home, refrigerate them until just before you prepare them.

  • Live shellfish need air. Keep them in the refrigerator in a open dish or bowl covered with damp paper towels. It’s best to eat shellfish the day they’re purchased.

  • Scrub oysters, clams, and mussels just before preparing to eat them, until their shells are clean. Mussels often have filament, called a beard, hanging out. Pull it off.

  • If any mussels, clams, or oysters fail to shut when tapped, they’re dead, so throw them out. Similarly, if any shells are still closed after you cook them, throw them out.

  • Shucked scallops that you plan to eat raw should be eaten the day they’re purchased.

About This Article

This article is from the book:

About the book authors:

Mineko Takane Moreno, born and raised in Tokyo, received her degree in French literature. Her love of food has inspired a lifelong education in many cuisines, including Japanese, Chinese, French, and Italian. Moving to San Diego in 1973, she began teaching Japanese cuisine, with a specialty in sushi. She currently teaches dozens of sushi classes a year at seven culinary schools, including Macy’s, Williams-Sonoma, and Sur la Table. Mineko consults with restaurants wishing to put sushi and other specialties on their menu. Her culinary work has been featured in numerous print publications and on television and radio shows. She is a member of the International Association of Culinary Professionals.

Judi Strada has a bachelor’s degree in Russian studies, which led her to study other cultures through their foods. She was the food consultant and spokesperson for The Sheraton World Cookbook and The Culinary Festival Cookbook and coauthor of The Best of San Diego. She is a frequent cooking guest on television and radio shows on both coas ts. Judi, an award-winning writer, is currently food editor of San Diego Magazine; kitchen garden editor of Garden Compass Magazine; and a member of the Authors Guild, the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, the International Association of Culinary Professionals, and the James Beard Foundation. She is founding president of Les Dames d’Escoffier, San Diego.

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