Maintenance of Equipment
Sushi chefs only own a
few equipment but
it is not an exaggeration to say that the knifes they own are the next
important thing that come after their lives. Most professional sushi
knifes are
custom made, and can run up to over $5000, and they are used throughout
the
chefs whole career. They are sharpened daily, and then soaked in water
overnight. This is done to wash the metallic scent (due to steel powder
from sharpening) that can
be transferred to the fish. The cutting board, sushi
oke,
(rice
bucket)
or hangiri (rice cutter), which are made of hinoki (Japanese cedar) are
washed
thoroughly and completely dried and sanitized before they are used again, so they own
many of
these just in case the drying is not complete. These equipment do not
last as
long as the sushi knife, and are frequently replaced when the cedar
scents fade
away. Other equipment such as
the bamboo roller,
or makisudare (often abbrevieated
as makisu or sudare),
and cooking chopsticks are more frequently replaced.
Graters that are used for daikon radishes,
and ginger which are made of aluminum these days, require no
replacements.
The
special shark skin grater used exclusively for wasabi
may be replaced more frequently.
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