Sushi in 50% of the cases not fresh !

[RockLee]

read this and be bedazzled , in America it's not even LEGAL if u get fresh sushi & sashimi !!
http://www.iht.com/articles/513969.html

[misa.j]

I did not know about this...
I have made sushi with salmon and tuna that hadn't been frozen before, and I didn't get sick from it.
I think it's kind of ironic that sushi is so popular because of its freshness but half of the fish used isn't as fresh as they think.

[ArmandV]

Thanks for posting this so close to dinner-time.

[No-name]

You live, you learn.

[Mike Cash]

It's the norm in Japan, too. Especially if you go to one of the chain kaiten-zushi places.

[Maciamo]

From the artilce :

Most diners would be even more surprised to learn that if the sushi has not been frozen, it is illegal to serve it in the United States.

This is almost unbelievable. What's their problem at the US government ? I already knew that we could be arrested for "importing" (for personal consumption) some non-pasteurized cheeses (quite a few in Europe). Maybe it is a measure to preserve one fundamental cultural aspect of the United States : the food sucks !

[Sensuikan San]

...Just buy your sushi in Vancouver ... !

As far as I'm aware, most, if not all of it is fresh .... and if it isn't - in Canada we know what freezing is all about !

(So you might even be OK in Saskatchewan, too !)

[Mike Cash]

From the artilce :

This is almost unbelievable. What's their problem at the US government ? I already knew that we could be arrested for "importing" (for personal consumption) some non-pasteurized cheeses (quite a few in Europe). Maybe it is a measure to preserve one fundamental cultural aspect of the United States : the food sucks !

The problem is parasite infestation. Remember my sig photo "Sushi - Still Your Best Bet For Intestinal Worms"? Freezing kills the parasites (more importantly, their eggs) which can infest the muscle tissue of the fish, particularly tuna.

If the U.S. freezes it out of cultural jealousy, then how do you account for the fact that Japan does it too?

[ArmandV]

The problem is parasite infestation. Remember my sig photo "Sushi - Still Your Best Bet For Intestinal Worms"? Freezing kills the parasites (more importantly, their eggs) which can infest the muscle tissue of the fish, particularly tuna.

If the U.S. freezes it out of cultural jealousy, then how do you account for the fact that Japan does it too?

That's a relief.

Are the parasites more prevalent in tuna than in other fishes? I've cut back on consuming tuna sushi based on mercury, but this is the first I've heard that parasites seem to target tuna. I mainly stick with yellowtail and salmon sushi.

[Mike Cash]

http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a2_060.html
http://www.tmd.ac.jp/med/mzoo/parasi...asite9603.html
http://greggman.com/japan/kiseichuu/kiseichuu.htm
http://seafood.ucdavis.edu/Pubs/parasite.htm
http://www.medicinenet.com/19929

and on and on and on

[No-name]

I just came from Sayaka's in Colton. I had some wonderful sashimi- albacore, yellowtail and tuna. It was absolutely wonderful. The uncle I grew up with used to fish quite a bit, and nothing is quite as good as the fish he brought home (or the memory of it), and I have some friends that bring me mostly albacore and assorted tuna, because I will clean and fillet it for them.

It doesn't bother me (much) knowing that my fish was probably frozen for a bit.

It does bother me however that my cell phone was stolen from my truck!

[Duo]

I agree with mike
what's your guys' problem, do you want to eat rotten fish? I sure as hell dont want want that, i rather have it frozen and eat it later, then have it "fresh" after a 14 day journey through the oceans so that i can taste the flavor of super duper fresh japanese sushi. Gimme a break, like it makes a big difference, like the saying goes, better safe than sorry.

[RockLee]

I agree with mike
what's your guys' problem, do you want to eat rotten fish? I sure as hell dont want want that, i rather have it frozen and eat it later, then have it "fresh" after a 14 day journey through the oceans so that i can taste the flavor of super duper fresh japanese sushi. Gimme a break, like it makes a big difference, like the saying goes, better safe than sorry.

The thing is, it doesn't matter in America, but not fresh sushi in Japan that's like

[CC1]

well newsflash, but once fish is packed on ice...it actuallly becomes frozen doesn't it? And most fish markets pack fish on ice

[RockLee]

well newsflash, but once fish is packed on ice...it actuallly becomes frozen doesn't it? And most fish markets pack fish on ice

newsflash...if it's packed in ice doesn't mean it's frozen is it ?

[Mike Cash]

Further news flash: Even if you ate sushi in Japan, unless the price of each individual piece was so high that you worried how you would buy groceries and pay the rent next month, you almost certainly had sushi that had been frozen at some point.

[epigene]

Yes, mike is absolutely right!

Plus, I think most of the posters here associate "freezing" with what you do and find in your freezer. There is high-tech in freezing now that cannot be done at home, using specialized facilities and super-freezers. I have seen a demo on Japanese TV and was extremely impressed. Without the technology, there will be no sushi in the world beyond the fishing towns, considering the huge demand for sushi ingredients around the world today.

You can read how the technology is being embraced in the food industry today here:
http://www.findarticles.com/p/articl...57/ai_n6118032

[Anat]

I only ever tried avocado sushi so I guess I'm safe. Seriously, I think a country has the right and obligation to make and enforce public health regulations. Although on the same note, how about raw stakes? was the beef frozen at some point? I'm pretty sure it also has a potential for parasites.

[lexico]

which I highly doubt can kill all the biological contaminants, it better be the slow freezing variety.
Qick freezing will not break the membranes of the cell and the nucleus.
A subsequent quick thaw will also preserve the vitality of the parasitic eggs.
High tech freezing might not at all guarantee better protection.
Go~~ low-tech!

EDIT:

CAS solves these problems through three core principles:

* Retain the texture and flavor of food by freezing it quickly and evenly--using magnetic fields allow the core of the object being frozen to supercool--and thus suppress the formation of the ice crystals which cause all the damage inherent with freezing.

By supercooling, they are actually protecting the eggs. We need those ice chrystals to kill the eggs. Slow freeze please.

[No-name]

You are probably right.

It is a risk...I love risk... I laugh in the face of intestinal parasites! (even though they are tiny microscopic faces.)

[RockLee]

Wow, it's back alive !

[Minty]

I buy frozen Tuna or Salmon then defreeze them overnight and cut them into sashimi or shapes used for making sushi.

My father actually got infected with pesticides from eating sashimi and has been suffering from it for years until they found a new medicine to cure it.

I rarely eat out in Japanese restaurants anymore because it is very expensive here. But I have never encountered bad quality sashimi or sushi in Australia before.

[Thor]

There are a few new japanese restraunts near my house. Two of them serve sushi. I'm tired of buying sushi from stores that have let them sit on the shelves for a few days. Not too appetizing!

[Minty]

There are a few new japanese restraunts near my house. Two of them serve sushi. I'm tired of buying sushi from stores that have let them sit on the shelves for a few days. Not too appetizing!

You should try to make your own.

[happyblinker]

Well, has anyone noticed the flavour of the sushi to be different than 'fresh' sushi?
If no one noticed before... then shouldnt it be fine?

The reason why you want your seafood (or anyfood for that matter) to be fresh, is so that it tastes better, and that you wont be sick after...
Unless you just like the idea of saying "I'm eating totally fresh sushi!"

If you want food that has never been frozen now, you should go out and catch it yourself.
+ it's not the ice crystals that kill the parasites, the actual cooling of the fish kills them.

You can read up on this if you like

http://www.ocean.udel.edu/mas/seafood/raw.html