Years ago, a high school friend was visiting and offered to take my kids to lunch. “Where do they want to go?” She suggested a few fast food joints. My kids shouted, “Sushi!” My friend had a good laugh and remarked on my children’s taste for months afterwards. But that’s my family. My son learned to read with manga, my daughter sewed a kimono at thirteen, they have a mother who wrote a song called “I Love You Japan,” and even my non-Japan-obsessed husband enjoys a round of Sushi Go! As teens, my children took a cooking class, and one session was all about making sushi. Despite our family loving the rolled rice and fish dish, we had never attempted to create it ourselves. To get the class in the right frame of mind, they had a homework assignment to watch Jiro Dreams of Sushi, a beautiful journey with Master Chef Jiro Ono, who owns the most famous sushi restaurant in the world, Sushi Sukiyabashi Jiro in Tokyo, Japan. My children were inspired by the devotion, care, and creativity this artist brings to his craft.

During the class, I peeked my head in the kitchen; it was very quiet as the participants tried their best to make sushi. The end product may not have been up to restaurant standards, but the respect was there, they had a wonderful time, and it was tasty! Imagine our delight over the new book Sushi: Jiro Gastronomy, a simply designed, pocket-sized guide to the seasonal delights offered at Jiro’s restaurant. The restaurant has an omakase tasting menu. This means the sushi is created each day depending on the best fish found that morning at the market. “There is no better feeling in the world than making sushi with good tuna… But even in Oma, only one out of a hundred tuna meets our standards.” Diners are given about twenty pieces of sushi in a specified course order chosen by Jiro. With striking photos, the book gives a sample of typical courses, describing the fish and why and how it is used. There is also a section on do’s and don’ts for eating the sushi. My son and I were surprised to find that dipping sushi in soy sauce is a no-no;

the chef is supposed to have coated the sushi with just enough. However, the book does say that if the chef has not done this (typical here in America) you can take the ginger, dip that in soy sauce and “paint” the sushi with it. where to buy sushi grade fish philadelphiaThe reasoning is that the sushi will fall apart if you dip. jiro dreams of sushi producerTotally trying that next time at my favorite local Japanese restaurant.sushi conveyor belt sale The book is very accessible to lovers of sushi and those just curious about the famous cuisine. how to get extra sushi on club penguin

Like a haiku, the descriptions are succinct but poetic, “Roe-bearing mantis shrimp, cooked and then steeped in broth, is an effective palate cleanser. At the same time, its rich flavor blooms in your mouth.” My favorite tip: “Drink Some Tea.” I wish I could go to Jiro’s restaurant! Alas, Tokyo is not in my travel plans anytime soon. Lucky for me, one of his apprentices, Chef Daisuke Nakazawa, has a sushi place in New York City. Perhaps a trip will happen, but in the meanwhile, I will sample the gem of Sushi: Jiro Gastronomy and be happy with my own dreams of sushi. GeekMom received a copy for review purposes. Get the GeekDad Books!Your heart might go on, but Titanic’s time on Netflix won’t: The 1997 film starring Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio is leaving Netflix August 1, along with other movies including Driving Miss Daisy, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, and Face/Off. See what else is expiring below, and see here for what movies and shows Netflix is adding to its lineup come August.

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang •‘Titanic’ is a great film. It’s also the movie that gave rise to hater culture •‘Jiro Dreams of Sushi’ movie review •‘Reading Rainbow’, ‘Girl Meets World’, and more coming to Netflix in AugustWhen's the last time you walked away from a movie hungry? It's pretty rare for me. American movies about food seem to be few and far between, and the ones that are around are usually socially-conscious documentaries that bum me out more than anything. Japanese movies about food seem to do exactly the opposite. Most food movies out of Japan focus a lot on the role of food in bringing people together, the journeys people go through for food and, most importantly of all, always make me really hungry. Would you expect anything less from the country that brought us Iron Chef? I gathered up some of the best Japanese movies about food I could find. If these don't rouse your appetite, then you might not have a stomach. Tampopo is the be all and end all of Japanese food movies.

If you say that any other food movie is better then sorry, but you're wrong. Billed as a "Ramen Western" (a play on the "Spaghetti Western" genre of movies), Tampopo is, at its most basic, the story of a woman trying to turn her ramen shop around to save it from its own mediocrity. But that simple description does such disservice to the movie. Tampopo jumps around, exploring different topics, settings, and stories, culminating into a movie that encompasses life, death, love, and all of the big questions in life. If you've never heard of or seen Tampopo before, then see it as soon as you can. But in the meantime, you can read our post on Tampopo and philosophy. Jiro Dreams of Sushi is a documentary all about Jiro Ono, chef at the best sushi restaurant in the world, Sukiyabashi Jiro. How do you get to be the best sushi chef in the world? Jiro Dreams of Sushi tells Jiro's life story and explores his philosophy on sushi and life in general. This movie is the definition of food porn, full of close-up shots of freshly-made sushi glistening with soy sauce, moments before it's delicately gobbled down by a appreciative diner.

Even if you can't go to the best sushi restaurant in the world, Jiro Dreams of Sushi will give you a very personal view of the sushi. You also get a glimpse into the inner workings of the Japanese restaurant industry, all the way up and down the supply chain. It's a behind-the-scenes tour that not many people get. You can watch Jiro Dreams of Sushi on Netflix and Hulu Plus. In Japan, udon noodles plays second fiddle to ramen. Not only is the greatest Japanese food movie, Tampopo, about ramen, but ramen has taken off in the Japanese food world the way udon never has. People in Japan are always tinkering with ramen, coming up with new and exciting ways to serve it. There are so many variations when it comes to broth, noodles, and toppings, that it's hard to keep track of it all. (Although we've written a guide to ramen That doesn't mean that you should ignore udon. Not only is it delicious in its own right, but it even has its own movie, appropriately titled Udon.

Udon, like Tampopo, is a bit of an underdog story, but is much different from seminal classic. It follows a washed-up comedian who returns home to help construct an udon pilgrimmage of sorts. Ironically enough, one of the members of the comedy group the Rahmens appears in the movie. Maybe ramen and udon can be friends after all! When you're stationed at a research facility in Antarctica, it's easy to get homesick. Surrounded by vast stretches of impossibly cold desert, you long for more hospitable surroundings. Fortunately, some familiar food can go a long way. The Antarctic Cook follows the crew at Antarctica's Dome Fuji Station and, more specifically, Nishimura, the crew's chef. You can read our full review of the Antarctic Cook here. You might think that Spirited Away isn't really a food movie. After all, isn't it one of those Studio Ghibli movies about magic and wonder? And you'd be right. But, Spirited Away also happens to feature enough tasty-looking food to make your mouth water.