Nobu: The Cookbook

by Nobuyuki Matsuhisa, Robert De Niro (Preface by), Martha Stewart (Foreword by)

Overview

Nobu Matsuhisa should need little introduction. With his multinational and ever expanding empire of twelve restaurants in the United States, United Kingdom, Italy and Japan--others will be coming soon to Paris and Sydney--he has become the most talked-about restaurateur of recent years and arguably the world's greatest sushi chef. This is the man, after all, who has lured legions of celebrities--regulars include Robert De Niro, Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman, Barbara Streisand, Giorgio Armani, Demi Moore, Madonna, ... the list goes on--with his unique and original combination of the finest skills and ingredients of Japanese cuisine with an imaginative acceptance of Western, particularly South American, cooking.

In Nobu: The Cookbook--his first book in any language--Nobu reveals the secrets to his food and indeed the essence of all Japanese cuisine: the art of using very simple techniques to bring out the latent flavors in the very best ingredients that the world's oceans have to offer. He has presented fifty original recipes for fish and seafood that include all the signature dishes--Matsuhisa Shrimp, Live Octopus Tiradito, Squid Pasta, Black Cod (De Niro's favorite), New Style Sashimi and Sashimi Salad (Tom Cruise's favorite). There is a chapter dedicated to sushi where readers can learn how to make Nobu's own highly original Soft Shell Crab Roll, Salmon Skin Roll and House Special Roll. Eleven salad and vegetable dishes and four Nobu dessert recipes have been added so that anyone can recreate that exclusive Nobu dinner in their own kitchen. There is even a special chapter about alcoholic accompaniments.

Nobu: The Cookbook, however, is not just about food and cooking, it also introduces the story of Nobu's rich and varied life. It is the story of a boy from the country who became one of the most renowned chefs of his generation after working in Peru and Argentina and seeing his first restaurant in Alaska go up in flames before his eyes. It is the story of a Japanese man who was befriended by America's rich and famous and went into the restaurant business with De Niro in New York, and more recently, Giorgio Armani in Milan. His friends also appear in the book. There is a foreword by De Niro, an introduction by Martha Stewart and an afterword by Ken Takakura, the internationally renowned Japanese actor.

Nobuyuki Matsuhisa was born in Saitama, Japan, and trained as a sushi chef in Tokyo. After running restaurants in Peru, Argentina, and Alaska, Nobu opened his first restaurant, Matsuhisa, in Beverly Hills in 1987. Six years later, Robert De Niro persuaded Nobu to open NOBU in New York. There are now twelve Nobu restaurants in New York, Los Angeles, Malibu, Apsen, Las Vegas, London, Milan and Tokyo.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9784770025333
Publisher:	Kodansha USA
Publication date:	09/07/2001
Edition description:	1 ED
Pages:	196
Sales rank:	1,100,618
Product dimensions:	10.56(w) x 8.63(h) x 0.88(d)

About the Author

Nobuyuki Matsuhisa was born in Saitama, Japan, and trained as a sushi chef in Tokyo. After running restaurants in Peru, Argentina and Alaska, Nobu opened his first restaurant, Matsuhisa, in Beverly Hills in 1987. Six years later, Robert De Niro persuaded Nobu to open NOBU in New York. There are now thirteen Nobu restaurants in New York, Los Angeles, Malibu, Aspen, Las Vegas, London, Milan and Tokyo.

Table of Contents

RECIPES
Shellfish
Abalone somen
Abalone with wasabi pepper sauce
Steamed abalone with mustard su-miso sauce and junsai
Abalone shabu-shabu with egg sauce and caviar
Scallop filo with truffle yuzu sauce
Grilled scallops with tabbouleh salsa
Scallops with Creamy Spicy Sauce
Oysters with Nobu's Three Salsas
Sea Urchin Tempura
Spinach-wrapped sea urchin with egg sauce

Shrimp, Lobster and Crab
Matsuhisa Shrimp
Scampi with spicy lemon garlic sauce
Kuruma shrimp tempura with creamy spicy sauce
Spicy Sour Botan Shrimp
Kuruma shrimp filo with cilantro sauce
Spiny lobster soup
Spicy sea-urchin-grilled king crab
Snow crab roll with caviar
Frothing blue crab

Octopus and Squid
Spicy Octopus Salad
Baby Octopus with Truffles and Yuzu Juice
Live Octopus Tiradito, Nobu Style
Live Octopus Shabu-shabu with Spicy Ume Sauce
Grilled Octopus with Miso Anticucho Sauce
Squid pasta with light garlic sauce
Baby squid tempura with squid ink sauce
Aori squid with maui onion salsa
Black rice-stuffed squid
Squid ink soba
Fairy squid with kinome su-miso sauce

Fish, Fish, Fish
Monkfish pat with caviar and mustard su-miso sauce
Cilantro soup with monkfish
Baked monkfish medley with tosa-zu
Chilean sea bass with Nobu's black bean sauce
Chilean sea bass with spicy moromi miso
Chilean sea bass and truffles with yuzu soy butter sauce
Herb-grilled chilean sea bass with fried soy bean curd
Seafood ceviche, NOBU style
New style sashimi
White fish tiradito, Nobu-style
Sole with spicy black bean sauce
Black cod with miso
Toro toban yaki
Toro with jalapeno
Toro tartar with caviar
Toro steak with wakame mustard su-miso sauce
Freshwater eel and foie gras
Sea eel roll

Salads, Vegetables and Soba
Sashimi salad with matsuhisa dressing
Salmon skin salad with jalapeno dressing
Lobster salad with spicy lemon dressing
Mushroom salad with yuzu dressing
Watercress and black sesame salad with watercress dressing
Eggplant special
Asparagus and salmon roe with egg sauce
Tomato ceviche, Nobu style
Semi-dried tomatoes
Soba risotto with blowfish
Soba-soba-soba risotto

Sushi
Soft shell crab roll
House special roll
Salmon skin roll
Sea eel dragon roll and sushi

Nobu Sauces & Basics

Sake and Other Drinks
Matsuhisa Martini
Nobu-style egg nog
Fruit sake white peach

Dinner Plans with Desserts

Bento Box
Trio of Creme Brulee
Green Tea Parfait
Fruit Toban yaki

Recipe

NEW STYLE SASHIMI
Serves 4

White fish sashimi is drizzled with soy sauce and yuzu juice, then a hot oil mixture is poured over it to create a new style of sashimi. Try it with shellfish, beef, or tofu.

Ingredients:
18 ounces (500g) red snapper filet
1 teaspoon finely grated garlic
Ginger spears from 1 knob of ginger
Menegi or chives
2 teaspoons white sesame seeds, toasted

Yuzu soy sauce:
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon yuzu juice and 3 tablespoons, plus 1 teaspoon soy sauce combined

New Style Oil:
6 tablespoons pure olive oil and 2 teaspoons sesame oil, combined

Method:

1. Cut the fish into paper-thin slices using the usu-zukuri cutting technique.
2. Arrange the fish slices on a serving plate. On each slice dab a little grated garlic and place ginger spears and a few menegi or chives. Sprinkle the sesame seeds over the fish. Drizzle the yuzu soy sauce over the top and garnish with the carrot curl.
3. Just prior to serving, heat the New Style Oil in a small frying pan until just before it begins to smoke. Pour it over the fish slices and serve.

Recommended for hesitant sashimi novices:
"One day, a Matsuhisa regular refused some white fish sashimi because she couldn't eat raw fish. I wanted to somehow salvage the dish that I'd spent time slicing and arranging. A pan of heated olive oil in the kitchen inspired me. I drizzled the fish with ponzu and spooned over hot oil to cook it partially. I begged my customer to give it another try. She ended up eating every scrap of my first serving of New Style Sashimi."

HERB-GRILLED CHILEAN SEA BASS WITH FRIED SOY BEAN CURD
Serves 4

Try this juicy fish together with crisp-fried yuba for their contrasting textures.

Ingredients:
Vegetable oil for deep-frying
4 large (10-inch- [24-cm-] square) sheets dried yuba
Finely chopped parsley leaves (enough to completely cover the fish)
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Shichimi togarashi to taste
4 Chilean sea bass fillets, 6-1/2 ounces (180g) each
Sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup (100ml) soy sauce
1/2 cup (100ml) lemon juice
Red smartweed for garnish, optional

Method:

1. Bring 1 inch (2.5cm) of oil in a deep, 12-inch (30-cm) frying pan to 355° F (180° C). Fry the yuba sheets, one at a time, until crisp. Fry with care, as they burn easily. Drain and place the fried yuba on individual plates.
2. Combine the parsley with the olive oil. Add shichimi togarashi to taste. Set aside.
3. Preheat the oven to 475° F (250° C, gas 9). Sprinkle the fillets with a little sea salt and black pepper and bake for 8 to 9 minutes. (The fish will be about 80% cooked through.) Top with the parsley and oil mixture and cook for 2 to 3 minutes more, without charring the parsley.
4. Arrange the fish on the yuba and drizzle the soy sauce and lemon juice over all. Sprinkle with the red smartweed.

I use parsley in this dish, but you can try cilantro (coriander) or other herbs of your own choosing.

"Yuba is the thin film that forms on the surface of soy milk when heated. Outside Japan, it is usually only available in its dried form. Apart from this dish, my restaurants serve yuba wrapped around shrimp and deep-fried."

GRILLED SCALLOPS WITH TABBOULEH SALSA
Serves 4

Plump scallops, sprinkled with salt and pepper, are lightly grilled and served with a salsa rich in parsley and diced vegetables.

Ingredients:
8 scallops in the shell
Sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper
4 cups (800 ml) Tabbouleh Salsa
Cucumber flowers for garnish, optional

Method:

1. Extract the scallops from their shells. Remove the beard and the innards and discard. Rinse the scallops in cold water and drain.
2. Preheat a grill or broiler to high. Season both sides of the scallops with a little sea salt and black pepper. Grill the scallops on a wire rack until the surfaces are just brown.
3. Place the Tabbouleh Salsa on a serving plate and arrange the scallops. Garnish with a cucumber flower.

"I like to put so much parsley in the salsa that it looks almost completely green. This salsa should be made just before eating, otherwise the liquid content of the vegetables will turn the dish watery."

Tabbouleh Salsa:
5-1/4 ounces (150g) cucumber
5-1/4 ounces (150g) tomato
5-1/4 ounces (150g) red onion
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon finely chopped garlic
1/2 teaspoon aji panca paste
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon yuzu juice
1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
1 cup finely chopped parsley leaves

1. Dice the cucumber, tomato and red onion into 1/4-inch (5-mm) cubes.
2. Combine the vegetable mixture with all the other ingredients in a small bowl

Copyright © 2001 by Nobu Matsuhisa.

Editorial Reviews

The Barnes & Noble Review
Arguably one of the world's best cooks, Nobu Matsuhisa has elevated Japanese cuisine to a new level. In any of his 13 restaurants around the world, his sushi look like perfect little mosaics, the quality of the fish is impeccably fresh, and influences from North and South America (coriander, jalapeño) invigorate the classics.

No wonder his restaurants attract devoted celebrities like Andre Agassi, Robin Williams, Giorgio Armani, Bill Clinton, and Nobu's business partner Robert De Niro. Writes Madonna in one of the celebrity blurbs on the book jacket: "You can tell how much fun a city is going to be if Nobu has a restaurant in it."

This glossy cookbook, with introductory remarks by Martha Stewart and De Niro, delivers more than 50 Nobu recipes using fish, including trademark dishes like Black Cod and New Style Sashimi. There are thoughtful notes on preparing abalone, octopus, and squid and a whole chapter devoted to sushi. There are also little essays that tell the story of how Nobu started and who inspired him along the way.

Fans of the Nobu restaurants will be wowed by the photographs by Fumihiko Watanabe and the overall presentation of the dishes; adventurous seafood cooks will be similarly impressed. Home cooks should note that although the measurements are both in metric and American units, the cup measurements are based on the Japanese cup. (Happily, not too many recipes require cup measurements.) (Ginger Curwen)

bn.com

Nobuyuki Matsuhisa began his career modestly swabbing floors and carrying fresh fish at Tokyo's venerable Matsuei, where he learned the sushi-making secrets that underpin "Nobu" food. Next he worked in Peru and Argentina, adding Latin-American influences to his repertoire. When he opened his flagship Matsuhisa in Beverly Hills in 1987, it was the first step in the making of an international superstar of Japanese-inspired cooking. The interplay of celebrity with fine dining is important to Matsuhisa. Illustrated by stunning photographs byFumihiko Watanabe, the exciting ideas presented here are challenging and full of expansive knowledge. The compositions range from the relatively simple Oysters with Nobu's Three Salsas to the complex Scallop Filo with Truffle Yuzu Sauce or the signature Latin-style Octopus Tiradito. Many of the dishes present traditional ingredients in fresh interpretations: Chilean Sea Bass with Black Bean (Chinese-style) Sauce, Monkfish P t with Mustard Su-miso Sauce, the Sea Urchin Roe Meringue topped with Frothing Blue Crab, or the Black Cod with Miso (business partner Robert De Niro's favorite). Many of the traditional Japanese and fresh seafood ingredients will be difficult to find. But since more North Americans are being turned on to sushi as a new way to enjoy fresh fish, this is the perfect time to introduce Matsuhisa to a wider audience. (Oct.) Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

Publishers Weekly

Matsuhisa usually called Nobu is an immensely talented chef who now has 13 restaurants around the world, from the original Matsuhisa (his favorite) in Los Angeles and the always packed Nobu in New York City, to Ubon by Nobu in London and Nobu Tokyo. His food draws on his Japanese heritage and training as a sushi chef and the years he spent as a chef in South America, as well as his tenure in the United States with cross-cultural dishes such as Toro with Jalape o, Freshwater Eel and Foie Gras, and Scallop Filo with Truffle Yuzu Sauce. His attractive cookbook features stunning color photographs of every recipe, as well as black-and-white technique and "location" shots. Many of the recipes are not especially complicated, but they depend on pristinely fresh, high-quality and sometimes difficult-to-find ingredients. It's also unfortunate that, as a note in the introduction points out, the cup measures used in the recipes are for Japanese, not American, cups. Nevertheless, this is an essential addition to any collection of chefs' cookbooks. [Good Cook selection.] Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

Library Journal

"Beautiful, educational and inspiring." —Ann Prichard, USA Today



"The best food photography I have ever seen...." —Paul Levy, Wall Street Journal



"... part memoir, part manual of techniques and recipes, part glossy picture book—from nightstand to coffee table and back to kitchen counter." —Gourmet



"In his first cookbook, Nobu: the Cookbook, Nobu Matsuhisa shares the secrets of his trend-setting new-style sashimi, his often-copied black cod with miso, and his sea-urchin tempura (a "Tim Zagat favorite!")…Sprinkled among the intriguing recipes and stunning photographs are an aji-to-yuzu glossary, a shopping guide, and helpful tips on how to de-slime octopus and the proper way to eat sushi (dip the topping, not the rice)." —New York Magazine



"... the exciting ideas presented here are challenging and full of expansive knowledge." —Publishers Weekly



"Those who pursue the pleasures purveyed by Nobu will find this cookbook to be a highly polished gem, and will be able to treat their guests to a symphony of texture and flavors." —Sacramento Bee



"A hot seller with chefs." —The Province



"A array of seafood dishes to amaze you." —The Post and Courier



"The cookbook is a work of art, as are the dishes in it." —Norwich Bulletin



"... reveals the secrets of his cooking and indeed the essence of all Japanese cuisine." —Espritline.com



"An essential addition to any collection of chefs' cookbooks." —Library Journal



"... stunning and well-designed with loads of gorgeous color photographs of wonderful looking dishes." —Los Angeles Daily News



"The book may be worth owning on the merits of its photographs alone...." —John Martin, The Bloomsbury Review



"The instructions for constructing his beautifully compiled dishes are surprisingly easy...." —Decanter



"The full-color photos make you hungry; the step-by-step directions are thorough." —Cathy Thomas, Orange Country Register



"Nobu Matsuhisa's masterpiece of wonderfully detailed dishes showcases his art of combining cultures." —Rita DeMontis, Toronto Sun



"... the book shows off the beauty of his Asian fusion creations." —Gita Sitaramiah, St. Paul Pioneer Press



"... this beautifully photographed book provides a range of authentic recipes (mostly seafood) with good detail and tips." —Marilynn Marter, Philadelphia Inquirer



"In addition to the expected array of cuisine, Nobu educates the reader.... Japanese ingredients, equipment and cutting techniques are demystified." —GlobalChefs: The Culinary Online Magazine Written by Chefs



"The photos of your food are terrific. But most important, I think, is the story of how you started and who inspired you along the way. It gives insight into who Nobu Matsuhisa is as well as the journey to get where you are today." —Robert De Niro, from the Preface



"I have been at Nobu's restaurants for many years, and the food, the presentations, and the ambience have always surpassed my expectations. Thank you Nobu!" —Martha Stewart



"This cookbook is the very best thing next to having Nobu standing next to you in the kitchen telling you what to do." —Daniel Boulud, Cafe Boulud



"You can tell how much fun a city is going to be if Nobu has a restaurant in it." —Madonna



"Truly one of the greatest Japanese chefs. It is great food from a great man." —Emeril Lagasse



"Nobu brilliantly combines flavors and textures of magical ingredients to stimulate the senses. His food is deceptively simple and it is this very subtlety which makes it so special." —Giorgio Armani



"Chef Nobu Matsuhisa's philosophy of perfection and beauty is reflected by the exquisiteness of his cuisine. His dishes are not just nourishment for the body - they are a delight to the senses, and a soothing balm to the spirit." —Thomas Keller, The French Laundry

From the Publisher