Konnichiwa!

In May, we continued to hold the wonderful ‘I Love Sushi’ traveling exhibition in collaboration with The Japan Foundation at JCC’s premises. It was nice to see both adults and children enjoying the aesthetics of the exhibition and taking many lovely photos, as well as carefully reading and watching the in-depth information that accompanied the exhibits. I heard that many visitors, including Ms Masako Mori, the Special Advisor to the Prime Minister of Japan, left JCC having learnt something new about sushi!

In conjunction with the exhibition, we held another seafood seminar and tasting together with JETRO (Japan External Trade Organization) Singapore and MAFF (Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries). This time, visitors were able to witness the impressive skills and techniques of Mr Koji Koike from Sushi Koike, as he made edomae-zushi in person. Edomae-zushi is a little different from the usual nigari-zushi. For example, the fish’s flavours are further enhanced through additional steps like marination. For those who participated in the seminar that day, could you taste the difference?

Following that, we also featured three different sushi robots by SUZUMO in three separate sessions on one of the Saturdays. Even though sushi robots are used by many sushi restaurants in both Japan and Singapore, I think that many have yet to see how they actually work. This was certainly a rare opportunity for visitors to get an up-close view of the various sushi robots, and of course to taste the sushi for themselves! Personally, I was so impressed by the creativeness showed in SUZUMO’s story, that the decline in rice consumption levels in 1970s led to the creation of the first sushi-making robot.

To keep up with our upcoming events in 2023, please follow us on our Facebook and Instagram! You may also follow the Embassy of Japan in Singapore on their Facebook page for the latest news and updates from Japan.

Toru Furugori
Director, Japan Creative Centre (JCC)
Embassy of Japan in Singapore
5th June 2023