Sabakeru: A Night of Sustainable Seafood Culture from the Japanese Kitchen

Dressed for success: Participants show off their uniforms, the same worn by professional sushi chefs.

An attendee carefully filets a horse mackerel.

English pamphlets showing how to filet a horse mackerel were produced for the event.

Participants and staff pose for a commemorative photo at the event.

An attendee gives salmon-flavored sashimi konnyaku a try.

Murata Hiroshi, left, demonstrates correct slicing technique.

Participants learned the proper way to handle a knife when filleting.

Participants show off their handy work. The two fillets were divided into eight pieces to be used in making sushi.

Hirai, center, demonstrates the proper technique for sprinkling salt on slices of horse mackerel.

A participant prepares kaki-no-ha-zushi. According to Iida, veteran workers at Hirasō are able to wrap as many as 600 pieces in one hour.

Kokubun Shingo of the Nippon Foundation’s Sea and Japan Project talks during the event.

Participants snap photos of their handiwork before digging in.

The fried bones of the horse mackerel are a crunchy and flavorful way to make use of the whole fish.

Murata presents an attendant with a card identifying them a “sabakeru master.”

Participants show off their nigirizushi.