California love.
Photo: Blue Waikiki
It turns out that the California roll — that generic imitation crab, avocado, and cucumber-laden gateway sushi roll — was invented in the seventies by a Japanese chef in Vancouver who was dismayed to learn he couldn’t buy very fresh fish or convince diners that seaweed was even edible. So the now-62-year-old Hidekazu Tojo rolled rice “inside-out” around the nori, to hide it, and loaded the roll with veggies appreciated by clientele visiting from the Golden State. The California Roll spread, of course, and millions and millions of rolls later, Tojo seems unfazed by the way he changed how the world eats. He says he enjoys pizza. [Globe and Mail]
