Shimazaki Column

Based on the grading system that I outlined in my previous post, Grade #1 is as high as it gets. The perfect scenario is quite simple. Fish is caught, drained of blood, treated and chilled immediately, with no issue and the fish being in perfect undamaged condition with no internal sicknesses, which is not easy. Everything else just gets a little worse from this pristine condition and is either damaged here and there, temperature abused, decomposing, etc. These are the parts that need to be minimized in order to save the fish from being down-graded from a #1 to lets say a #3.  

Like any premium product, fresh tuna is priced based on how it is graded.  This is especially true for tuna headed to the sushi kitchens of the world, where appearance and taste are scrutinized with every bite.  Like the 3 C's in diamond, each fish is graded - by experienced tuna grader with fifteen to thirty years experience - based on five indicators.

Michelin starred Chef Shimazaki of New York City’s Rosanjin uses this blue fin toro in a gorgeous preparation that lets the fish shine-simply sliced and served on ice- it looks just like a jewel.