Sushi in a Box
October 27, 2006
Retail giants have led us to believe that everything is better in a box. Whether it’s the little blue box, a gilded box of chocolates, a box of fine scotch or a box outfitting some electronic gadget, sometimes it’s the packaging that garners the most accolades.
Inanimate objects aren’t the only things, however, that get placed neatly in box. I know I’ve often wished I could gift-wrap up life situations in a box. Meetings get wrapped up, meals get wrapped up, petit fours and confections get wrapped up.
Everything gets neatly packed and fitted into a box … you think life would be that simple. Life isn’t, but food has. Convenience has been elevated to a higher class. Where we once thought that food out of a box and eaten on a go was reserved for fast food isn’t the case.
This is probably made most evident at gourmet or fine markets. Call me a purist, but I think food is most beautiful and delicious by itself, in its own element, sans the bells and whistles. As a little girl, my favorite part of visiting Chinatown was seeing the live fish, the white buckets of squid piled on top of each other, blocks of pork stacked like bricks behind a butcher’s case.
Clutching either my father’s or mother’s hand, I would tug and drag them over to where the food was. I would stand in amazement as I stood at eye level to the drums of dried scallops and oysters. My mother would place her order and our food was always wrapped up in plain paper bags. No boxes.
At Whole Foods Markets, the box has become the “it” accessory. Breads, baked goods, salmon, gourmet pizza, sushi. Here you won’t find any chaotic scenes like those found on the streets any Chinatown; perhaps the most chaos you’ll witness is two well-dressed women fighting over the last wedge of a fine Camembert.
I have to give Whole Foods credit with boxing up foods that make it easy for the on-the-go consumer. Especially foods that are traditionally eaten while in a sitting position and served with flatware. On my last visit to Whole Foods, I spent a lot of time watching the preparation of the boxed sushi.
Sushi is one food that has succeeded box life. Pre-made sushi boxes were, at first, an item found only at Japanese markets. But in recent years, the sushi box has popped up in stores like Safeway, Albertsons, Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods. And it’s always a best seller. Perhaps it’s the packaging: Clear plastic top, contrasted with black box, a piece of jagged green plastic resembling grass and highlighted with pink pickled ginger.
Though I’m still wary about eating sashimi in a plastic box, I’ll admit that the sushi at Whole Foods wasn’t bad. The spicy tuna rolls were thick and plump with fatty tuna and well-made sushi rice. You have your choice of California rolls, unagi, vegetarian rolls, fried tofu, nigiri. If you haven’t purchased sushi from Whole Foods, you’d be amazed by the selection offered.
I was a skeptic, I thought how can sushi from a supermarket be good? I think my skepticism lay more in my fears of fish that wasn’t so fresh. Yes, sushi is sold in convenient take-out boxes in Japan, but that’s Japan, the birthplace of sushi. Very, very different from America, the birthplace of burgers and fries in a box.
This is probably one of the more healthy options to fast food. Whole Foods is a slightly pricier market, but if you do have the funds to shop there go ahead and drop by the “sushi bar” before you head to the checkout. The prices range from $5 to $10.
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