Guess what?? I learned to make sushi by ACTUAL Japanese chefs!!! How cool? 

So imma give y’all a lil lesson on Japanese veganism, cool? Cool. 

So in Japan, veganism isn’t really a thing. They have a few vegan restaurants and the word “vegan” is understood, but they don’t view veganism as an actual “diet”  in the terms of “animal rights.” Japanese people view it in two ways. One of the ways is a trendy health thing. Most Japanese people will solely go out of their way to eat vegan food because it is simply healthier (similar to you ordering the gluten-free option on the menu, even if you aren’t celiac). It has very little to do with animal rights. 

The second way is the Buddhist monk diet called Shojin Ryori. The chef who ~trained~ us explained that monks actually believe that all living beings have spirits and it is actually wrong to kill and eat something with a spirit. This is why they don’t eat animal products of any kind. They also believe plants have spirits, but because they need to eat plants to live, they use every part of the plant in their cooking so that nothing goes to waste. For example, the chef made a veggie broth made from the stems and roots of the plants we were using to cook so that he wasted nothing. 

It’s actually really cool to know that your diet is aligned with the values of Buddhist monks, right? Maybe we’re all onto something. 

Anyway, the chef (who specialized in Shojin Ryori) helped us make three DELICIOUS dishes including eggplant noodles, homemade tofu (SO COOL, RIGHT??), and hand-rolled sushi! Now I know in the pictures below, the sushi looks like tuna, but it is actually peeled tomato. How creative??? It was also so, so yummy. 

If you have the time, you must try making these at home. They were all so delicious and amazing.