What do you think is the price of the most expensive bluefin tuna ever sold? Hint: It is somewhere ranging from $1–3 million dollars.
The answer is that the most expensive bluefin tuna was auctioned to the “King of Tuna” Kiyoshi Kimura for $3.1 million dollars. Which cost around $5,000 for just a pound of that bluefin tuna.
Factors Affecting Cost of Sashimi
In comparison to sashimi, the prices for sushi are relatively inexpensive. Generally a conveyor belt sushi meat for a single person will cost between $9 to $33.
Meanwhile a dish of sashimi in a high-end sushi restaurant can easily cost over $35.
That price range is already quite cheap, since some sashimi like bluefin tuna can go over $40 just for a single pound.
Why Sashimi Price Fluctuate?
Nonetheless, the pricing for different sashimi meats are not set in stone. In fact its price can fluctuate depending on the seasonal changes during the year.
For example, in the winter sashimi meat is usually more expensive than what its price is at during other seasons of the year.
The reason that sashimi can be more expensive during winter than say summer is because it is harder to catch fresh tuna during colder climates.
According to this source, the summer time is easier to find the fish up on the surface. And they’ll be rather active during the warm temperature.
While during winter, fish slow down and nestle near the bottom of the water. Due to this factor they will be very selective and won’t be moving much to feed.
Quality Factor Affecting Pricing of Fish
In the US the fish that are being sold at the supermarkets are generally not suitable for being eaten raw. Since they are meant for people who buy the fish to be then cooked at home.
Technically, fish like those bought at some supermarkets can be eaten though you might find yourself facing risk for ingesting parasites. Hence, I recommend you first read this guide on parasite prevention.
What separates the fish served at sushi restaurants is the freshness of the sashimi. Instead of buying from supermarkets the fish is purchased from wholesalers that supply fish of specific standards.
Fresh quality sashimi tastes better and the meat is more delicate and has a softer texture. That’s why Japanese chefs who are focused on having excellent cooking materials are willing to pay more.
Moreover, excellent sushi fish can be hard to find sometimes even from many batches of fish that’s why they are worth their high price.
Freshness on Flavor
But quality is not only based on freshness, because sushi fish is not only eaten as sashimi.
Since there are so many different types of fish, hence there are also many ways to bring out its peak flavors.
For example, this source points out that besides using tuna for sashimi, grilling the tuna meat can also produce a rich flavor. Also grilling or broiling the fatty salmon can also be quite flavorful as well.
Aging and Curing on Sushi Sashimi
Other ways to bring out the flavor is through methods like aging or curing.
For example, Maguro Sashimi tastes best when it is aged. Since flavor can continue to develop up to a week or more.
While as stated by this source fish like shiromi, tai, hirame, and buri will taste better when added with two more days of aging.
How does curing sashimi make it taste better?
Firstly, curing can both make the fish taste better as well as lessening the liquid so the meat can have more firmness.
Secondly, by making the meat more firm with curing it helps chefs have easier time cutting the fish.
Techniques Involved in Cutting Sashimi
The last reason for the high price is actually the technique needed by the chef in cutting the fish.
There’s an art to slicing the fish beautifully that’s more than making a simple cut to the fish meat. Anyone can cut a fish, but only through training can a chef learn to be able to slice in a specific manner with the knife.
Not only that, the technique that is involved varies with the different types of fish. To begin with, the chef must be able to skillfully slice the fish into even widths of sashimi. Moreover, the motion of slicing must be effortless or else too much force can break the soft fish meat.
At first it might look really easy when the chef demonstrates cutting the pieces evenly. However, it’s super difficult to do such specific measurements with the knife cutting at high speed or trying to estimate.
The skills involved in serving delicious sashimi is like learning to be a good surgeon. Just like a surgeon needs to adjust for different operations, the chef needs to use different skills to cut different types of fish to make great tasting sashimi.
Reduce to the basics, a writer’s job is to write, an artist’s job is to paint, and a chef’s job is to slice. But to make the best sashimi the chef needs to slice in a specific way and also using the best possible fish as material.
