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Chef Spotlight: Hiroyuki Terada

Aug 17th 2018 - J. Vigotsky Blog, 

Chef Spotlight: Hiroyuki Terada

Today’s chef spotlight will focus on Master Sushi Chef Hiroyuki Terada. A Youtube sensation, Chef Hiro has over 1,000,000 followers, and his videos have been watched more than 100,000,000 times. If you’re looking for detailed advice related to making sushi or cooking other delicious Japanese dishes, look no further than Chef Hiro’s channel.

Perhaps the crown achievement on Chef Hiro’s resume is his place in the Guinness Book of World Records. In the summer of 2017, Chef Gordon Ramsey invited Hiroyuki onto his show, “The F Word.” Chef Hiro was given 30 seconds to cut a carrot into 50 or more slices—all while blindfolded! The sushi master chopped away in front of a live national TV audience and a couple dozen in-house spectators. When the 30 seconds were up, Chef Hiro had chopped 88 slices and was a new World Record holder.

Terada was just 10 years old when his father took him aside and started teaching him the basics of making sushi. Hiroyuki would go on to study for 3 years at RKC Chef’s School in Kochi, Japan. It was here that the chef earned a reputation for his lightning fast knife, impeccable attention to detail, and unique ability to put creative twists on traditional Japanese dishes. Upon graduation from chef school, Chef Hiro got experience at the Yuzuan restaurant in Kochi, Japan, where Hiroyuki spent 4 years learning about the Kansai cooking style from Master Chef Kondo.

Next Terada became certified to serve the dangerous Fugu fish to the Japanese public. As featured on The Simpsons, Fugu fish is deadly if not prepared properly. As a result, it takes at least three years of training for chefs to earn a legal certification to prepare Fugu. Since the process is so long and difficult, many restaurants purchase Fugu that’s already been prepared and packaged by licensed practitioners.

fugu fish

Terada first came to the United States to work as a chef at the Japan Inn in Washington D.C., where he learned English. After 10 years in D.C., Terada moved to South Florida for the weather and helped Kevin Aoki open a restaurant called Doraku. Today, there are 5 Doraku restaurants throughout the world. Each is patterned after the original South Beach establishment that Chef Hiro helped opened. 

doraku restaurant

When Hiroyuki isn’t posting videos on Youtube or breaking world records, he’s operating a catering company based in Miami, Florida. He also remains active as a consultant for Doraku restaurants.To learn more about Hiroyuki Terada, check out his Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.