Chef

I exercise every morning, no matter what. Sometimes it's tough to do right when you get off the plane, but after ten minutes you start sweating, and you always feel better.

I exercise every morning, no matter what. Sometimes it's tough to do right when you get off the plane, but after ten minutes you start sweating, and you always feel better.

One of my favorite ways to use cilantro is in a beautiful clear soup with monkfish and lime. It's a great dish for cooler weather, especially because monkfish is very good in fall and winter. Also, I like the meatiness and rich texture of monkfish.

Some hotels have a lot of mirrors, chairs, you can't find the plugs, the music is complicated. But the Nobu concept is beautiful, simple.

My cooking is very simple, so I don't really use machines at all. A knife, cutting board, frying pan and strainer are my essentials.

Of course the Japanese and Peruvian fish are different, but it's the same Pacific Ocean. They are different, but I know fish.

Cooking and film are completely different - but I'd rather stay in the kitchen than be in movies.

If I am at home in L.A. on a Saturday or Sunday, I like to start the day with a hot bath and then do an hour of stretching.

Los Angeles is my home - I have my wife and two daughters growing up there.

People who make mistakes but try their best, other people will support. But people who make mistakes because they're lazy, nobody supports.

A sushi chef has to spot the best-quality fresh fish instantly.

Shellfish is better to buy live. In the U.S., because we eat oysters and clams raw, it is very important that they are alive before we prepare them. It's important to look for a closed shell. If a clam is alive, the shell will be closed. Never buy clams if the shell is open.

One day, the people who work in my kitchen stir-fried chopped Napa cabbage to serve with some meat or fish for their own dinner. I got to thinking: 'What if the cabbage was the most important thing on the plate?'

Dashi remains unfamiliar to most French and American cooks, who tend to reach for a bouillon cube to do many of the same things. But dashi is worth preparing and using the way the Japanese do: for poaching fish, as a soup base, and in simmered dishes.

I started cooking when I was 18 years old, and now I have restaurants all over the world.

It's true that cilantro has a strange, strong flavor. People seem to love it or not like it at all. Even I didn't like it at first when I had it in Peru. But I got used to it - it's hard not to in South America - and now I can't live without it.

One of my favorite ways to use cilantro is in a beautiful clear soup with monkfish and lime. It's a great dish for cooler weather, especially because monkfish is very good in fall and winter. Also, I like the meatiness and rich texture of monkfish.

I love big shrimp, like Japanese botan shrimp and the meaty ones from Santa Barbara, Calif. In classic Japanese cooking, shrimp like these would be dropped into a broth or boiled as served with sushi. But I think boiling dilutes their great flavor, and they are better when stir-fried.

It's still my happiest time when I'm eating.

Large fish such as tuna are shown already cut into fillets and bought by the block. Fillets should be almost transparent. Avoid tuna that looks rainbow-colored or black.