Norfolk hopes sushi will hook students on healthy fare

NORFOLK

At Booker T. Washington High School, teens gaped like motorists passing a car wreck as Jaquan Parker, 15, popped his lunch-line selection into his mouth: dried seaweed and cold rice.

It was a California sushi roll, part of a division taste test that put the Japanese delicacy on the menus of all five Norfolk high schools Thursday, to the "yum!" and "yuck!" of the cafeteria crowd.

"That is nasty!" crowed an onlooker.

"Oh, my God, get it away from me; it stinks!" a girl squealed.

Jaquan chewed, nodded like a connoisseur judging a fine wine, and kept eating.

Only the chopsticks cracked his nonchalance; after grappling with the last sushi medallion, he finally snatched it with his fingers.

Low-fat sushi is a perfect fit with the Norfolk division's campaign to introduce students to healthy foods, Helen Phillips, senior director of nutrition services, said.

The division also tries to expand students' food horizons, and some teens have asked for more ethnic-specialty items, she said.

The rolls served Thursday and on next Thursday's menu are from Hissho Sushi, a Charlotte, N.C.-based business that supplies the Japanese delicacy to Farm Fresh supermarkets as well as hospitals, universities and other institutions.

Starting at 6:30 a.m. Thursday, six Hissho chefs churned out California rolls assembly-line style at the division's central kitchen.

While regular kitchen staff nearby brewed 150 gallons of chili for another day, the chefs mashed white rice onto nori, or dried seaweed. Then they flipped the patty; added slivers of avocado, cucumber and faux crab meat; and rolled it into a log that was cut into disks.

More than three hours later, 650 rolls were ready for teenagers more used to pizza and chicken filet sandwiches.

"California roll is for the sushi beginner; it's all fully cooked, nothing raw," chef Myo Thu said. "In every sushi bar, the California roll is the most popular."

At Booker T., freshman Jonathan Smith was among students who ably worked his chopsticks.

"I love trying different stuff," he said. "I tried sushi when I was about 10, and I just loved it," said Jonathan, who rated the cafeteria sushi better than restaurant quality.

Ruby Cole, 14, bit into a roll and called it good, more spicy and tasty than regular seafood. But she thought differently of the wasabi, a green paste made from a mustard-like root. "That stuff! Whoo! It burns!" she said.

The most dramatic reaction came from Akeem McKinley, 16. As a crowd watched, he downed some sushi, then doubled over. Amid gales of laughter, he ran to a trash can and spat out the mouthful.

The sushi costs the division $4 a serving, which includes the expense of materials and the Hissho chefs, who also demonstrated their skills at each high school. In comparison, the typical entree costs the division 85 cents. That price difference means sushi is unlikely to be a regular item on division menus, Phillips said.

There may be ways to whittle costs down, though, so sushi can make an occasional appearance, she said.

"I heard comments, 'Can you do it again?' "

Steven G. Vegh, (757) 446-2417, steven.vegh@pilotonline.com