Sonoko Sakai
Born68–69
Queens, New York City, U.S.
OccupationFood writer and cookbook author
LanguageEnglish
NationalityAmerican Japanese
SubjectCooking
Website
sonokosakai.com

Sonoko Sakai is a Japanese American cooking teacher and food writer.[1] She has worked as a foreign-film buyer and producer. She was also a buyer for Kadokawa, Gaga and Nippon Herald[2] before focusing on the food industry. She writes about Japanese cuisine at the Los Angeles Times and, in 2011, she created the organization called Common Grains.[3] Common Grains promotes Japanese food and culture and has an emphasis on rice and grains. Common Grains has organized food pop-ups,[4] cooking classes,[5] onigiri (rice ball) competitions and speaker panels. In 2013, she went to Google headquarters to oversee the Japanese dinner for 800 employees.

Early life

Sakai was born in Queens, New York City, to a Japanese executive with Japan Airlines who was stationed in New York. She grew up in the United States, Mexico and Japan.[6][7] She is currently based in California.

Media career

Sakai's stories and recipes have appeared in The Los Angeles Times, New York Times, Chicago Tribune, San Francisco Chronicle, Saveur, Lucky Peach and Zester Daily. She has appeared on national television, including the Food Network, and public radio — KCRW's Good Food and Sounds L.A., PRI’s “The World.”

She was featured in the Omotenashi episode[8] of KCET's The Migrant Kitchen, demonstrating Nihachi-Style Soba.[9]

She was featured in the It Starts with Dashi[6] episode of the Big Root podcast.

She was featured in the Inside the Incredible World of Japanese Cooking with Sonoko Sakai[10] episode of the Milk Street radio program explaining how to make broth, bento boxes, and udon dough.

Sakai appeared on the PBS channel's program Milk Street Television in the episode Udon Noodles at Home in 2021 to demonstrate the making of udon noodles and their use in the recipe for Udon Noodles with Spicy Meat and Mushroom Sauce.[11]

Publications

Books

  • 1986 : Poetical Pursuit of Food: Japanese recipes for American Cooks ISBN 9780517556535 - as Sonoko Kondo
  • 2016 : Rice Craft: Yummy! Healthy! Fun to Make! ISBN 9781452142876
  • 2019 : Japanese Home Cooking: Simple Meals, Authentic Flavors ISBN 978-1611806168

References

  1. ↑ Bargar Suter, Lesley (April 19, 2013). "Buckwheat Wild! Sonoko Sakai of Common Grains". Los Angeles Magazine. Retrieved July 2, 2018.
  2. ↑ Baum, Gary (March 2, 2012). "The Eat Sheet: Common Grains' Sonoko Sakai Takes THR's Taste Test". Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved July 2, 2018.
  3. ↑ Ferguson, Gillian (July 10, 2015). "Making Umeboshi with Sonoko Sakai". Good Food. KCRW. Retrieved July 2, 2018.
  4. ↑ Coser, Crystal (January 27, 2016). "Sonoko Sakai to Host Soba Noodle Workshop on January 31 at The Standard Downtown". Eater Los Angeles. Retrieved July 2, 2018.
  5. ↑ "Soba Noodle Workshop". Course Horse. Archived from the original on July 2, 2018. Retrieved July 2, 2018.
  6. 1 2 "It Starts With Dashi". Big Root (Podcast). 1. No. 15. December 13, 2019. Retrieved March 24, 2020.
  7. ↑ Vu, Mimi (August 10, 2020). "The Acclaimed Soba Maker Who Champions Home Cooking". New York Times.
  8. ↑ "S2 E3: Omotenashi". The Migrant Kitchen. Season 2. Episode 3. November 22, 2017. KCET. Retrieved March 20, 2020.
  9. ↑ Sakai, Sonoko (November 20, 2017). "Sonoko Sakai's Nihachi-Style Soba". KCET. Retrieved March 20, 2020.
  10. ↑ "Episode 405: Inside the Incredible World of Japanese Cooking with Sonoko Sakai, February 7, 2020". Milk Street Radio (Podcast). No. 405. February 7, 2020. Retrieved March 24, 2020.
  11. ↑ Udon Noodles at Home Milk Street Television, 2021-12-18.
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