Greetings everyone!<\/p>\n
It has been a loooooong time and what a year 2020 has been so far! We hope you are all staying safe and healthy. We have been very lucky here in Australia to see the COVID-19 situation mostly under control. With restrictions slowly easing, we can\u2019t wait to see our professors back in action, bringing you our favourite science experiments and creations.<\/p>\n
Until then, here are some fun science facts about one of our favourite foods \u2014 sushi \u2014 to celebrate International Sushi Day! (June 18th).<\/p>\n
\u2022 The popular sushi dish California roll was invented in 1970s in Vancouver by sushi chef Hidekazu Tojo. The idea of the inside-out sushi was to hide the seaweed and raw fish, which many customers at the time were too afraid to try.<\/p>\n
\u2022 Sushi started out in Japan as a way to preserve fish as early as 300-400 BCE. With no refrigerators, fish packed with rice would undergo a year-long fermentation to prevent them from spoiling.<\/p>\n
\u2022 Fermentation occurs when good bacteria digest carbohydrates, such as starches found in rice and convert them into acid, like lactic acid. The build-up of acid changes the pH of the rice, making it hard for harmful bacteria to grow.<\/p>\n
\u2022 In modern day sushi, the rice is not longer fermented. To achieve an acidic taste that people grew to love, vinegar and sugar are added to the rice instead.<\/p>\n