Aya Kuroda

Growing up in a family that loves to eat, with a mother who cooks very well, undoubtedly shaped my passion for food. I lived in Singapore until the age of 17, where I was spoilt for choice when it came to eating. As a multicultural hub, Singapore offered anything from cheap street food to upscale fine dining cuisine and I experienced flavors from around the world. I returned to Japan once or twice a year, where I was exposed to the rich culinary scene and immense respect for food. There, I learned to appreciate the seasonality of foods and significance of using local produce. I was also fortunate enough to travel frequently and my idea of adventure has always been to explore the food markets and savor the local delicacies of every place I visit. With this kind of life, I was destined to become a foodie.

I chose to major in Psychology at Cornell University because I wanted an all rounded Liberal Arts education. I didn’t want to pursue a food related career because I feared that I would lose my passion for it. But as I organized food events as the president of the Japan US Association, regularly cooked dinner for my roommates and held dinner parties, I realized that I would only truly be happy working in a food related field. Upon graduation I applied to The Culinary Institute of America (CIA) and indulged myself in three years of culinary education.

Now I work for a company that imports food, sake, tableware and kitchenware from Japan. All Japanese restaurants in New York City are our customers and what sets us aside from the other Japanese import companies is that we import a lot more premium and specialty items. All my life I have loved educating people about Japanese culture, so I am lucky to be doing what I do. This career has exposed me even more to Japanese culinary culture, especially sake. And I have not only built a network in the New York food scene, but also amongst our vendors in Japan.

At the end of the day my personal mission is to have people here understand and appreciate Japanese food culture and incorporate Japanese ingredients and values. I hope that sommeliers will start realizing what a versatile beverage sake is, so they can offer sake even if the restaurant is not Japanese or Asian. I hope that chefs will deepen their understanding of umami and start using more konbu and katsuobushi (and other ingredients like shio koji and soy sauce) to enhance the flavors of their cooking.