Sushi and The Zen of Fish

America is in the middle of a sushi craze, but it didn't happen overnight. Japan's fabled raw fish on rice first showed up in LA's "Little Tokyo" in the 1960s - so exotic that it made most Americans squirm at the thought. Then Yul Brenner fell for sushi. The hip crowd picked it up.

The taste for seaweed and ikura, maguro and toro — and of course the California roll — spread. Today, sushi is all over. Millions of Americans gulp it down with relish. But not so many know what they're getting into.

This hour On Point: a cultural history of the way of sushi.

Guests:

Trevor Corson, author of "The Zen of Fish: The Story of Sushi from Samurai to Supermarket."

Kate Murphy, graduate of the California Sushi Academy and a sushi chef in San Diego

Jeff Nitta, partner and manager of operations of Hokusai restaurant in Beverly Hills and founder of ZERO SUSHI LLC