Sushi Comes Home, With Cream Cheese and Chili

The Japanese have eaten sushi for centuries, making it an important part of their traditional cuisine. Eventually, however, sushi made its way across the Pacific, landing on American plates as an exotic luxury. Once in the United States, sushi morphed to fit American tastes, and un-Japanese ingredients like avocados and cream cheese became staples in American sushi restaurants. This globalized sushi hybrid is now being re-imported to Japan, much to the dismay of traditionalists. However, those who embrace this fusion - including young trendsetters and many prominent chefs - would remind purists that change is as much a part of the Japanese culinary tradition as sushi itself. –YaleGlobal