Cooking For The World’s Heaviest Sumo Wrestler (600 LBS)

Nick: Today I'm

cooking

for Yama, the

heaviest

Japanese

sumo

wrestler

. He is a two-time

world

sumo

champion, weighs 600 pounds and is also the

heaviest

Japanese human being in history. Guinness where is his plaque? To get an idea of ​​his strength. Check out this BuzzFeed video of him fighting regular people. Yama eats a lot of food, and that's where I come in. But he doesn't speak much English, nor do I speak any Japanese. So we have Andrew to help us while he starts preparing lunch. Yama is going to finish his training. For the morning. Our first dish for Yama is a huge plate of sashimi.

We'll give you a five-course lunch with more food than some of us eat in an entire week. This sashimi dish has salmon, tuna, horse mackerel and horse mackerel belly, halibut and to finish, a little mackerel. And we also have something very special. This here is real wasabi. And when you feed someone like that. Oh no. Oh God. And when you feed someone like Yama, who is used to high-quality Japanese cuisine, you have to use all real ingredients. And the best of the best is that most of the wasabi is just horseradish. Yama, before your first course begins, choose any sake you like.

Which one do you want? Yama: Everything, please. Nick: All of them. OK, perfect. Yama, your first dish is sashimi. Nick: Are you hungry? Yama: So hungry. Nick: Hungry. Okay, I'll be Yama's waiter all day. So whatever you need, I'll get it for you. What is your favorite type of fish? Yama: Mackerel + tuna. Nick: So you have a lot of tuna. Do you have salmon? Yes. Yellowtail? Yes. Nick: Tell me when? Yama: Okay. Manny: Up. Yama: Good boy. So good. Enjoy. Nick: So Yama. I don't want to interrupt you too much while you eat, but I'd love to know what a typical day would be like for you.

For training, just for your life in general. Yama: We woke up around 5 am, we trained for 5 or 6 hours in the morning, non-stop, training very hard. Then we have the first big meal, no breakfast. So, it's like brunch, then clean up and take a nap. In the afternoon, a little more training, a hearty dinner and then sleep. And then the next morning we get up and train again, then repeat the process again. Nick: So there's a lot of training, sleeping and eating on a loop. The second dish is sushi rolls. So I'll go do that. And you finish.

And our first step here is to season the rice. I'm going to gently pour over this mixture of rice wine vinegar, sugar, and sea salt because we need this rice to have flavor for Yama. At this point we need to spread the vinegar and also cool the rice. My eyes burn from the vinegar. I'll use a wet towel to wipe all this dead rice off the edges, because again, this all has to be perfect for Yama. Once we're done with the rice, we're going to make Yama some different types of buns, and I'm actually looking to give them a little bit of color and char.

You have to always keep it moving. Make sure you don't stay in one spot for too long while still getting that really nice crust on top of the salmon. For me, this is one of the most satisfying things about

cooking

, and the smells that come from this when you make it are incredible. On top of that, I'm going to go ahead with just a little bit of smoked salt because we always have to season as we go. And then something that goes perfectly with the salmon, a nice squeeze of lemon all over the top of the salmon roll.

I'll finish it off with some bonito flakes. And I have to say that I am very jealous of Yama right now. I know this may seem like a lot of food, but keep in mind that Yama means mountain in Japanese, so we need to increase the quantities. Yama. How was your first course? Yes. Yama: Very good. Nick: The sun's getting a little hot, huh? Would you like to come inside? Well? Yes. Yama. Yes. Their second course is quite big. We have sushi roll. Yama: Ah. So nice. Nick: Can you eat this? Yama: Yes. Of course. Nick: This is like 70-something sushi rolls.

Yama: Yes. Oh yes. Nick: Do you need more sake? Oh yeah. Have you almost finished the entire bottle? Oh, it's just the second course. Yeah. Manny, you'd be on the floor by now if you drank that much sake. Yama, while you eat your second course, what are your favorite foods? What do you like more? Yama: I like sushi. Nick: And I know you like sake. Yama: Yes. When he was a child, the foods he ate all the time were Yaki-soba, you know yaki-soba? Nick: Yes. And Yama: Yaki soba and... karaage. Nick: Karaage. I eat chicken. Yama: Those were the everyday foods I ate every day when I was a child.

The salmon is very good. Since I got here, I've eaten more salmon. Nick: There were more salmon in the United States than in Japan? Andrew: I think it's because they have so many varieties. Much more than what we have here. Nick: Yama. I once went to all-you-can-eat sushi with my friends, but I think I ate 45 very small pieces of sushi. Like this. How much sushi can you eat? Yama: These plates, each plate has two huge pieces. Like 3 or 4 of these in each piece. And he ate 156. So this is nothing. This is easy for you, Yama. Yama: Yes.

Too easy. One more, please. Nick: I'll go make some. Manny: Alright Yama, I'm going to clarify this for you. Yama: No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. No no no no. Nick: Our third dish is called Chanko Nabe, which roughly translates to Japanese sumo stew. Now to our Chanko Nabe. I'll add some of that freshly cut cabbage. A few more carrots of these chopped. And then before serving a good handful of Tokyo NUG or Japanese green onion. With that, our sumo stew is ready to serve. Andre heard that there is something about why there is chicken in Chanko Nabe.

Could you explain? Andrew: Chicken stands on two legs don't fall over if they put beef or pork on four legs. If you fall in sumo, all four limbs touch you. Wow. So the superstition is that chicken is what is eaten before the competition. Nick: And since he has a match against Manny tomorrow, he has to be prepared. Andrew: Oh, actually, he's going to fight Manny right now. Nick: Bottle of sake. Done done. Yes. Get that out of here. Are you ready for the next course? Yama: Yes, please. Nick: We did the best we could. Then you will have to give us your rating.

Well? I'll be right back. And Yama. Yama: Yes. Nick: The Chanko Nabe. Oh. We'll see. Yama: Ah, that's good. Nick: So this is your favorite soup? Yes. Is this the size you would normally be? Yama: No, it's much bigger, it's usually that big in Japan. Nick: Oh wow. This is a small version, okay. Yama: This is only for one person. Andrew: So they usually cook it in a huge pot. But it is for all sumo

wrestler

s to share. So this is just for a sumo wrestler, but for a normal sumo wrestler. It's bigger than a normal guy.

Nick: So who cooks it? Do you have a private chef? Yama: sumo wrestler. Nick: You cook the Chanko Nabe yourself. Oh, so you're a sumo wrestler and a chef. Yama: Chanko Nabe is specifically a stew made by sumo wrestlers. Nick: That's why it's called sumo stew. Andrew: And, you know, the thing is, when you're in the lower ranks, you have to do all the hard work and cooking. Once you get to the higher ranks, like him, he just sits there. They cook and serve him and he receives the star treatment. Nick: Like that. Do you have any secret ingredients for your chanko nabe?

Yama: I like to make a miso-flavored pork chanko nabe. Nick: Chanko pork nabe with miso. Yama: Yes. So good. Nick: That sounds good. I'll have to try it next time. Enjoy. Yama: thank you. "Chanko nabe" is like "family stew" Nick: So with the leftover broth Yama has here, let's add the udon noodles first. Yes. Pour them directly. All. Yes. You want them all. Yes. Oh my God. And now the egg. Yama: Ne... Negi. Negi. Nick: Oh, now the negi are piling up on top. Oh, all that. Boom Negi. Nick: Fair. Look, I love learning from people who know a lot more than me.

How do we know when they are done in your expert opinion? Kevin: Well, they're warm. Nick: You know how to crack eggs with one hand. Yes. Like this. Can you do it right? Oh, he's a professional. And that's how you finish your sumo stew and your tamago. Yama: Wait until the egg is cooked and then you finish the whole stew. You get all the nutrition from that stew instead of just supplementing it. So it's two meals instead of one. Yama: If you order chanko nabe, this is included, it is not a meal in itself. This is a small amount of food.

Nick: Udon is their little snacks. The same for me. Yama: Wagyu time! Nick: Of course. Number four, we'll make Wagyu tataki. And since I've had Wagyu shipped all over the

world

at the moment, I have to thank Tiffany and the entire Wagyu store for always keeping me so well stocked. We have about 10 pounds of Wagyu for Yama, because as you all already know, he eats a lot. We have an A5 Japanese spine from Hokkaido. We have some American wagyu ribs. We have a Japanese Takamori Wagyu tenderloin. We have a miyazaki ribeye and if Yama isn't full by then, we'll have even more to be sure.

In case Yama doesn't believe this is real. I have certificates for everything. Yama, I know this is a little smaller than what you're used to and this is the third dish, but number four will be wagyu. I just want to show you before we go cooking. Do you like Wagyu? Yama: Where are you from? Nick: All of Japan. Yama: Ah, that's good. Nick: Hokkaido. Miyazaki. Yama: Ah, that's good. Nick: All of Japan. Yama. In case you didn't believe me, here are all the certificates that prove they are from Japan. Yama: God, it's in English! Fantastic. Amazing!

Check it out! This is the first time I've seen this kind of paperwork! Andrew: I've never seen this before. Nick: Never? Keep this and I'll send you home with some extra wagyu. Yama: Okay. Thank you. Yes. He is amazed. Yes Yes. Nick: I know the nose print. Yama: Yes. Thank you. Nick: To start, in the Wagyu course, we're going to be cutting this beautiful filet mignon, which I have to say, Yama seems very excited. We have to make sure we press it down to make sure we have all of that surface in contact. We are looking for the perfect gilder for Yama.

Once he's ready we'll give him a good spin. Last but not least, I'll quickly roll it up all sides of it. Then we turn off the heat and pour over this soy marinade. Next we will cook one of the most beautiful pieces of wagyu on the market. Just listen to this sizzle. This cooks incredibly fast. We have our wagyu beautifully plated. I know Yama is very excited about this, but just like the fish, we have to get back to browning. I'll finish with a pinch of salt. We have three different wagyu dishes to finish, the second, a little bit of browning, a very light drizzle of this sauce and then some red onions to finish.

We always like a little color. Yama, your fourth dish has your wagyu. Ah OK. One more to come. Wait. This last one, Yama, we have to put right in front of you. Do you want to brown it yourself? Well. Give each piece a good sear. Ah, there you go. I mean, Manny, I figure if Yama's already a chef, why not let him help out a little? Beautiful. Yama. Yama. We finished this one. It has yuzu ponzu and a little more green onion. Well. Oh. Forward. Thank you. Yama, I know you are already retired. What have you done since you finished sumo?

Yama: Something really fun was being in movies. I've been in many movies. Which I didn't do in Japan. Nick: What movies? Andrew: Zoolander two. John Wick two, I think, was the most fun. Nick: Manny, Nick: He was John Wick. What happened in John Wick two? Yama: Keanu Reeves shot me in the head 3 times. Andrew: But he almost beat up Keanu. They had a big fight. He's been in a football movie. Nick: And the Doritos commercial on Ellen. Andrew: She's been in about ten music videos and she's everywhere. But he says this is what he likes the most because it doesn't require hard work and a lot of good food.

Nick: Oh yeah. You have to eat. Yes. Finish the wagyu. Thank you, thank you Yama. Yama: I like this one better. Andrew: Don't you know that in Japanese culture you shouldn't serve sake? He is a very important person. You're supposed to be serving all the time, man. Nick: I'm going to be Yama's waiter all day. So whatever you need, I'll get it for you. Yama, I'm so sorry. Yama: He's fine. Nick: You should have told me. He is tolerant. I'm glad he didn't accuse me like he accused Manny before. Yama, I know you are getting full.

Well. The final course. Daifuku Manju and ocha. Oh, how's my pronunciation? Ocha. Nick: Enjoy dessert. Nick: Good food? Yes. Nick: And are you full? Yes ok. Well. Andrew: This is actually last month's issue of Sports Illustrated. Oh, they did a great article and interview. Nick: Are you Yama? Andrew: And Yama told me that because your food, your cooking, was really good. He will sign you a copy of. Nick: There you go. We will hang it in our studio in the kitchen. Thank you so much. Yama: thank you. Nick: I'm going to let you finish your dessert in peace.

Pleased to meet you. Yama: thank you. Nick: Thank you very much. Oh, that's... that's great. That's good. And I like this a lot too. Yama: Don't touch my mochi!