Sonoko Sakai  Sonoko Sakai is a Japanese American cooking teacher and food writer. She has worked as a foreign-film buyer and producer. She was also a buyer for Kadowaka, Gaga and Nippon Herald before focusing on the food industry. She writes about Japanese cuisine at the "Los Angeles Times" and, in 2011, she created the organization called Common Grains. Common Grains promotes Japanese food and culture and has an emphasis on rice and grains. Common Grains has organized food pop-ups, cooking classes, onigiri (rice ball) competitions and speaker panels. In 2013, she went to Google headquarters to oversee the Japanese dinner for 800 employees. Sakai's stories and recipes have appeared in The Los Angeles Times, New York Times, Chicago Tribune, San Francisco Chronicle, Saveur, Lucky Peach and Zester Daily. She has appeared on national television, including the Food Network, and public radio — KCRW’s “Good Food” and “Sounds L.A.,” PRI’s “The World.” She was featured in the Omotenashi episode of KCET's The Migrant Kitchen, demonstrating Nihachi-Style Soba. She was featured in the It Starts with Dashi episode of the Big Root podcast. She was featured in the Inside the Incredible World of Japanese Cooking with Sonoko Sakai episode of the Milk Street radio program, February 7, 2020. "Sakai teaches us about real Japanese home cooking — from the world's easiest broth to bento boxes to the surprising way she kneads her udon dough."