Sushi Food: The Different Types, Names, and Basic Knowledge

Sushi food is all about creativity and appearance. It’s meant to look as beautiful as it is delicious. A true banquet for the right mind

It is classified to be an artistic and highly skilled Japanese cuisine, but it’s now so common that you can easily walk into any local grocery store and pick up a take-away package of sushi

Furthermore, it can be confusing walking into a sushi bar or restaurant and not know what to do especially if you didn’t grow up eating sushi.

From the popular makizushi (rolled sushi) to the topping of nigiri pieces, etc. it does take a while to understand which sushi is which. But fear not!

This guide will brush you up on sushi knowledge, and widen your sushi palates.

Also, we’ll help answer some basic questions-starting with “what is sushi?”- a breakdown of some common sushi terms so you can know what to order like a pro when looking at a sushi roll menu.

What Is Sushi Food?

It means the Japanese technique of food that uses fish (raw or cooked), vegetables, and is regularly mixed with rice that’s been seasoned with vinegar.

Wasabi, pickled ginger and soy sauce are usually served on the side.

Nowadays sushi is a far cry from where it began. The original sushi was once a staple dish around various regions of Asia and was salted fish preserved in fermented rice.

The word “sushi” roughly means “sour” as an affirmation to its fermented origins.

There are varieties of sushi recipes you can order, and yes, there is a dissimilarity between Japanese-style sushi and Western-style sushi.

Types of Sushi food

While old-style Japanese sushi is simpler, less dressed up, and fixated on the fish, its American equivalent is more dedicated on rolls, topped with plenty of garnishes and sauces.

However, no matter the style you’re selecting, it’s imperative to know what you’re ordering before you order.

What Are the Different Types of Sushi food?

Well-thought-out to be the ideal Japanese food, Sushi comes in a range of forms and flavors.

Even though there have been many Americanized presences of sushi like avocado rolls, or salmon and California roll, there is an entire variation of sushi flavors, types, and sizes that have advanced over time.

Here’s a quick look at the different types of sushi.

Type of Sushi food	Description	Notes
Nigiri	Nigiri is the dish that’s halfway in between. A topping, usually fish, served on top of sushi rice	Nigiri is sashimi that’s served on a molded rectangle of rice. Not all nigiri is raw, though this dish is best for people who want to appreciate the flavor of the fish, shellfish, or other toppings
Sashimi	Fish or shellfish served alone (no rice)	Sashimi is to sushi as a fillet is to a taco. Any sashimi meat can be made into a sushi roll. This is best for people who love to taste the fish or shellfish since it comes with nothing else
Maki (which means roll),	Rice and filling wrapped in seaweed	This is what most people think of when they think of sushi rolls
Uramaki	Similar to the above, but the seaweed is on the inside and rice is on the outside	These rolls often have lots of toppings and sauces — they may either be cooked or raw
Temaki	a cone-shaped piece of sushi that’s rolled by hand	The cones are not as easy to share as the rolls (though very delicious!)

Other types of Sushi Include:

• Chirashizushi – “Scattered” Sushi
• Inarizushi
• Temarizushi – “Hand Ball” Sushi
• Gunkan Maki – “Battleship” Sushi
• Narezushi – Fermented Sushi
• Oshizushi – Pressed Sushi
• Sasazushi – Bamboo Leaf Sushi

How to Eat Sushi

• Stage 1:Use chopsticks to eat your sushi. It’s also acceptable to use your hands; this is, how many in Japan eat their sushi. When eating nigiri, it’s also suggested to turn the roll upside-down to dip in soy sauce to evade absorbing too much into the rice.
• Stage 2:When not using your chopsticks, put them on the ceramic chopstick holder or fold a makeshift one out of the paper wrapper from the chopsticks.
• Stage 3:The pickled ginger is eaten between courses as an appetite cleanser and digestion support. Don’t combine it with your soy sauce or eat it with the sushi.
• Stage 4:When plummeting a piece of sushi in soy sauce, momentarily dip fish side down.
• Stage 5:cut a piece of sushi in one bite. It may be a morsel, but it’s better than trying to bite it in half and seeing it fall to pieces.

Though a sushi connoisseur is a discerning judge on the differences in tastes, the actual distinction lies in the ingredients – rice, seafood, or any type of meat which makes sushi a novel and pleasant specialty

Key Sushi Ingredients

• Sushi rice: Made with short-grain rice, sushi rice is flavored with sugar, rice wine vinegar, and salt.
• Nori: Dried seaweed sheets.
• Seafood: raw, fresh, sometimes cooked salmon, tuna (ahi), grilled eel (unagi), yellowtail (hamachi), cooked shrimp (ebi), crab (kani), mackerel, and lobster, and more.
• Tempura: Battered and fried seafood or vegetables.
• Roe (tobiko): Fish eggs from a variety of fish.
• Egg (tamago): A thin omelet folded and cut into strips.
• Vegetables: avocados, cucumbers, carrots, daikon radishes.

Vegetarian Sushi

Sushi is not always about seafood but veggies too.