Late 20th-century California rolls made sushi more widely consumed outside Japan, replacing raw fish with cooked crab meat (real or imitation), cucumber, and avocado.
Not all sushi is eaten raw; certain fish, like conger eel (unagi or anago), may be prepared in different ways and eaten cooked instead. Olive flounder (hamachi) is another example.
Types&Varieties
Whatever its form may be, sushi consists of rice complemented with raw or cooked fish and other ingredients. Nigiri sushi (made by hand) and makizushi (rolled up seaweed sushi) are two widely recognized forms of sushi; other varieties exist that are specific to certain regions such as chirashizushi, oshizushi and bozushi (rod-shaped sushi topped with raw fish).
Tuna is an integral ingredient, offering various flavors and textures. Ahi (yellowfin tuna) features firm texture with mild flavor while maguro (bluefin tuna) boasts more fat for an irresistibly buttery taste.
Kansai sushi varieties such as hakozushi and kamigatazushi evolved from oshizushi. This variety features pressed sushi with decorative touches like mackerel or gizzard shad for beautiful angular pieces. Furthermore, seafood may be placed into deep-fried tofu pockets to form triangular or square pieces depending on where it was produced in Sekigahara Prefecture; making oshizushi stand out among other varieties.
Nigiri
Sushi chefs spend years mastering the techniques necessary for making perfect nigiri sushi rolls, even though it appears simple at first. Although nigiri means “two fingers” in Japanese and refers to how sushi artists grasp and shape rice around slices of fish.
Sushi artists must master the art of shaping rice so it encases each piece of fish precisely, then applying just the right amount of pressure when shaping temaki sushi nigiri sushi. It’s an integral component of nigiri sushi!
Nigiri sushi toppings typically include salmon (sake nigirisushi), tuna (maguro nigirisushi) and yellowtail (hamachi nigirisushi), as well as unagi or anago, an eel known by its Japanese name eelfish, unagi. Another delicious and delicate option for nigiri eaters looking to branch out from basic options to more exotic options such as unagi is salmon egg (ikura). Nigiri sushi should always come adorned with wasabi, soy sauce and pickled ginger slices to cleanse their palate between bites!
Maki
Most people imagine sushi to be composed of rolls wrapped in seaweed, but many don’t realize maki can encompass much more than this image alone – offering an array of styles for an unparalleled culinary experience.
Maki is typically defined as vinegared rice filled with fish, vegetables or other ingredients and then wrapped in seaweed (nori). The ingredients may be raw or cooked depending on the type of maki being made; served alongside soy sauce, wasabi paste and pickled ginger for additional flavourings.
There are various varieties of maki sushi rolls, from “inside-out” uramaki rolls where the rice is on the outside with fillings inside to temaki cone-shaped hand rolls that can be eaten with your fingers; to chirashi bowls filled with various ingredients including fish and pickled delights; hakozushi made up of layers of fish and rice pressed together into square blocks; futomaki (larger rolls) packed with diverse ingredients. Each style of maki has unique qualities that set it apart from other forms.
Temari
Temari is an iconic Japanese folk craft of exquisite thread balls woven together into balls of good luck, love, or friendship that was initially used as children’s playthings. Over time these beautiful objects have come to symbolize good fortune, love, or friendship as gifts for loved ones and new acquaintances alike.
Temari were initially only affordable by affluent individuals due to being made with silk thread, making them unaffordable to the average citizen. Around the Edo Period, people began substituting cotton fabric instead of silk, leading to its widespread adoption during Meiji and Taisho Periods when people utilized natural colorants such as indigo, madder, miscanthus plant sappanwood gromwell root walnut loquat and pomegranate dyes to color these garments further.
This technique, similar to embroidery, requires intense concentration and precision from participants. They will learn the fundamentals and create their own original designs under watchful guidance by the workshop instructors – it will surely be an unforgettable experience! Finished products make great souvenirs to take back home; or can also make stunning decorations in any home! To customize it further try decorating them using fresh ingredients such as salmon, tuna and sea bream (tai), fish eggs like salmon roe (ikura) or vegetables like cucumber, radish, and shiso leaf.
Inari
At first glance, inari sushi may look similar to its more widely recognized cousin: nigiri sushi. But this unique variation on the classic is far different; rather than using seaweed or fish as ingredients for their fillings, this variation uses pouches made of fried tofu known as aburaage filled with flavorful sushi rice filling.
Inari is the Shinto god of foxes, fertility, rice and agriculture (especially tea production). Shrine dedicated to Inari can often be found near business parks in Japan as she represents prosperity for individuals, communities and even the country itself. He may appear both female and male depending on context.
Inari sushi can be filled with an assortment of ingredients, from boiled prawns and mushrooms to shredded omelet. Toasty sesame seeds add texture and sweetness to this savory pocket; inari sushi pairs perfectly with miso soup! Homemakers can easily create inari sushi by either purchasing store-bought aburaage or creating it from scratch; experiment by fillings inspired from cuisines from around the globe for fusion inari sushi creation.
