I'll introduce nigiri-zushi, other types of sushi and local sushi in Japan.

Sushi has become popularly known food throughout the world.

In foreign countries nigiri-zushi (hand-formed sushi) is well known but there are also other types of sushi. I’ll introduce some of them.

・Nigiri-zushi (hand-formed sushi)
(Usually pickled ginger is added on for cleaning away odor of fishery products.)
If you go to regular sushi restaurants, you can see how sushi is made.
There is a handful of vinegared rice on the right hand and usually raw fish(tuna, salmon, raw or boiled octopus, sea bream, squid, sweet shrimp and so on) is put on the left hand. 

Small amount of wasabi (Japanese horse radish) is placed on raw fish.
 Dip the tip of the topping into a small amount of soy sauce and eat. 

You can eat good taste sushi there but it is often expensive. If you want to eat sushi at relatively low prices I recommend kaiten-zushi (conveyor-belt sushi) or sushi sold at supermarket.

They also taste nice. I’ll introduce in my blog before too long.

It is said nigiri-zushi goes back to the Bunsei Era(1818-1830) of the Edo Period.

・Gunkan-maki
Gunkan means battleships. This name comes from the shape resembling gunkan. Nori　(seeweed) is taller than the sushi rice and it prevent the seafood from overflowing.

・Chirashi-zushi
Scattered sushi with various ingredients.  This sushi is good for special occasions.

・Maki-zushi (rolled sushi)


It depends on the area in Japan, but traditional rolled sushi’s ingredients are like this:
○sticks of thick Japanese omelet
○dried gourd shavings stewed in sweet soy sauce
○shiitake mushrooms stewed in sweet soy sauce
○Japanese parsley
○pink seasoned fish flakes
○ginger picked in plum vinegar

Nowadays, there are many kinds of ingredients are used.

Depending on the size and ingredients, this type of sushi has different names: hoso-maki (thin roll), shu-maki (medium roll), futo-maki (thick roll), kappa-maki (cucumber roll), and tekka-maki(tuna roll).

・Temaki-zushi(hand-rolled sushi)
To make this sushi, you don’t need sushi-roller. Just place sushi rice onto a seaweed, add ingredients of your choice and roll.

・Inari-zushi(It also has nick-name: kon kon-zushi)
Fried bean curd(deep fried tofu) stuffed with sushi rice. Deep fried tofu is stewed in sweet soy sauce.

I’ll introduce some of local sushi.

・Mehari-zushi
This is a local sushi in Kumano area (in Wakayama and Mie prefecture) and in Yoshino area (in Nara prefecture) .

This word means “so tasty it will open your eyes.”

It is wrapped with pickled takana (leaf mustard). Inside it there is sushi rice mixed with dried bonito shavings and chopped the stem of takana.

It’s like a big rice ball. I like it.

・Masu-zushi(Trout sushi)
This is a local sushi in Toyama prefecture.

It is a kind of pressed sushi and wrapped with bamboo leaves. Salted trout is on the top.

You can also buy it as a Ekiben( a box lunch sold at a railroad station). I have eaten it twice. It is delicious.

・Kakinoha-zushi(Persimmon leaf sushi)
It is a kind of pressed sushi wrapped with persimmon leaves.

Lightly pickled saba(mackerel) fish or salmon fish or Japanese sea bream is on the top of the vinegared rice. It has a light taste and I think you like it.

This is a local sushi in Nara and Wakayama prefecture. You can see different types of kakinoha-zushi in Ishikawa prefecture, too.

It is said sushi originated in Southeast Asia.

Nare-zushi(original sushi) is a type of fermented food, in which fish is stuffed into cooked grains (rice or wheat) where it undergoes lactic acid fermentation with the help of lactic acid bacilli.

We can eat similar type of sushi as local food in Japan even now.
But Nare-zushi has some peculiar tastes so I’m not sure you like it.

Hayanare-zushi and Oshi-zushi(pressed sushi) are not fermented so they have less peculiar tastes. Probably you'll like it.

Please try various types of sushi in Japan.

Click each post'sand share if you like it.

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