Sushi Dub

is a Japanese dish of prepared , usually with some sugar and salt, accompanied by a variety of , such as seafood, often raw, and vegetables. Styles of sushi and its presentation vary widely, but the one key ingredient is "sushi rice," also referred to as , or .

The inventor of modern sushi is believed to be Hanaya Yohei, who invented nigiri-zushi, a type of sushi most known today, in which seafood is placed on hand-pressed vinegared rice, around 1824 in the Edo period (1603–1867). It was the fast food of the ''chōnin'' class in the Edo period.

Sushi is traditionally made with medium-grain white rice, though it can be prepared with brown rice or short-grain rice. It is very often prepared with seafood, such as squid, eel, yellowtail, salmon, tuna or imitation crab meat. Many types of sushi are vegetarian. It is often served with , wasabi, and soy sauce. Daikon radish or are popular garnishes for the dish.

Sushi is sometimes confused with sashimi, a similar dish in Japanese cuisine that consists of thinly sliced raw fish or occasionally meat.

History

A dish known as , stored in fermented rice for possibly months at a time, has been cited as one of the early influences for the Japanese practice of applying rice on raw fish. The fish was fermented with rice vinegar, salt, and rice, after which the rice was discarded. The process can be traced back to the early domestication of rice in the Neolithic cultures of China. Fermentation methods following similar logic in other Asian rice cultures include (), (), , (), and .

The lacto-fermentation of the rice prevents the fish from spoiling. When wet-field rice cultivation was introduced during the Yayoi period, lakes and rivers would flood during the rainy season, and fish would get caught in the rice paddy fields. Pickling was a way to preserve the excess fish and guarantee food for the following months, and became an important source of protein for Japanese consumers. The term ''sushi'' literally means "sour-tasting," as the overall dish has a sour and umami or savory taste. The term comes from an antiquated terminal-form conjugation, no longer used in other contexts, of the adjectival verb , resulting in the term . still exists as a regional specialty, notably as from Shiga Prefecture.
Vinegar began to be added to the preparation of in the Muromachi period (1336–1573) for the sake of enhancing both taste and preservation. In addition to increasing the rice's sourness, the vinegar significantly increased the dish's longevity, causing the fermentation process to be shortened and eventually abandoned. The primitive sushi would be further developed in Osaka, where over several centuries, it became or ; in this preparation, the seafood and rice were pressed into shape with wooden (typically bamboo) molds.

It was not until the Edo period (1603–1868) that fresh fish was served over vinegared rice and nori. The particular style of today's became popular in Edo (contemporary Tokyo) in the 1820s or 1830s. One common story of 's origins is of the chef Hanaya Yohei (1799–1858), who invented or perfected the technique in 1824 at his shop in Ryōgoku. The dish was originally termed as it used freshly caught fish from the (Edo or Tokyo Bay); the term is still used today as a by-word for quality sushi, regardless of its ingredients' origins.

The earliest written mention of ''sushi'' in English described in the ''Oxford English Dictionary'' is in an 1893 book, ''A Japanese Interior'', where it mentions sushi as "a roll of cold rice with fish, sea-weed, or some other flavoring." There is an earlier mention of sushi in James Hepburn's Japanese–English dictionary from 1873, and an 1879 article on Japanese cookery in the journal ''Notes and Queries''.

Types

The common ingredient in all types of sushi is vinegared sushi rice. Fillings, toppings, condiments, and preparation vary widely.

Due to consonant mutation, ''sushi'' is pronounced with instead of when a prefix is attached, as in .

serves the rice in a bowl and tops it with a variety of raw fish and vegetable garnishes. It is popular because it is filling, fast, and easy to make. It is eaten annually on in March and in May.
* (Edo-style scattered sushi) is served with uncooked ingredients in an artful arrangement.
* (Kansai-style sushi) consists of cooked or uncooked ingredients mixed in the body of rice.
* (Kyushu-style sushi) uses rice wine over vinegar in preparing the rice and is topped with shrimp, sea bream, octopus, shiitake mushrooms, bamboo shoots, and shredded omelette.

is a pouch of fried tofu typically filled with sushi rice alone. Tales tell that is named after the Shinto god Inari. Foxes, messengers of Inari, are believed to have a fondness for fried tofu, and an roll has pointed corners that resemble fox ears.

Regional variations include pouches made of a thin omelette (, , or , ) instead of tofu. It should not be confused with , a roll filled with flavored fried tofu.

Cone sushi is a variant of originating in Hawaii that may include green beans, carrots, or gobo along with rice, wrapped in a triangular piece. It is often sold in (Japanese delis) and as a component of bento boxes.

, or is a cylindrical piece formed with the help of a mat known as a . is generally wrapped in nori (seaweed) but is occasionally wrapped in a thin omelette, soy paper, cucumber, or (perilla) leaves. is often cut into six or eight pieces, constituting a single roll order. Short-grain white rice is usually used, although short-grain brown rice, like olive oil on nori, is now becoming more widespread among the health-conscious. Rarely, sweet rice is mixed in rice.

Nowadays, the rice in can be many kinds of black rice, boiled rice, and cereals. Besides the common ingredients listed above, some varieties may include cheese, spicy cooked squid, , , lunch meat, sausage, bacon or spicy tuna. The nori may be brushed with sesame oil or sprinkled with sesame seeds. In a variation, sliced pieces of may be lightly fried with egg coating.

Below are some common types of , but many other kinds exist.

* is a large, cylindrical style of sushi, usually with nori on the outside. A typical is in diameter. They are often made with two, three, or more fillings that are chosen for their complementary tastes and colors. are often vegetarian, and may use strips of cucumbers), or lotus root. Strips of omelette, tiny fish roe, chopped tuna, and whitefish flakes are typical non-vegetarian fillings. Traditionally, the vinegared rice is lightly seasoned with salt and sugar. Popular proteins are fish cakes, imitation crab meat, egg, tuna, or shrimp. Vegetables usually include cucumber, lettuce, and .
* is is rolled out by a thin egg.
* or is a fried version of the dish.
* During the evening of the festival of , it is traditional in the Kansai region to eat a particular kind of in its uncut cylindrical form, called . By 2000 the custom had spread to all of Japan. is roll composed of seven ingredients considered to be lucky. The typical ingredients include , egg, eel, and ''shiitake''. often include other ingredients too. People usually eat the while facing the direction considered to be auspicious that year.
* is a type of small cylindrical sushi with nori on the outside. A typical has a diameter of about . They generally contain only one filling, often tuna, cucumber, , , paste, and squid with (Japanese herb).
** is a kind of filled with cucumber. It is named after the Japanese legendary water imp, fond of cucumbers, called the . Traditionally, is consumed to clear the palate between eating raw fish and other kinds of food so that the flavors of the fish are distinct from the tastes of other foods.
** is a kind of filled with raw tuna. Although it is believed that the word , meaning "red hot iron", alludes to the color of the tuna flesh or salmon flesh, it actually originated as a quick snack to eat in gambling dens called , much like the origins of the sandwich.
** is a kind of filled with negitoro, aka scallion () and chopped tuna (). Fatty tuna is often used in this style.
** is a kind of filled with canned tuna tossed with mayonnaise.
* is a large cone-shaped style of sushi with nori on the outside and the ingredients spilling out the wide end. A typical is about long and is eaten with the fingers because it is too awkward to pick it up with chopsticks. For optimal taste and texture, must be eaten quickly after being made because the nori cone soon absorbs moisture from the filling and loses its crispness, making it somewhat difficult to bite through. For this reason, the nori in pre-made or take-out temaki is sealed in plastic film, which is removed immediately before eating.

File:Makizushi.jpg, topped with
File:Roll maki.jpg, in preparation
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File:納豆まき.jpg,
File:Kaiten-zushi 005.jpg,
File:Eho-maki_by_zenjiro.jpg,

Modern

is a traditional form of fermented sushi. Skinned and gutted fish are stuffed with salt, placed in a wooden barrel, doused with salt again, then weighed down with a heavy (pickling stone). As days pass, water seeps out and is removed. After six months, this sushi can be eaten, remaining edible for another six months or more.

The most famous variety of are the ones offered as a specialty dish of Shiga Prefecture, particularly the made from fish of the crucian carp genus, the authentic version of which calls for the use of , a particular locally differentiated variety of wild goldfish endemic to Lake Biwa.

consists of an oblong mound of sushi rice that a chef typically presses between the palms of the hands to form an oval-shaped ball and a topping (the ) draped over the ball. It is usually served with a bit of wasabi; toppings are typically fish such as salmon, tuna, or other seafood. Certain toppings are typically bound to the rice with a thin strip of nori, most commonly octopus (), freshwater eel (), sea eel (), squid (), and sweet egg ().

is a special type of : an oval, hand-formed clump of sushi rice that has a strip of nori wrapped around its perimeter to form a vessel that is filled with some soft, loose or fine-chopped ingredient that requires the confinement of nori such as roe, , oysters, (sea urchin roe), sweetcorn with mayonnaise, scallops, and quail eggs. was invented at the restaurant in 1941; its invention significantly expanded the repertoire of soft toppings used in sushi.

is a style of sushi made by pressing rice and fish into a ball-shaped form by hand using a plastic wrap.

, also known as , is a pressed sushi from the Kansai region, a favorite and specialty of Osaka