Sushi vs. Sashimi - Sushi By Dummies

by Sarah J. Gim, Posted Sep 14th 2005 @ 1:03PM

If you don't know the difference between sushi and sashimi, where the hell have you been living for the past 10 years?!?! Well it's time to move to the big city, country mouse, and replace that cheddar with some raw fish with vinegared rice.

Though we use the word "sushi" to refer to all the delicious stuff that is delivered to our wooden board at the sushi bar, the whole cuisine of fish, rice and otherwise, the word "sushi" actually refers to only the sweet, vinegared rice. Sometimes we do better and say "sushi" when referring to the pair of tiny rounded bricks of rice with slivers of fish draped over it. But that is more accurately called "nigiri sushi." If it's just fish without the sushi rice, then it's "sashimi."

Rolls are becoming increasingly popular – in essence, a sheet of nori (seaweed) with a layer of rice, fish and perhaps some other stuff, rolled into a cylinder then cut into pieces. Rolls are "maki sushi." Don't get me started on the latest breed of creative sushi rolls. I could write a dissertation on how I feel about California Rolls alone.

Since I mentioned the California Roll, I'll mention that these type of rolls with rice on the outside, are called "yukiwa-maki." And as long as we're getting technical, hand rolls are called "temaki sushi." But don't say these out loud. With the way things are in sushi bars now with whole rolls tempura-fried, smoked salmon, cream cheese and the Rainbow roll, you might give the sushi chef a heart attack for knowing such fancy words.

Filed Under: Ingredients, How To
Tags: asia, dinner, fish, grains, lunch, vegetables

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Reader comments (Page 1 of 1)

9-14-2005 @2:37PM Patrick Haney said... If you want to try some excellent sushi-like desserts, give "fruit nigiri" a try. Instead of draping fish over a cube of rice, use strawberries or bananas and wrap it up with the nori, then pour a bit of chocolate sauce over the top.

I have to credit the chefs at California Rollin' (http://californiarollin.com) for this idea. They are too good at what they do.
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9-14-2005 @3:44PM Kevin Mori said... I'm here to defend the humble California roll as "ahead of its time" fusion cuisine. The origin of this roll comes from the sushi mats of issei and nisei (1st and 2nd generation) Japanese Americans, who made a lot of unique foods (spam musubi and �chicken rice� comes to mind) by blending different styles together.

In fact, a lot of this type of food blending came when the JAs were interned in camps during WWII and couldn't get the typical staples required for "authentic" sushi. So they improvised with imitation crab, avocado, and other California produce. In other words, the Japanese-Americans were the first Asian fusion chefs.

So to me, California roll IS authentic Japanese food, even if it doesn�t come from Japan. Besides, it�s quite tasty, and most of the Japanese people that I know (that live in Japan) also enjoy it.

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9-14-2005 @4:15PM sarah said... i think for me, a lot of the california roll thing is that it almost always has...KRAB, not crab, lol! i mean let's face it - anything with avocado can't be bad. :)
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9-14-2005 @4:54PM Keith said... The question I have is to make sushi at home is it safe to use raw store bought tuna and salmon? I live in the suburbs a long way from a real fish market.

Would it be better to buy frozen fish and thaw it right before use?
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9-14-2005 @5:20PM sarah said... if you are buying fish from the market to make sushi at home, it is best to buy fish that is labelled as "sashimi grade," which means it is of quality that is meant to be eaten raw. otherwise, the assumption is that you're going to take it home and cook it. and if there's nothing there that has that label, the safest thing is to ask the fishmonger.

even if you live in the suburbs, a long way from a real fish market" perhaps what you can do is go to a local sushi bar and ask them where they buy their fish. they may have a goos suggestion for you, too.

also, just as a side note, i am pretty sure that just because a fish is frozen then thawed doesn't mean that it is not fresh. i will have to double check this, but i think that a lot of fish, even in sushi bars, is frozen, or at least semi-frozen whenthey buy it.

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9-23-2005 @9:24PM Dulce said... Fish that is sold to the consumer with the intention that they will be consumed cooked do not have to be processed in the same way that fish that are intended to be eaten raw or undercooked. Specifically, the FDA requires that the issue of parasites be considered. Some fish that are considered to be minimal risk for parasites are exempt from this.
Fish that are consumed raw, like in sushi bars, are all frozen (flash frozen, I believe) in order to kill any parasites. I bet you can get never-frozen fish if you are a sushi aficionado in Japan ... home of fugu-eaters, but I wouldn't risk it. Salmon is the riskiest fish in terms of the number of people in the US who have suffered infections. The larger tunas like yellowfin and bluefin are probably the safest.
I believe all of this is governed by the "Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP)" FDA programs (http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~lrd/bghaccp.html). You can read more about the risks of eating raw fish here: http://www.ocean.udel.edu/mas/seafood/raw.html
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