"Sushi-grade Fish," the Low-down

by Sarah J. Gim, Posted Apr 30th 2007 @ 12:45PM

Think you can just walk up to the fish counter at your local grocery store, purchase a pound of fresh tuna, take it home, and eat it raw as sushi? Of course you know you can't do that. You need to look for "sushi-grade," right?

Not so fast, Slashfoodie-san. First of all, you want to be looking

A website called SushiFAQs has some decent information about what "sushi-grade" really means. So next time you plan to wield your samurai sword to slice up some salmon for sushi at home, take a peek at SushiFAQs and make sure what you're getting into.

Filed Under: Science, Health & Medical, Ingredients
Tags: fish, sushi, sushi grade

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Reader comments (Page 1 of 1)

4-30-2007 @1:51PM biscuitbaker said... Sushi grade was always the freshest tuna available when I was in the fish business. As a wholesaler, that meant knowing when the fish came to port, the method of catch, and in the case of tuna, taking a 'core sample' at the dock to see, feel and taste the fish for quality.
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4-30-2007 @3:26PM Carllong said... I think the FAQ maintainers point is that there is no actual grade of fish called 'sushi grade.' It's just a colloquial term used to describe the perceived quality of the fish. It's interesting that people toss around a term that actually has no qualified meaning though :)
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5-02-2007 @3:26AM SashimiFan said... You can certainly buy any raw Tuna or Salmon from any fish store and eat it like sushi but you may end up being in the bathroom for a long time or worse getting some other stomach virus.

Thats why it has to be sushi fresh quality.

Not to mention Wasabi is a must... it helps kill bacteria.
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4-30-2007 @8:39PM bdw said... Living in the northeast literally a stone's throw from the ocean (I can't quite spit that far), I have cultivated a very good local fish monger. If I want to serve sushi, I tell him a week before. He knows that I know that essentially all fish is frozen, so he doesn't need to b.s. me, and gets me the right quality at the right time. I wouldn't really trust anyone else without a long talk and a good reputation.

There are now plenty of Asian markets around for other ingredients, plus I'm about 60 minutes drive from Canal Street in NYC.

I don't know what I'd do in Dubuque, though.
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4-30-2007 @4:57PM Dmnkly said... "Not to mention Wasabi is a must... it helps kill bacteria."

Except that what you get almost everywhere in the States and through most of Japan isn't actually wasabi :-)
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5-01-2007 @4:40PM Kassie said... I don't know what to do in Dubuque either, but in Minneapolis the best thing to do is have a good relationship with a good fishmonger, just like everywhere else in the world. While, there aren't a lot of them here, most people know who is reputable, if they are the sushi making type.

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5-01-2007 @6:14PM Tim said... "I think the FAQ maintainers point is that there is no actual grade of fish called 'sushi grade.' It's just a colloquial term used to describe the perceived quality of the fish."

Kinda like "organic" -- isn't everything that grows "organic"?
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