The Art of Japanese Cuisine: What is Sushi?

Most people think sushi means raw fish. It doesn’t.

Sushi is vinegared rice combined with toppings or fillings, and the fish is optional. That single misconception is why so many people either avoid it or eat it wrong for years.

It’s also one of the most misunderstood dishes in Japanese cuisine, despite being one of the most consumed worldwide.

This guide covers what sushi actually is, where it came from, the main types, how it’s made, how to eat it properly, and what it does (and doesn’t do) for your health.

No filler. Just what you actually need to know.

What Is Sushi

Sushi is vinegared rice combined with toppings or fillings such as raw fish, cooked seafood, or vegetables. The rice, called shari, is the defining element. Not the fish.

This catches a lot of people off guard. The word “sushi” actually refers to the seasoned rice itself. The term comes from the Japanese words su (vinegar) and meshi (rice), which together describe the dish’s foundation.

Raw fish without rice? That’s sashimi, not sushi. Sushi without any fish at all? Totally valid. A cucumber roll is just as much sushi as a tuna nigiri.

The global sushi restaurant market was valued at USD 19.5 billion in 2023, according to ResearchAndMarkets. That figure alone tells you how far this dish has traveled from its Japanese origins.

Sushi today spans everything from street-level conveyor belt restaurants to high-end omakase experiences costing hundreds of dollars per seat. Same dish, vastly different expressions.

The History of Sushi

Sushi did not start in Japan. Its earliest form, called narezushi, originated in Southeast Asia, likely in the Mekong River basin, as a method of preserving freshwater fish in fermented rice.

The rice was never eaten. It served purely as a fermentation medium. People packed the fish in salt and rice, pressed it under heavy stones, and let it ferment for months, sometimes years. Only the fish was consumed.

From Preservation to Food

Narezushi reached Japan around the 8th century, spreading alongside wet-field rice cultivation during the Yayoi period. Japan’s version of the dish kept the same logic: use rice to preserve fish, discard the rice, eat the fish.

That changed during the Muromachi period (1336-1573). Japanese cooks developed namanare, a partially fermented style where the rice was eaten alongside the fish rather than thrown out. This was the first real shift toward sushi as we know it.

By the Edo period (1603-1867), vinegar replaced fermentation entirely. Cooks mixed rice vinegar directly into cooked rice, cutting the process from months down to hours. This version, called hayazushi (fast sushi), became the prototype for modern sushi preparation.

The Birth of Nigiri

Chef Hanaya Yohei is credited with inventing nigiri-zushi around 1824 near the Ryogoku Bridge in Edo, present-day Tokyo. He pressed a small mound of vinegared rice by hand and laid a slice of fresh fish on top. Done in seconds. Eaten immediately.

This was Tokyo street food. Fast, cheap, eaten standing up at outdoor stalls near the bay. The fish came straight from Edo Bay that morning, which is why this style became known as Edomae sushi.

In 1958, Yoshiaki Shiraishi opened the first conveyor belt sushi restaurant in Osaka, called Genroku Zushi. It won an award at the 1970 Japan World Exposition. Kaiten-zushi, as it became known, then spread across the country and eventually the world.

Sushi Goes Global

Japanese expatriate communities brought sushi to Los Angeles and New York in the late 1960s. The California roll followed shortly after, an inside-out maki created to suit American preferences, using avocado and imitation crab instead of unfamiliar raw fish.

Consumer interest in Japanese cuisine grew by 33% between 2019 and 2024 in North America alone, according to market data. Over 55,000 sushi restaurants now operate globally, with more than 23,000 in Japan and over 16,000 in the United States as of 2024.

Main Types of Sushi

Most confusion about sushi comes from not knowing the formats. Here’s a quick breakdown before going deeper.

Nigiri

The most traditional form. A thumb-sized oval of rice, shaped by hand, with a single slice of fish or seafood pressed on top.

Served in pairs at most restaurants. Common toppings include maguro (tuna), sake (salmon), hamachi (yellowtail), unagi (eel), and ebi (shrimp). A small brush of soy sauce or a dab of wasabi is often applied directly to the fish before it reaches the plate.

Nigiri is where a chef’s skill is most visible. There’s nowhere to hide. The rice texture, the knife angle on the fish, the ratio of rice to topping: every element matters.

Maki and Uramaki

Maki rolls are the ones most people picture first. Rice and fillings wrapped in nori, rolled tight with a bamboo mat, then sliced into rounds. The maki segment dominated global sushi market share in 2023 (Spherical Insights).

Uramaki flips the structure: rice on the outside, nori on the inside. The California roll is uramaki. So is the spicy tuna roll. This format was developed specifically to appeal to diners who found nori unfamiliar or off-putting.

Temaki

A hand-rolled cone of nori filled with rice, fish, and toppings. Bigger than a maki roll, meant to be eaten immediately before the nori softens.

No knife needed. No bamboo mat. Temaki is informal by design, the kind of sushi you make at home when you’re not going for precision.

Chirashi and Other Styles

Chirashi (scattered sushi) is a bowl of seasoned rice topped with assorted sashimi slices, pickled vegetables, and garnishes. Popular for celebrations in Japan, especially on Hinamatsuri (Doll’s Festival) in March.

Inari sushi uses no fish at all. Seasoned rice is packed into aburaage, fried tofu pouches that have been simmered in sweet soy sauce. Mild, slightly sweet, and fully plant-based.

Oshizushi (pressed sushi) is less common internationally but historically significant. Rice and fish are layered in a wooden box mold and pressed into a dense block, then sliced. Osaka’s version, particularly with mackerel, is still popular in the Kansai region.

Sushi Rice

Bad rice means bad sushi. This isn’t an opinion shared by sushi purists alone. Every trained itamae will tell you the same thing: the fish is secondary. The rice is where the dish lives or dies.

In February 2025, JJ Foodservice launched a dedicated line of premium Japanese-style short-grain rice specifically for sushi preparation, responding to growing demand from both restaurants and home cooks wanting authentic results.

The Right Rice

Short-grain Japanese rice is non-negotiable. Koshihikari is the most prized variety, known for its stickiness, slight sweetness, and ability to hold its shape when pressed. Long-grain rice falls apart. Medium-grain works in a pinch but lacks the right texture.

The cooked rice must be:

• Hot when seasoning is added (cold rice doesn’t absorb vinegar properly)
• Fanned while folding to create a glossy, slightly firm texture
• Used at body temperature, never refrigerated before service

The Seasoning Ratio

Sushi vinegar is a blend of rice vinegar, sugar, and salt. The ratio varies by chef, region, and style, but a common starting point for home cooking is:

Tokyo-style (Edomae) sushi traditionally uses aka-su, a red vinegar made from fermented sake lees. It has a deeper, more complex flavor than standard rice vinegar and gives the rice a faint reddish hue. Hard to find outside Japan, but worth seeking out.

The folding technique matters too. Rice is cut and folded with a wooden paddle (shamoji), not stirred. Stirring crushes the grains and makes the rice gluey.

Common Sushi Toppings and Fillings

The range of ingredients used in sushi is wider than most people expect. Fish gets most of the attention, but a well-stocked sushi bar covers a lot of ground.

Fish and Seafood

Maguro (tuna) is the benchmark. It comes in three main grades: akami (lean, deep red, mild), chutoro (medium fatty), and otoro (the fattiest, most prized cut from the belly). Otoro practically dissolves on the tongue. It’s also the most expensive.

Other standards include:

• Sake (salmon): Rich, buttery, orange flesh. Actually introduced to Japan from Norway in the 1980s. Japanese sushi did not traditionally include raw salmon before this.
• Hamachi (yellowtail): Firm, slightly sweet, popular in both nigiri and rolls.
• Unagi (eel): Always cooked, never raw. Glazed with sweet tare sauce and grilled.
• Ebi (shrimp): Typically cooked and butterflied flat over nigiri rice.
• Hotate (scallop): Often served raw on nigiri, slightly sweet and delicate.

Specialty items like uni (sea urchin), ikura (salmon roe), and toro are seasonal or premium. Good sushi-grade salmon is flash-frozen before use to eliminate parasites, a step required in most countries for fish served raw.

Vegetarian and Non-Fish Options

Over 200 plant-based sushi products were launched across North America and Europe in 2023-2024, according to market research. Retailers in urban areas reported a 30% increase in shelf space for vegan sushi options during this period.

Common vegetarian sushi includes:

• Kappa maki (cucumber roll)
• Avocado roll
• Inari (tofu pouch)
• Tamago (sweet egg omelette)
• Natto (fermented soybean) roll
• Pickled vegetable rolls (oshinko)

Tamago deserves more credit than it usually gets. A well-made tamago nigiri is a test of skill: the sweet egg is cooked in thin, layered sheets, rolled into a rectangular block, and sliced precisely. Sushi chefs sometimes use it as a benchmark when evaluating a new restaurant.

Sushi vs. Sashimi vs. Maki

These three terms get tangled constantly on menus outside Japan. The distinction is simple once you understand what each one actually refers to.

Sashimi is not a type of sushi. It shares ingredients with sushi, but by definition, if there’s no rice, it’s not sushi. A tuna sashimi plate is just sliced raw tuna. Beautiful, yes. Sushi, no.

Maki is a subset of sushi. When someone says “I want sushi” and orders maki rolls, that’s correct. Maki is sushi. It’s just one specific rolled format of the larger category.

Where Menus Get This Wrong

Menus in the United States and Europe often list “sushi and sashimi” as separate sections, which implies they’re parallel categories. They’re not. Sashimi sits outside the sushi category entirely.

Some menus also use “maki” and “sushi” as if they’re different things. A spicy tuna roll listed under “maki” and a salmon nigiri listed under “sushi” creates the impression that maki is not sushi. This is just a formatting convention, not accurate categorization.

For a direct comparison of how the two most commonly confused terms differ, the breakdown between sushi vs. sashimi covers the distinctions in full.

How Sushi Is Made

Making sushi well takes far longer to learn than most people assume. In Japan, itamae training runs anywhere from 10 to 20 years, with apprentices spending the first year or two on cleaning duties alone before touching a knife or rice.

That’s not an exaggeration. The rice comes first, and it can take years of consistent practice to get it right every day. Western apprenticeships are typically compressed into 2-5 years, but the skill gaps are noticeable.

Rice Preparation

Sushi chefs say rice accounts for 70-80% of what makes great sushi. Every kitchen guards its rice recipe. The vinegar ratio, the brand of short-grain rice, the cooking time, the folding technique: none of it is written down and shared freely.

The steps, in order:

• Wash the rice until the water runs clear
• Cook with slightly less water than standard rice (firmer texture needed)
• Transfer immediately to a wooden hangiri bowl
• Fold in seasoned vinegar with a paddle while fanning to cool
• Use at body temperature, never refrigerate

Stirring instead of folding crushes the grains and makes the rice gluey. This is the single most common home-cooking mistake.

Knife Skills and Fish Preparation

Three main knives are used in a sushi kitchen:

Yanagiba: long, single-bevel slicing knife for fish. Deba: heavy filleting knife for breaking down whole fish. Usuba: thin vegetable knife. Each is sharpened daily. Most high-carbon steel hocho are made from the same metal used in traditional samurai swords.

Slicing angle changes depending on the fish. Tuna is cut straight across the grain. Salmon is typically cut on a bias. The thickness of each slice determines how the fish sits on the rice and how it tastes.

Wakiita-level chefs (mid-level apprentices) typically spend years preparing fish under supervision before they can serve guests directly.

Rolling and Pressing Techniques

Maki rolls require even, consistent pressure along the bamboo mat (makisu). Too light and the roll falls apart. Too firm and the rice compresses into a dense, gummy mass.

Nigiri pressing is done entirely by hand. The chef cups the rice in the palm, shapes it into an oval in two or three movements, applies a dab of wasabi, then lays the fish on top and presses it lightly with two fingers. A skilled itamae can do this in about three seconds.

At Sukiyabashi Jiro in Tokyo, chef Jiro Ono famously watches each diner as they eat, adjusting the size of each nigiri based on the guest’s build and eating speed. That level of observation is part of traditional sushi service.

How to Eat Sushi

A survey of 15,000 diners found that 41% of people add wasabi directly to their fish rather than mixing it into soy sauce, which aligns with traditional Japanese etiquette. Most people outside Japan do it wrong without knowing it.

None of these rules are enforced anywhere. But understanding them changes how sushi tastes.

Hands or Chopsticks

Nigiri was originally street food, eaten by hand standing at a stall. Hands are still preferred at high-end sushi bars in Japan because delicately pressed rice falls apart under chopstick pressure.

When to use hands: nigiri, temaki hand rolls, most maki. When to use chopsticks: sashimi, gunkan maki (battleship rolls), anything with a loose topping that would fall off when lifted.

Restaurants in Japan often provide a hot oshibori towel before service specifically because eating with clean hands is expected.

Soy Sauce, Wasabi, and Gari

Dip nigiri fish-side down. The rice absorbs soy sauce like a sponge and will disintegrate, oversalt the bite, and cover whatever flavor the fish had. Just the fish touches the soy sauce, briefly.

Gari (pickled ginger) is a palate cleanser eaten between different pieces, not on top of sushi. This is probably the most misunderstood element on the plate.

Wasabi etiquette:

• Most nigiri already has wasabi applied by the chef between fish and rice
• If you want more, place it directly on the fish with chopsticks
• Mixing wasabi into soy sauce dilutes both and is considered poor form at traditional restaurants

Omakase vs. Ordering A La Carte

Omakase means “I leave it to you.” The chef selects and serves each piece in sequence, typically starting with lighter white fish, moving through richer cuts, and finishing with tamago or a sweet roll.

The sequence matters. Eating in the chef’s intended order lets each fish’s flavor register cleanly. Starting with fatty toro and then eating delicate flounder works against you.

At casual sushi restaurants, a la carte ordering by type and preference is standard. At counter-style omakase restaurants like Masa in New York or Sukiyabashi Jiro, you eat what the chef serves, in the order it arrives.

Sushi Nutrition and Health Considerations

A standard sushi roll (6-8 pieces) contains roughly 300-400 calories, depending on ingredients. Nigiri runs lower. A single piece averages around 35 calories, with about 1 gram of protein and minimal fat.

The nutritional picture shifts considerably based on how you order.

What Sushi Actually Provides

A 2022 review published in Cureus found that omega-3 fatty acids (DHA and EPA) from fatty fish support memory and cognitive function. Salmon and tuna sushi both deliver meaningful amounts of these fats.

Where Nutrition Goes Wrong

Tempura rolls are not a low-calorie meal. A single shrimp tempura roll can reach 508 calories, with 21 grams of fat. Spicy rolls with heavy mayo, cream cheese rolls, and fried specialty rolls are all significantly higher than plain nigiri or simple maki.

Sodium is the underrated concern. Soy sauce adds fast. Multiple dips across a full meal can push sodium totals well past daily recommendations.

Raw Fish Risks

Mercury is the main fish-specific concern, particularly with high-tuna diets. Bluefin, bigeye, and albacore tuna carry the highest mercury loads among common sushi fish.

Pregnant women and immunocompromised individuals are generally advised to avoid raw fish sushi entirely. This covers most nigiri and sashimi. Cooked options like unagi (eel), ebi (cooked shrimp), and tamago (egg) are safe alternatives.

A 2023 study published in Heliyon tested sushi and raw fish dishes and found no major pathogens like Salmonella or Listeria, though mild bacterial contamination was common, underscoring the importance of fish freshness and proper handling. Learn more about whether sushi is healthy based on your diet and eating habits.

Sushi Around the World

Sushi consumption in the United States grew by 40% over the past five years, according to industry data. North America has seen a 44% increase in sushi-focused restaurant chains (Global Growth Insights, 2024). The dish has moved well past novelty.

What’s interesting is how differently each region adapted it. The core techniques traveled intact. Almost everything around them changed.

The California Roll Effect

Chef Ichiro Mashita at the Tokyo Kaikan restaurant in Los Angeles created the California roll in the 1960s by substituting avocado for tuna and inverting the roll so rice faced outward. The goal was simple: make sushi approachable for diners who were not ready for raw fish or visible seaweed.

It worked. The California roll became the most popular sushi type in the United States and directly paved the way for sushi to expand into Europe, Australia, and South America.

Brazil took a completely different direction. Japanese immigrants arrived in Brazil in the early 1900s, and today Brazil has one of the largest Japanese populations outside Japan. Brazilian sushi (sushi a brasileira) features cream cheese, deep-fried hot rolls, and tropical fruits like mango and passion fruit. Sushi sales in Brazil have grown by 10% annually in recent years (World Metrics, 2024). Served buffet-style at most restaurants there, it barely resembles Tokyo-style nigiri.

Omakase vs. All-You-Can-Eat

These represent opposite ends of the sushi spectrum. Both are legitimate. Neither is “more correct.”

Sushi has become the third most popular cuisine in the United Kingdom, and the Middle East is seeing sushi market growth at 15% annually, the fastest regional rate globally (World Metrics, 2024).

If you’re pairing sushi with a drink, the options are broader than most people expect. Choosing the right wine that goes with sushi depends on the fish type and preparation style. Crisp whites like Sauvignon Blanc or Pinot Grigio work well with lighter fish, while richer cuts like salmon or tuna can handle a light Chardonnay. For pairing ideas beyond wine, the same principles apply to other Japanese dishes: if you enjoy miso soup or pad thai, the flavor logic transfers.

Sushi has also inspired related dishes worth knowing. Pho and paella share sushi’s status as nationally defining dishes that have spread globally with significant local adaptation. The history of sushi explains why the dish holds a different cultural weight than most foods that have gone international.

FAQ on What Is Sushi

What is sushi, exactly?

Sushi is a Japanese dish built around vinegared rice (shari) combined with toppings or fillings. The rice is the defining element. Toppings range from raw fish to cooked seafood, vegetables, and egg. No rice means it’s not sushi.

Does sushi always contain raw fish?

No. Raw fish is common but never required. Tamago (egg), unagi (cooked eel), shrimp, and cucumber rolls contain no raw fish at all. Sashimi is raw fish without rice and is a separate dish entirely.

What does sushi taste like?

Mild, slightly tangy from the vinegared rice, and clean. Fish toppings add umami flavor and vary from buttery (salmon) to firm and meaty (tuna). Wasabi and soy sauce add heat and salt when used correctly.

What is sushi rice made of?

Short-grain Japanese rice, typically Koshihikari, seasoned with a blend of rice vinegar, sugar, and salt. The ratio varies by chef. It’s cooked, then folded with seasoned vinegar while being fanned to room temperature.

What is the difference between sushi and sashimi?

Sushi always contains rice. Sashimi is just thinly sliced raw fish or meat, no rice. They share ingredients but are different dishes. Maki, nigiri, and temaki are all types of sushi. Sashimi is its own category.

What is nigiri sushi?

Nigiri is hand-pressed oval rice topped with a slice of fish or seafood. It’s the most traditional sushi format. The chef applies a small dab of wasabi between the rice and fish before pressing them together.

Is sushi healthy?

Generally yes. Fish provides lean protein and omega-3 fatty acids. A standard roll contains 300-400 calories. Concerns include sodium from soy sauce, mercury in high-tuna diets, and raw fish risks for pregnant or immunocompromised individuals.

What is omakase sushi?

Omakase means “I leave it to you.” The itamae (sushi chef) selects and serves each piece in a set sequence, typically progressing from lighter fish to richer cuts. Diners eat what the chef prepares, in the order it arrives.

Where did sushi originate?

Sushi originated in Southeast Asia as a fish preservation method using fermented rice, called narezushi. It reached Japan around the 8th century. Modern nigiri sushi was developed by chef Hanaya Yohei in Edo (Tokyo) around 1824.

What is maki sushi?

Maki is sushi rolled in nori (dried seaweed), sliced into rounds. It’s the most globally recognized sushi format. Uramaki is maki with rice on the outside. The California roll is a well-known uramaki example.

Conclusion

This conclusion is for an article presenting what is sushi in full, from narezushi fermentation roots to nigiri, maki, and the omakase experience.

The short version: sushi is seasoned rice, and everything else builds from there.

Understanding the difference between sashimi and sushi, knowing how shari is prepared, recognizing the itamae’s role, and using gari as a palate cleanser rather than a topping all change how you experience the dish.

Whether you’re ordering chirashi, a spicy tuna roll, or sitting at a counter for a full omakase tasting, the same principles apply.

Respect the rice. Trust the chef. Eat the fish while it’s fresh.