Sushi Competition (26/7)

Types of sushi. Clockwise from top-left: nigirizushi, makizushi, temaki.

Types

The common ingredient across all kinds of sushi is vinegared sushi rice. Variety arises from fillings, toppings, condiments, and preparation. Traditional versus contemporary methods of assembly may create very different results from very similar ingredients. In spelling sushi, its first letter s is replaced with z when a prefix is attached, as in nigirizushi, due toconsonant mutation called rendaku in Japanese.

Chirashizushi

Chirashizushi with raw ingredients

Chirashizushi (ちらし寿司, “scattered sushi”) is a bowl of sushi rice topped with a variety of raw fish and vegetables/garnishes (also refers tobarazushi). There is no set formula for the ingredients; they are either chef’s choice or specified by the customer. It is commonly eaten because it is filling, fast and easy to make. Chirashizushi also often varies regionally. It is eaten annually on Hinamatsuri in March.

• Edomae chirashizushi (Edo-style scattered sushi) is served with uncooked ingredients which are arranged artfully on top of the sushi rice in a bowl.
• Gomokuzushi (Kansai-style sushi) consists of cooked or uncooked ingredients mixed in the body of rice in a bowl.
• Sake-zushi (Kyushu-style sushi) is a variety where instead of rice vinegar, rice wine is used in the mixture of the rice, and is topped with shrimp, sea bream, octopus, shiitake mushrooms, bamboo shoots and shredded omelette.

Inarizushi

Inarizushi

A version of inarizushi that includes green beans, carrots, and gobo along with rice, wrapped in a triangular aburage (fried tofu) piece, is aHawaiian specialty, where it is called cone sushi and is often sold in okazu-ya (Japanese delis) and as a component of bentoboxes.Inarizushi (稲荷寿司) is a pouch of fried tofu typically filled with sushi rice alone. It is named after the Shinto god Inari, who is believed to have a fondness for fried tofu. The pouch is normally fashioned as deep-fried tofu (油揚げ, abura age). Regional variations include pouches made of a thin omelette (帛紗寿司, fukusa-zushi, or 茶巾寿司, chakin-zushi). It should not be confused with inari maki, which is a roll filled with flavored fried tofu.

Makizushi

Futomaki

Makizushi in preparation

Makizushi (巻き寿司, “rolled sushi”), norimaki (海苔巻き, “Nori roll”) or makimono (巻物, “variety of rolls”) is a cylindrical piece, formed with the help of a bamboo mat known as a makisu (巻簾). Makizushi is generally wrapped in nori (seaweed), but is occasionally wrapped in a thinomelette, soy paper, cucumber, or shiso (perilla) leaves. Makizushi is usually cut into six or eight pieces, which constitutes a single roll order. Below are some common types of makizushi, but many other kinds exist.

Futomaki (太巻, “thick, large or fat rolls”) is a large cylindrical piece, usually with nori on the outside. A typical futomaki is five to six centimeters (2–2.5 in) in diameter. They are often made with two, three, or more fillings that are chosen for their complementary tastes and colors. During the evening of the Setsubun festival, it is traditional in the Kansai region to eat uncut futomaki in its cylindrical form, where it is called ehō-maki (恵方巻, lit. happy direction rolls). By 2000 the custom had spread to all of Japan. Futomaki are often vegetarian, and may utilize strips of cucumber, kampyō gourd, takenoko bamboo shoots, or lotus root. Strips of tamagoyaki omelette, tiny fish roe, chopped tuna, and oboro whitefish flakes are typical non-vegetarian fillings.

Hosomaki (細巻, “thin rolls”) is a small cylindrical piece, with nori on the outside. A typical hosomaki has a diameter of about two and a half centimeters (1 in). They generally contain only one filling, often tuna, cucumber, kanpyō, thinly sliced carrots, or, more recently, avocado.Kappamaki, (河童巻) a kind of Hosomaki filled with cucumber, is named after the Japanese legendary water imp fond of cucumbers called thekappa. Traditionally, kappamaki 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. Tekkamaki (鉄火巻) is a kind of hosomaki filled with raw tuna. Although it is believed that the wordtekka, 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 tekkaba (鉄火場), much like the sandwich.^[19][20] Negitoromaki (ねぎとろ巻) is a kind of hosomaki filled with scallion (negi) and chopped tuna (toro). Fatty tuna is often used in this style. Tsunamayomaki (ツナマヨ巻) is a kind of hosomaki filled with canned tuna tossed with mayonnaise.

Temaki (手巻, “hand roll”) is a large cone-shaped piece of nori on the outside and the ingredients spilling out the wide end. A typical temaki is about ten centimeters (4 in) long, and is eaten with fingers because it is too awkward to pick it up with chopsticks. For optimal taste and texture, temaki 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.

Narezushi

funa-zushi (narezushi made from a crucian carp species)

Narezushi (熟れ寿司, “matured sushi”) 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 tsukemonoishi (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 narezushi still being produced is funa-zushi (made from fish of the crucian carp genus, authentically from C. auratus grandoculis (nigoro-buna) endemic to Lake Biwa), a typical dish of Shiga Prefecture.

Nigirizushi 

Sea urchin roe “gunkanmaki”

Nigirizushi (握り寿司, “hand-pressed sushi”) consists of an oblong mound of sushi rice that the chef presses into a small rectangular box between the palms of the hands, usually with a bit of wasabi, and a topping (the neta) draped over it. Neta 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 (tako), freshwater eel (unagi), sea eel (anago), squid(ika), and sweet egg (tamago). One order of a given type of fish typically results in two pieces, while a sushi set (sampler dish) may contain only one piece of each topping.

Gunkanmaki (軍艦巻, “warship roll”) is a special type of nigirizushi: 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, nattō, oysters,uni (sea urchin roe), corn with mayonnaise, scallops, and quail eggs. Gunkan-maki was invented at the Ginza Kyubey restaurant in 1941; its invention significantly expanded the repertoire of soft toppings used in sushi.

Temarizushi (手まり寿司, “ball sushi”) is a ball-shaped sushi made by pressing rice and fish into a ball-shaped form by hand using a plastic wrap.

Oshizushi

Sasazushi, a type of oshizushi

Oshizushi (押し寿司, “pressed sushi”), also known as 箱寿司, hako-zushi, “box sushi”), is a pressed sushi from the Kansai region, a favorite and specialty of Osaka. A block-shaped piece formed using a wooden mold, called an oshibako. The chef lines the bottom of the oshibako with the toppings, covers them with sushi rice, and then presses the lid of the mold down to create a compact, rectilinear block. The block is removed from the mold and then cut into bite-sized pieces. Particularly famous is バッテラ (battera, pressed mackerel sushi) or 鯖寿司 (saba zushi).