Eat Sushi
If you've never eaten sushi before but want to try it, its perfectly normal to be intimidated by the unfamiliar items, presentation, and traditions. The flavor and experience of sushi is influenced not only by how it's prepared, but also by how you eat it. These wikiHow will help you know what to expect and how to thoroughly enjoy your first sushi adventure.
Contents
Steps
Learning the Basics
- Choose a reputable sushi restaurant. This is especially important for the first-time sushi eater. Poorly prepared fish can ruin the experience and make you never want to eat sushi again, especially if you're not particularly fond of seafood to begin with. You can do more experimenting with where you eat once you've had a few positive experiences with sushi, but when you're starting out, play it safe.
- Ask around for suggestions. If you're unsure about a good restaurant in your price range, ask friends or other locals for a suggestion.
- Don't assume price signifies quality. While sushi does tend to be somewhat more expensive than eating at other types of restaurants, you should be able to eat quality sushi without having to spend $100 dollars a person, depending on where you live.
- Learn the basic kinds of sushi. At most every sushi restaurant, you should be able to order sashimi, nigiri, maki, and temaki.
- Maki is also referred to as a "sushi roll." Typically, maki includes one or two types of fish and vegetables rolled with rice in a sheet of roasted seaweed and cut into bite-sized portions. This is usually the best starting point for people who are squeamish about eating raw fish.
- Nigiri refers to slices of raw fish over an oval-shaped ball of rice. These are prepared to order by the sushi chef and are typically seasoned lightly with a tiny amount of wasabi and soy sauce before it comes to you.
- Sashimi refers to slices of raw fish prepared on a plate without rice. In general, this is the most basic and cleanest way to eat sushi, but may not be appropriate for the beginner.
- Temaki - Similar to maki, except the ingredients are rolled into a cone shape that you hold and bite into the way you would a taco.
- Check menus for warning signs that the quality might not be the best. It can sometimes be difficult to tell the difference between a good restaurant that will serve quality ingredients and one that doesn't. Asking "Do you serve fresh fish?" is somewhat rude, so learn to notice the signs for yourself. The following might suggest a less-than-great sushi restaurant:
- all you can eat sushi for a fixed price
- menu items not listed in Japanese
- most of the items are rolled sushi with names like Oriental Delight
- the restaurant serves mainly other styles of food, like Chinese or Thai
- more than half of the available ingredients are cooked or fried
- Know your condiments. Typically, a plate of sushi includes wasabi, which looks like a green ball of paste. Most restaurants in the US and Europe dont serve real wasabi. They serve powdered wasabi mixed with water. Wasabi powder is dried horseradish, mustard seed, corn filler, and E numbers. Real wasabi is a plant that grows in the japanese alps naturally. This spicy condiment is sometimes included in maki and nigiri, but is available if you desire more. Pickled ginger comes in thin, pink or white tan slices on the side of the plate and is used for cleansing the palate between bites. You'll also have a shallow dish to dip your sushi in soy sauce.
Ordering Sushi
- Sit at the sushi bar if you can. This will give you the opportunity to interact with the sushi chef and inspect the quality of the fish which should be on display, and should not look dry or otherwise undesirable.
- Order the sushi items directly from the chef if possible. Order non-sushi items from a server. Ask what is recommended, and if you can have whatever is freshest. Since sushi includes raw fish, the fresher it is, the better it tastes.
- Asking "Is it fresh?" might be insulting, as it implies that some of the fish might not be. Just ask for whatever is recommended. If the recommendations don't sound good to you, order something that does. There's no "right order."
- Aim for variety. If it's especially busy, or if you're unable to sit at the sushi bar, order a variety of styles and varieties of sushi to get a sense of what you like. Order a few pieces of nigiri, some maki, and try the sashimi if you're feeling adventurous. Order whatever sounds good, or whatever is recommended. If most of the fish is listed in untranslated Japanese (as it probably will be at a good restaurant), check below for some commonly available fish in translation:
- Sake (pronounced "sha-ke") - fresh salmon
- Maguro - blue fin tuna
- Hamachi - yellowtail tuna
- Ebi - cooked shrimp
- Unagi - freshwater eel
- Tai - red snapper
- Tako - octopus
- Tamago - sweet egg
- Masago - capelin caviar
- Order appetizers and drinks from the server. If you want to eat something while the sushi is being prepared, popular starters including edamame (boiled soy beans), suimono (clear broth) or misoshiru (fermented soybean soup). Choose from green tea, beer, sake, or water to drink; soft drinks will overpower the subtle flavors of sushi.
Eating Sushi
- Clean your hands before eating sushi. Many sushi bars will provide a hot, moist, towel for this purpose prior to serving food. Although many people choose to Eat with Chopsticks, it is entirely acceptable to eat sushi with your hands, so it's good form to wash your hands thoroughly before you begin, especially if you're sharing a plate with friends.
- Prepare some soy sauce. Pour a tiny amount of soy sauce into the dipping bowl. Some people like to mix some of the wasabi into the soy sauce, while other's look upon this as an "American" thing to do and think of it as somewhat disrespectful. Ask the server or the chef if you should dip, if you're unsure and try adding wasabi directly to the fish if you want more.
- Be careful when dipping Nigiri into the soy sauce. Dip the fish, not the rice, so the piece will stay together and won't become soaked with the salty soy sauce. Don't overdo it. Try it first without and use the condiments to your taste.
- If the sushi already has sauce on it, do not dip it in the soy sauce. Try enjoying it as the chef seasoned it.
- Alternatively, you can use chopsticks to dip the ginger in the soy sauce, and then use it to brush the sauce onto the fish rather than dip the fish directly. This also gives the "essence" of ginger without eating it directly.
- Today, it is becoming more acceptable to dip the rice into the soy sauce.
- Eat the sushi in one bite. If the piece is too big, eat it in two bites. Pay attention to both the flavors and the textures. You may be surprised with how mild and tender the fish is. Remember that you're not supposed to be overwhelmed with strength of flavor here, but with the balance of flavors and textures. Take the time to enjoy it.
- Refresh your mouth with a slice of ginger in between bites. This is particularly smart between bites of different types of sushi. Do not eat it in the same bite as sushi, and don't eat big globs of ginger all at once.
- Finished.
Tips
- Read about sushi etiquette before dining so that you don't accidentally insult the chef or the culture.
- Real wasabi is very expensive; it is actually a root, and at finer establishments it will look more like shreds. In addition, it will NOT be eye-watering like the green paste. The green paste is actually horseradish and dry mustard seed with food coloring added.
- Higher quality pickled ginger will be white; the pink color of most is from pre-made ginger in a jar which has had food coloring added to it. While both are (usually) very good, the paler variety is more subtle and complex.
Warnings
- Eating uncooked fish, shellfish and meat may put you at risk for serious food-borne illnesses, including food poisoning, hepatitis, parasites, and liver damage. While this is unlikely at respectable sushi restaurants, think twice before having sushi that's been sitting out for who knows how long at a buffet made by who-knows-who.
- Try to avoid eating large amounts of "white tuna" (really escolar also know as walu) as more than 6 oz can cause stomach cramps, diarrhea and in extreme cases vomiting and nausea
- Do not eat or get sushi at Americanized restaurants (or any restaurant that is not mainly Japanese). The quality is low and the rice may not be sushi rice.
Related Articles
- Make a Sauce for Fish Tacos
- Practice Sushi Etiquette
- Eat with Chopsticks
- Serve and Drink Sake
- Make Sushi
- Make Nigiri Sushi
- Eat at a Sushi Bar
