Making sushi is also considered an art. Here are several types of sushi.

Maki Sushi is comprised of fish or seafood wrapped in a roll of nori or seaweed. It has two variations, Hosamaki and Futomaki. Hosomaki is a thin type of maki that has only one kind of filling. It can be seafood, fish or one type of vegetable. Futomaki is a fat type of maki that has 2 or more kinds of fillings.

Nigiri Sushi is more popular. It is shaped with the use of hands. It comprises slices of seafood, tamago, raw fish or various other toppings. Then, wasabi is placed in-between slices as well as a thumb-sized chunk of vinegared rice or shari. In Japanese customs, you present these to couples as a sign of harmony and peace.

Uramaki is similar to maki, however, rice is placed on top of the nori instead of inside. It consists of more than 2 fillings. Sometimes, it is topped with a thin slice of avocado or fish. This is most popular in Western Sushi Bars.

Making Sushi

Maki
Feel your nori sheet. One side is smooth and the other side is rough. Nori should lie on your rolling mat with the rough side facing upwards.

Wet your hands and get about a handful of rice and roll it to a ball. Wet your hands so that rice won’t stick to your palms. Dry your hands when it’s time to work with the nori. Have a dry towel and bowl of water handy beside your working place.

Carefully place and spread equally the rice ball on your nori sheet. Make sure that your layer of rice almost covers the entire sheet, excluding about 2cm from the upper margins. This should be left uncovered to properly close your sushi roll.

Then, place one slice of fish by the nori’s edge. Add about 1 up to 3 “pre-cut” vegetables slices such as cucumber, carrot, asparagus, green onion and the like. Along your rolling mat’s closer edge, close your nori. Make it like a rectangular-shaped hill while tightening it from the upper part.

Move forward by rolling it continuously in rectangular-shaped hill steps. Make sure every move or roll you make is tight until the end portion. Always exert pressure on all 3 sides of your roll, especially along stops. It allows tight rolling.

Cut your roll into small sushi units with a sharp, wet knife.

Nigiri Sushi
Wet your hands and get about 20 grams of vinegared rice or shari. Shape it into long and ovalic forms. Use the rice as base with the fish on top. The bottom should be flat and the top rounded.

Follow the measurements carefully. If you plan to make fish nigiri sushi, get a slice of fish. It should be 1cm thick and about 5cm x 3cm rectangular-sized. If it is a bit smaller, you should try slicing it at about 45 degrees. It maximizes fish surface. Then, take some pea-sized portions of wasabi. Smear this in the midst of your fish slices. Wasabi actually helps your fish slices become glued into your shari.

Place the slice of fish, facing down, along with the wasabi. Lay this gently on top of your rice. Then, firmly press on it so that it will stick to the rice. Using your other hand to hold your nigiri sushi’s sides, use the other to press it from the upper portion.

Uramaki
Your mat should be the “one side round and one side flat” type. Wrap it with a stretch of nylon. You can start with the round side but also ending with it. Create at least 2 up to 3 “full” rounds of such wrapping. Afterwards, roll your mat in order to squeeze out all the air locked inside. You can also use a toothpick to poke it to let the air out.

Get one piece of nori sheet. Break this down in the middle. If it does not easily break, it is either not a good brand or it is already old. Put your nori sheet on top of your rolling mat. This should be around 5cm from its edge. The rough side of your nori sheet should face upward.

Wet your hands. Create a ball of rice with one handful. Put the ball of rice inside your nori. Spread it evenly, gently pressing downwards. It should be about 1cm high,with equal layers of rice. You can add more rice as long as it is even, if necessary. Flip your nori over. The rice should face your mat.

Place one slice of fish along your nori’s edge. Add about 1 up to 3 “pre-cut” slices of vegetables. Close the filling, making a rectangular-shaped hill with nori. Make sure to tighten it along the upper portion.

Move forward by rolling it continuously in rectangular-shaped hill steps. Make sure every move or roll you make is tight until its end portion. Always exert pressure on all 3 sides of the roll, especially along stops, for tight rolling.

Cut your roll into small sushi units with a sharp, wet knife.

Japanese Sushi Rolls

For the Japanese, sushi implies vinegared rice typically topped with meats, fish and vegetables. Outside Japan, sushi is more often mistaken as “raw fish” or “raw seafood.”

In Japan, they call sliced raw fish, sashimi. It is different from sushi because sashimi implies purely on the raw fish part. In Archaic grammar, “sushi” literally means “it’s sour.”

There are several types of sushi. The Nigirizushi sushi consists of toppings laid with “hand-formed” rice clumps. Aside from topping it with vinegared rice, it is also dabbed with wasabi and a bite-size, thin slice of fish, egg or various other seafoods.

Although the egg is cooked, the seafood and fish can be served raw. The types of fish you can use are salmon, tuna, mackerel and eel.

When eating Nigirizushi, make sure that the rice side is not dipped into the soy sauce. The fish side should be the one dipped or it will fall apart. You can do this alternately, not dipping it completely in soy sauce.

Makizushi is a type of sushi rolled inside some “nori,” a pressed and dried layered sheets of alga or seaweed. It can contain vegetables, fish, seaweed and rice. These are rolled into a cylindrical form with the aid of a bamboo mat or makisu. Afterwards, it is cut into suitable widths. Futomaki refers to the thicker rolls. Hosomaki refers to the thinner rools. Uramaki refers to the “inside-out” rolls.

Inarizushi has toppings stuffed inside a tiny pouch of fried tofu. This is more uncommon compared to Chirashi-zushi. You still need to go to a sushi restaurant in Japan to order this type of sushi. Chirashi-zushi has toppings scattered and served over a sushi rice bowl. This is not regularly served in Japanese restaurants outside of Japan. The toppings are either raw seafood or sashimi.

Temaki Sushi is also called the hand roll. It is almost the same as maki except for the part where you roll it into a cylinder and slice it. With Temaki Sushi, you roll it with your hands and form cone shapes. Then, it is eaten as is, not sliced.

In any sushi, the common denominator is always sushi rice. They only vary on toppings, condiments, fillings and the procedure these ingredients are placed together. These ingredients can also be collected using contemporary or traditional ways, making distinct results.

Sushi is not only a favorite dish in Japan. It is well-loved in other countries also.

If you want to learn how to make sushi rice, it is easy. First, you need a sushi vinegar called sushi-zu. Mix it with rice vinegar, sugar and salt. Heat the mixture until the sugar dissolves. Stir frequently in the process. Afterwards, let the mixture cool to room temperature. This mixture is called tezu.

Using either a spatula or just a regular spoon, cut and fold the rice as gentle as possible. Avoid smashing the rice grains.

Get a bowl and moisten the sides with tezu. It is ideal to use a wooden bowl because it absorbs moisture. If none is available, any bowl is fine with a flat bottom.

Place the rice in the bowl and add a quarter of sushi vinegar. Mix them together, making sure you follow a folding motion to avoid smashing the rice. Afterwards, fan to dry the mixture for about 5 to 6 minutes. This process will remove the excess moisture and will make the rice look glossy and shiny.

As a tip, a good sushi rice is somewhat chewy in the mouth, and sticky to your touch.