On International Sushi Day, 5 things to know about this food
Grab some hashi (Japanese for chopsticks) and get ready to feast on your favorite sushi roll.
In honor of International Sushi Day on June 18, here are five things to know about the popular Japanese contribution to cuisine.
While traditional sushi does include some sort of raw seafood, it's not a requirement, according to Chef Andy Matsuda, who operates the Sushi Chef Institute in Torrance, California.
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In Japanese, sushi means "sour rice."
Sushi doesn't need raw fish – or fish at all, for that matter – to be considered such, Matsuda said.
The only necessary ingredient, he said, is rice that has been marinated with vinegar.
Eating raw fish became commonplace in the Tokyo Bay area of Japan only a couple of hundred years ago, Matsuda said.
Cooked seafood, vegetables or other meats can be found in certain other kinds of sushi.
Examples of sushi rolls without raw fish are the avocado roll, Boston roll, California roll and dragon roll, to name a few.
Temaki – rice and filling wrapped in seaweed – is another type of sushi, Matsuda said.
What's that spicy green clump of paste accompanying your sushi?
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Commonly known as a wasabi ball, it's not actually the "real vegetable wasabi," Matsuda said.
Instead, it's a mix of horseradish, mustard powder and green food coloring, he said.
For the novice sushi eater, there is a tendency to mix the wasabi with soy sauce to create a sort of "paste-like ketchup," Matsuda said.
But that's not how someone from Japan would eat it, he said.
"We never do that," Matsuda, who was born in Kobe, Japan, told Fox News Digital.
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The reality is that wasabi at most Japanese restaurants in the United States isn't that "crazy hot," he said, so anyone eating it won't likely be turned off by the degree of spice.
Still, Matsuda said, it's not meant to be eaten as you might a side of guacamole at a Mexican restaurant.
Matsuda recommends the California roll for anyone thinking about trying sushi for the first time.
A California roll is rice on the outside with crabmeat, avocado and cucumber on the inside.
Avocado is a fruit not found in Japan, so the California roll was created "for more American people – easy to eat," Matsuda said.
Matsuda also suggests a light fish such as a mackerel or tuna, but if eating raw fish is "hard" for someone new to the sushi world, he suggests something cooked like shrimp or eel with "sweet sauces on it."
Chefs in Japan are self-taught about the ways to properly prepare sushi for consumption, and it can take years to perfect the craft, Matsuda said.
That's because a Japanese sushi chef there, Matsuda said, is not providing step-by-step training to another chef.
"That's a Japanese sushi chef society," he said. "They don't teach you. They don't share with you."
In the U.S., aspiring sushi chefs can take a two-month class at schools like Matsuda's Sushi Chef Institute and learn the art of sushi preparation.
Matsuda said students learn everything from how to slice different types of fish and how to sharpen their knives to how to properly rinse and cook the rice.
"We need to have a lot of knowledge and experience," he said.
For the sushi aficionado who doesn't get out much, there are sushi chefs who will come to you.
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Tomas Iribarren is CEO and executive chef of Irimaki Live Sushi Catering, which he founded in 2020.
Borne out of the pandemic, the South Florida-based live catering company specializes in Japanese-inspired dishes, appetizers, sushi rolls and desserts, Iribarren told Fox News Digital.
Irimaki and similar companies provide a live sushi chef experience for clients.
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"This is mostly a service for wealthy individuals," Iribarren noted.
He added that he's catered everything from birthdays, graduations and home dinner parties to get-togethers for vacationers whoa re staying at an Airbnb.