What is Sushi?
Technically speaking, the word sushi refers to the rice, but the term has evolved to describe a bite-sized cut of raw fish atop a small bed of vinegared rice. The sushi may be eaten plain though most consumers prefer to dip the sushi in shoyu, (soy sauce).
There are many types of sushi variations such as nigiri sushi, which are fish or shellfish atop balled rice, rolls, which commonly consist of rice rolled with fish, condiments, and nori (seaweed), then cut into bite-sized pieces, and handrolls, which are fish, rice, and condiments tucked into a nori cone.
Arguably the most popular item at sushi restaurants is maguro, the Japanese term for bluefin tuna. The color ranges from a deep red (leanest), to a pale ivory (fattiest). Most often, if you order maguro at a restaurant, you will get akami, which are the leaner cuts of the tuna. There are other cuts of this particular fish such as toro, which is a fattier cut from the belly, chutoro, an even fattier cut from between the toro and akami, and otoro, which is the fattiest portion of the tuna, fatty to the point of melting in your mouth. Chutoro tends to be the preferred cut because it is deliciously fatty, but not too fatty.
Sake, or salmon, is another popular item with sushi lovers. It is typically orange in color with its distinctive white stripes, but the color can vary with the different types of salmon. The most commonly used sake is the coho salmon because of its rather large size and tasty meat. There are seasonal variations that sometimes go on special such as copper river salmon, sockeye salmon, and king salmon.
Uni is very popular, but many people have an aversion towards it because of its odd appearance and texture. Uni is the edible portion of a sea urchin and ranges in color from a rich gold to a pale yellow. Uni has a light, sweet, and faintly bitter taste with a creamy texture. It is a delicacy in many parts of the world and is sometimes considered an aphrodisiac.
There are many more items at Hot Pot and Sushi. Here we have merely covered the basics. Please be sure to check out our menu.