Types of Sushi Rice

The types of sushi rice depend upon the five basic kinds of sushi.

The most common types and the ones most people are familiar with are the Maki Sushi and Nigiri Sushi. Maki Sushi often consists of a layer of rice, seaweed, and fish or vegetables rolled into a cylinder, usually with the aid of a makisu or bamboo mat. The roll or log is then cut into appropriate widths. The thicker rolls are called futomaki, the thinner ones are known as hosomaki, and the inside-out rolls are termed uramaki.

Nigiri Sushi is made by topping vinegared rice with a dab of wasabi and a thin, bite-size slice of either egg, fish, or other seafood. The egg is always cooked, but the fish and the seafood may be served raw. Fish usually used in this type of sushi include various types of tuna, salmon, eel, and mackerel. When eating this kind of sushi, be careful that you do not dip the rice side into the soy sauce, as the rice may fall apart. Dip only the fish side. Alternately, you may opt not to dip the sushi in the soy sauce at all.

Temaki sushi is also often called a hand roll. This is similar to maki, except instead of rolling the sushi into a cylinder and slicing it, the sushi is rolled by hand into the shape of a cone. It is not sliced but rather is eaten as is.

Chirashi sushi is not often seen in sushi restaurants outside of Japan. It refers to a bowl of rice topped by a selection of sashimi or raw seafood.

Inari Sushi is even more uncommon that Chirashi Sushi. Inari sushi are fried pouches of tofu stuffed with sushi rice. More information on Sushi Rice is present with Japanese-Sushi.net