Sushi is cooked vinegared rice that is commonly topped with other ingredients, such as fish or other seafood, or put into rolls. Sliced raw fish alone is called sashimi, as distinct from sushi. Sushi that is served rolled inside or around dried and pressed layer sheets of seaweed (or nori). Toppings stuffed into a small pouch of fried tofu is inarizushi.Toppings served scattered over a bowl of sushi rice is called chirashi-zushi.
Sushi styles:
Aburi sushi (炙り寿司, roasted sushi) consists of nigiri sushi with a fish topping that is partly grilled and partly raw.
Gunkan-maki (軍艦巻, warship roll) is a type of sushi consisting of a rice ball wrapped in a sheet of nori which extends
in a cylinder upward to hold a loose topping such as fish eggs. Maki sushi (巻き寿司, rolled sushi) consists of rice and other ingredients rolled together with a sheet of nori and there
are four traditional types of maki and a more contemporary one:
Chu maki (中巻き, medium roll) is a medium-sized rolled maki sushi usually containing several ingredients.
Futo maki (太巻き, large or fat roll) is a thick rolled maki sushi containing multiple ingredients.
Hoso maki (細巻き, thin roll) is thinly rolled maki sushi with only one ingredient.
Temaki (手巻き, hand roll) is a cone-shaped maki sushi.
Uramaki (カリフォルニア巻き) is a contemporary style of Maki sushi that is described as a roll that is inside out—with the rice on the outside—and has an outer layer of tobiko or sesame seeds. This style was developed in the United States to entice Americans to try sushi despite its unfamiliarity. Western style sushi also sometimes does not include raw meat. Nigiri sushi (握り寿司, hand-formed sushi) consists of an oval-shaped ball of rice topped with a slice of another item.
Some of the popular main ingredients for sashimi are:
鮭 Sake: Salmon
いか Ika: Squid
えび Ebi: Cooked Shrimp
まぐろ Maguro: Tuna
さば Saba: Mackerel
あじ Aji: Horse Mackerel
たこ Tako: Octopus
とろ Toro: Fatty Tuna
はまち Hamachi: Yellowtail
ふぐ Fugu: Puffer Fish Takifugu
ほたて貝 Hotate-gai: Scallop
ウニ Uni: Sea Urchin