Sushi

Sushi is a Japanese starter or main that consists mainly of vinegared rice, as well as some vegetables and mostly uncooked seafood, there are also vegetarian options. Some sushi can contain egg and also tropical fruits. It is served together with pickled ginger, wasabi and soya sauce. True wasabi is used as an anti microbial and may prevent food poisoning. Ginger is not only used as a cleanser of the palate and taste buds but it also aids in digestion. Sushi is served as oval shaped rolls and is not to be confused with sashimi, which simply is raw thin slices of fish or occasionally meat. 

Sushi rice is prepared from a short grain Japanese rice as opposed to long grain rice from India, sri Lanka, Thailand, Vietnam etc. This type of rice is common for it's stickiness, which helps to hold the sushi together in one piece. 

 Sushi is often wrapped in a seaweed covering, or the seaweed is rolled inside the sushi. This seaweed is made from an algae that comes from off the coast of Japan. It is known as Nori.

Vegetables such as cucumber, Avocado and carrots are used in the filings as well. 

 Different kinds of fish are used to fill sushi such as tuna, salmon and mackerel, other types of seafood include prawns, octopus, eel, shrimp and squid. Sushi chefs are trained to select the best fish because it is going to be eaten raw it needs to be of a higher quality. They go by smell, firmness , color and freedom from undetected parasites to determine quality.

Sushi dates back to 2000 years ago when rice cultivation first started in Japan. Sushi first came about in Nara as a way to preserve fish by wrapping it in fermented rice, eventually people began to eat the rice as well. But eventually the fermented rice was replaced by vinegar rice. 

Sushi can be made into nigiri, fashion sandwiches, maki and hand rolls and California rolls.

This has made me super hungry for sushi. There is something so delicious and tasty about sushi.