How To Eat Sushi Properly

How many of you know how to eat sushi properly??? Many people still don't know much about sushi, though sushi is becoming very popular here in US. Once you read this, you can go to the sushi bar with confidence. It doesn't matter whether if you were Japanese or not. The sushi chef will treat you a lot better, if you show them your knowledge and respect (subtly - that's the key). You must know about sushi and its etiquettes. 

Well, sushi isn't just sliced fish and rice. How to eat a sushi properly isn't difficult. Before teaching it, let me tell you about myths by NON Japanese people. 

I researched how people (in US) think what's the proper way to eat sushi. Geez, many of them don't even know about sushi and teach it to others.... sigh ;( Some of them are not totally correct. Look at those :

Myth No.1: 

Some people mix a little wasabi into the soy sauce; however, even though the wasabi is there on your plate, it's really considered bad manners to do this, because the sushi chef has already placed some wasabi on the rice roll. If you add more wasabi, you are essentially telling the chef that he or she did not do a good job.

(Me) - I'm not a sushi chef. I'm just a Japanese foodie born in Tokyo. Mixing wasabi into the soy sauce just shows how ignorant you are as a "SUSHI EATER" as I'll explain it to you later. It's not an insult for chef's work, though I'm sure sushi chefs won't like it to deal with an ignorant customer like you ;p

Myth No.2:
Another way to eat nigiri sushi is to lift the slice of fish from the rice ball, dip the fish into the sauce, replace it back on top of the rice ball and pop the whole thing into your mouth.

(Me) - Dude, don't embarrass yourself by doing it. It's NOT OK. It's hilarious. lol. If you wanna get laughed at sushi chefs, go ahead and do it!! It's NO-NO.

Myth No.3:
Cut rolls are considered as sushi (like NIGIRI sushi). It's OK to order those at a sushi bar.

(Me) - Cut rolls are not so popular in Japan. I didn't know what the California roll was until I came here (CA). lol. Only cut rolls you see in Japan : tuna (tekka), cucumber(kappa), vegetable, natto (fermented soy beans). Those are the major and only rolls I can think of. Sushi chefs want you to enjoy whole sushi experience - especially at a sushi bar. Don't expect to have a cut roll at good sushi places. Most traditional sushi bars DON'T even offer cut rolls at all. Don't embarrass yourself by ordering cut rolls at sushi bar. They'll laugh at you ;p I'm not saying cut rolls are bad. They taste good. It's a fun part of going to a sushi bar to interact with sushi chefs and to enjoy what they can do for your taste bud with sushi and sashimi ;)

How To Eat Sushi Properly 
I'll explain it to you and the reasons behind them. If you can master these, your sushi chef would consider you as "TSU" (Gourmet eater who knows about food and its manners in Japanese) and treat you a lot better ;)

1. NEVER mix soy sauce sauce with wasabi.
You're supposed to enjoy every layer - fish, rice, wasabi, and soy sauce - when you eat sushi. Soy sauce is one of the important elements. If you mix wasabi with soy sauce, you ruin both ingredients' flavors.

If you really go to the good sushi places in Japan, they do use a great quality soy sauce that tastes great by itself. Soy sauce to Japanese is like an olive oil to the Italian. You don't see good quality soy sauce here unless you go to Japanese supermarket. Even the market doesn't have the high grade soy sauce I'm talking about. If you really tried those good quality one, you can taste soy with mild and smooth flavors. And it can be very expensive like the quality olive oil - those are matured for years, and made by hands for only limited amount using only the best soys. Using "low-sodium" soy sauce?! GIVE ME A BREAK!! Stop embarrassing yourself...sigh...You don't use a pool of soy sauce. Soy sauce is very important part of sushi.
How can the tasteless soy sauce be complemented the sweetness of fish????? NEVER. Stop being so healthy!! It's a moderation.... Especially at sushi bar, forget that damn idea!! You can't enjoy "real" sushi with the crappy low-sodium soy sauce..... Please, stop embarrassing yourself by using it.... ;(

For some sushi, sushi chef might tell you "don't use soy sauce". Don't be upset. They must have seasoned them with salt, lemon juice, ponzu (Citrus - Japanese "lime" - sauce), eel sauce or some sort of special
sauce. Just follow what sushi chef tells you. They did so to bring out the ingredients' best flavor ;)

So as wasabi. Good wasabi grows only where there's a good quality water. Good quality wasabi takes 5~7 years to grow. It gets very expensive. When you grind it, good sushi chefs use the grinder with a Shark skin. Shark skin is very smooth not to break the cells of wasabi - it brings out the real goodness of wasabi. By using the grinder, wasabi will be very smooth and fluffy. You can taste the sweetness of wasabi first and get a kick right after that. Those grinder isn't cheap, either. FYI: Wasabi's spicyness lasts only once unlike chili. Chili's spiciness last long but never wasabi unless you used tons or cheap artificial stuff ;p

If you did it, sushi chefs would laugh at you (perhaps in their mind) and won't treat you any better. If you didn't do it, chefs instantly knew that you knew about sushi and give you better sushi (out of menu) and service for sure. Good sushi chefs try to offer the best they can do for you. They put their souls into your sushi (in good way ;p) If you show them your respect for their professionalism, they'll treat you really well ;)

2. DIP it fish side (not rice side) first, don’t drown sushi in soy sauce.
This will avoid the rice to separate and get mixed with the sauce. This is the way you enjoy sushi properly.  First, you taste the sweetness of the fish with soy sauce. (If you put too much soy sauce, you can't taste the sweetness of fish. We Japanese love to enjoy and appreciate the taste of the ingredient.) Second, the kick of the wasabi follows. Third, you enjoy the sweetness of rice. The good sushi rice (called "shari" in JPN) will crumble in your mouth, not in the soy sauce. It requires a great skill for sushi chef to make the right hardness - to make the perfect "shari". It can't be too soft nor too hard. The size of rice is also important. It can't be too big nor too small. There's a perfect balance between the size of fish and "Shari". "Shari" isn't just a sushi ball. It does show the skills of the chefs. If it's done right, it really shows by look and taste. That's why I do admire and show respect good sushi chefs. Sushi is pretty deep.... ;)

3. It's totally OK to use your hand - it's SUSHI!! 
Sure, you need chopsticks for sashimi - it’s a sliced fish. Otherwise, use your hands. That's why they give you a hot/cold wet towel ("Oshibori") When pinched, the roll can easily come undone.

4. Big isn't always good thing.
Most Japanese in Japan eat sushi for just one bite. But my mouth is a bit small. That's why I prefer "Sashimi" to Sushi. I don't need to open up my mouth widely in front of my man ;p Two bites should do traditional sushi. Sushi is a one-bite food. If the sliced fish on the rice is too big, you can't enjoy the taste of "Shari" and vice versa. If the size of sushi is too big, you can't put it into your mouth without struggling. There's a perfect balance between the size of sliced fish and "Shari" - to make a great sushi!! But here in the land of supersized everything - "Big is Great". Some of cut rolls are so gigantic and I have to have a "sushi operation" so that I can eat without making a mess.. Forget that! This is SUSHI !!!

5. There're unwritten rules - which sushi you should order first. 
Follow the natural order of things - starting with raw, light-tasting dishes (such as white fish) and moving to cooked dishes with stronger flavors (such as mackerel). If you eat "Toro" (fatty tuna, which has more fat than regular red tuna.) first before a regular red tuna, the sweetness of Toro (the more fat the tuna gets, the sweeter and more expensive it will get) would totally kill the flavor of the regular red tuna. It can be complicated to figure out the order - that's why "OMAKASE" (Chef's choice) exists. Sushi chefs know the best order. They would ask you what you like or what you don't like so that they can figure out the best orders FOR YOU. You don't need to know all that. Let your sushi chef work for you ;) Yeah, you can eat whatever you like but why not to try it if there's a better order to enhance your sushi dining experience?!?! Soup is traditionally held to the end, though most Americans do just the opposite.

6. How much WASABI do you need?
A small amount of wasabi should always be part of sushi. Unless you tell your sushi chef, he/she will put a wasabi in your sushi. Therefore, you don't need to put an extra wasabi. As I explained it to you at the beginning, the balance of ingredients are very important when it comes to sushi. If you put too much wasabi, you can't enjoy the sweetness of fish. Sushi is delicate. Wasabi gives you a kick enhancing the flavor of sushi. For sashimi, put only a small amount of wasabi IN THE MIDDLE of sashimi, and dip the side that wasabi isn't on. Don't mix it with soy sauce. Dip only the fish in the soy sauce - once you can do it, you'll impress your sushi chefs.

Do you still like tons of spiciness?! Sigh... ;( Then try a small amount first so you can assess the amount you
want to put on your sushi. But be really careful, too much of wasabi (especially cheap artificial powder one) will give a real serious kick on your nasal cavities. Good wasabi actually gives you the sweetness first and a kick of spiciness. 

7. Slices of gingers are NOT a side dish - it cleans your palette. You'll eat all kind of sushi. We Japanese wanna enjoy EVERY one of them. You eat gingers ("Gari") AFTER eating a sushi so that you can clean your palette. Hot tea ("Agari") also has the same function as wasabi. Oh, Japanese don't put a sugar for this kind of green tea. I was a bit surprised when somebody did it at sushi bar... It was a bit weird to me. Don't dip your ginger into a soy sauce. Stop embarrassing yourself ;p It's OK to ask more gingers.

FYI: Pink gingers are the cheap one. Good ginger is yellowish and tastes a lot better than pink ones.

8. Eat at a sushi bar - if you really want a good stuff. Sushi chefs will ALWAYS take care of the customers at sushi bar better than the ones at tables. I'm sorry that I'm brutally honest but that's the FACT. Sushi chefs can offer you not-on-the-menu items and better parts of fish. If you encounter the good sushi chefs, they can make you all kinds of special appetizers and sushi for you. Buy the sushi chefs a drink - that's another trick to get you better stuff ;)

Another advantage of sitting at sushi bar: You can ask what the sushi chefs recommend. Also, don't be afraid to ask for an item not on the menu. They might get something special or seasonal for the day. Never ask "how fresh it is". It is just an insult to imply that something may not be. If you think it may not be fresh, you shouldn’t be eating there, however a good sushi chef ("Itamae") will steer a diner towards the food he/she feels will be most satisfying and highlight his/her skills.

If you sit at the bar, tip the chef for the food (in western countries there is often a tip jar as the itamae will never touch money since he touches food) and the wait staff for the drinks etc. Otherwise, tip as you normally would.

9. I can't use chopsticks!! - Is it OK to ask utensils?????
It's totally understandable and OK to ask utensils. You got to practice a lot to master how to use chopsticks correctly. Even some Japanese can't hold them correctly (lol). It's a part of manners for Japanese. My parents were very annoying about it until I could master it, when I was a kid. If I couldn't hold it right, it would show my parents didn't teach me a proper manner. So I got to practice a lot and do appreciate my parents ;) Japanese use chopsticks for everything (lol), though they do use folks and knives. Just ask, instead of being uncomfortable. Sushi chefs won't bite you :p

Well, well, well... I hope I cover the most of the important stuff for you to be able to be considered as "TSU".
For Japanese, foods are art and an important part of their cultures. I do think Japanese are one of the pickiest foodies in the world. They love to eat the tasty foods with the highest quality. They don't mind spend more money for better stuff. They even use particular ingredients for certain foods - sugar isn't just a sugar. It has to come from certain region etc. They pursue its perfection - by look and taste. As I explained to you, sushi isn't just a fish and rice. I'm glad you master how to eat sushi properly ;)