SUSHI (and related foods)

[some_stars]

Tell me your thoughts on sushi! What kind do you like and why? I only started appreciating sushi a few years ago, and so far I've pretty much stuck with salmon and mackerel, sometimes tuna. Describe your favorite sushi for me! :D? :D?

EDIT: thanks to everyone commenting! I have many ideas for things to try, and I also just love hearing people talk about food :)

Comments

[ellen_fremedon]

Sushi is one of the few foods I just don't like, even when all the ingredients are things I like perfectly well. Rice should not be cold.

[ellen_fremedon]

And this is not at all helpful, is it. /o\

[some_stars]

Other viewpoints are always welcome. *g* FWIW, I find that at a nice sushi place, the rice is generally room temperature or maybe slightly cooler, never cold.

[ellen_fremedon]

But it's not hot, and room-temperature rice still doesn't really appeal. Alas.

[cereta]

Things I always like:

Creamy friend shrimp (my hands-down fav)
Spicy tuna
Volcano roles
Baked salmon roles

I will try many many other things. I am not fond of eel or squid.

[some_stars]

I know it's a typo but I love the idea of "Creamy Friend Shrimp." It sounds like a kids' cartoon!

Mmmm, spicy tuna. I've only tried it once, for some reason--I should really get it again!

[rydra_wong]

Is this including sashimi and other forms of Japanese food, or specifically sushi?

[some_stars]

I meant to imply with the title that it's for the general Japanese genre of raw fish(and some cooked seafood, and roe, etc) served on rice or in rolls. I am COMPLETELY clueless as to the proper terminology for all that. *g*

[rydra_wong]

Okay, sashimi is raw fish NOT on rice or in rolls; I was wondering if you were including that too, as some of my favouritest bits are in the sashimi genre. *g*

(There's also tempura, which is the fried-in-tasty-batter bit.)

[some_stars]

yes! that too! Like I said, I'm a total n00b to the whole thing.

[rydra_wong]

Right, then I'm assuming I have permission to gush. *g*

I love sashimi, especially salmon or tuna -- when you have fish that fresh, it's fantastic without anything done to it, just dipped in soy sauce and wasabi.

(Have you have the wasabi warning yet? The little innocuous-looking pale green blog: DO NOT PICK IT UP AND POP IT INTO YOUR MOUTH. Unless you want your sinuses exploded. Drop it -- or part of it -- in the soy sauce, and smish it up with your chopsticks, then dip things into it.)

However, one of my favourite takeaway foods right now is a yellowtail sashimi topped with seaweed, akame, pickled jalapeno, coriander, avocado and kimchee. Which is clearly all kinds of fusion, but OMG delicious.

[some_stars]

that yellowtail salad concoction sounds AWESOME. although I would have mine without the jalapeno(I am such a failure as a Texan).

[rydra_wong]

I have discovered today that it also has magical stomach-settling properties! I'm currently recovering from stomach flu, and there's not a lot my stomach can cope with without protest. But this, apparently, it can handle. I think it's the kimchee.

[rydra_wong]

seaweed, akame

... that should be "wakame seaweed", just as "blog" in the previous paragraph should be "blob".

(I'd blame the meds, but in this case I think it's the flu.)

[gloss]

Oh, wow, I love so many varieties. In addition to what you've named (I love mackerel), I really love toro (tuna belly); it's rich as anything and amazing. Also! Unagi! I cannot get enough of it in rolls. And inarizushi, rice in a bag of fried tofu, is *delicious*.

My ladyfriend loves roes, particularly ikura and tobiki, which she may or may not call "salty balls of tasty". Also, she's a sucker for giant clam, which is weirdly nice yet chewy.

[some_stars]

I have a mental block about unagi--I know I would love it, but I just can't get past the concept. /o\ One of these days I will make someone trick me into eating it.

Texture is kind of an ISSUE for me, so I am steering clear of shellfish, but I am open to the idea of roe! Are they more crunchy or chewy?

[gloss]

I had the same issue about eel for a long time.

Roe is sort of -- *snappy*, for lack of a better term. You bite into it, it snaps, and then gooshes tasty salty-cold smooth liquid.

[some_stars]

Hmm. I have enjoyed things that snap and gush before! But they were all candy. I will strongly consider some roe.

[rydra_wong]

Roe = little popping bubbles of salty deliciousness.

[eruthros]

I've had a really good seared wild black cod that was described as a faux-nagi (from a sushi restaurant that had rules about what fishes they could use) -- it had a very similar flavor, and if your sushi place does it it might be a way to tempt yourself into unagi. Tasty, tasty unagi. Nom.

[cofax7]

Unagi is fantastic, and it's a nice entry-point for a lot of people because it's usually cooked.

Unfortunately, I'm told that there are environmental and health issues associated with unagi that you don't get from salt-water eel. I think it has to do with bioaccumulation of toxins. So basically I'm not supposed to eat unagi but I love it so!

I second the spicy-tuna love above. SO GOOD, especially in a hand roll.

[some_stars]

I'm kind of intimidated by hand rolls in general, because I can't figure out how you can eat one without having it fall apart /o\

[rydra_wong]

The seaweed sheet holds it together -- it's like eating an icecream cone.

[laurashapiro]

Like rydra, I am a big sashimi enthusiast and I actually prefer it to sushi most of the time. One of my favorite things is to go to a place that does interesting flavor combinations with its sashimi, like a yuzu-jalapeño sauce for mackerel or, my favorite, thin slices of halibut dressed with cilantro and truffle oil. These things are not, of course, traditional, but they are amazing. (:

From Hawaii, there's a dish called "tuna poke" that involves a spicy, vinegary dressing, and usually wakame (seaweed) salad. It is nummy nummy nummy.

Finally, I would be remiss if I didn't mention that a lot of the fish used for traditional sushi and sashimi are seriously overfished, sometimes endangered -- and many carry harmful levels of mercury as well. This guide can help you navigate the waters (ahem) and identify the safest, environmentally kindest fishes to indulge in. I have their pocket guide folded up in my wallet so that I can refer to it when ordering.

[damned_colonial]

There's also an iPhone app for that seafood guide. The problem I have with it, though, is most restaurants don't know/can't tell you the origins of the fish or how it was caught. So line-caught Pacific whatsit might be green, and net-caught Atlantic whatsit might be red, and all the menu or the servers can tell you is that it's whatsit.

Mostly these days I don't eat sushi except at work's cafeteria where they have a sustainable seafood policy, but I'm not at the office today and this thread is making me want to go out and get some!

[laurashapiro]

Yes, that is a problem. I've found that often the server doesn't know where the fish is from but the sushi chef usually does, though I agree he may not know how it was caught.

There are a couple of sustainable sushi places in SF, including one right around the corner from your apartment (expensive, but so so worth it). The latest one just opened up around the corner from my apartment, and boy do I want to go there right now. OM NOM NOM.

[damned_colonial]

Mmmm yeah Kiji looks great but it looks like a date night place, you know? Not an "I'm premenstrual and want the sushi combo deal" place ;) I go to WeBe on Valencia for that!

[laurashapiro]

WeBe is great! Yes, I know what you mean -- Kiji is pretty fancy. The food is terrific, though; wonderful for a splurge.

[some_stars]

that halibut thing sounds SO GOOD, omg.

I'm not a huge fan of tuna anyway, so skipping that is no hardship(especially since I had toro for the first time today, so I won't spend my whole life wondering what it's like), but salmon? D: That...will be a challenge. salmon D:

[laurashapiro]

The halibut thing is incredible. I never would have thought of truffle oil with seafood at all, but it makes my eyes roll back in my head every time I order that dish.

Arctic char is a lovely salmon substitute! It's delicious and it has the same bright color and richness as salmon, while being a bit more tender in texture. Highly recommended.

Tuna's my favorite, so I find it hard to give it up. Fortunately albacore is still safe.

[damned_colonial]

Another unagi vote here. I love it in rolls with avocado. I'm also a big fan of the seaweed salad you can get at most sushi places. On the vegie front, I am quite fond of the egg/omelette nigiri sushi (I forget the name of it), the sweet tofu pockets (again, I forget the name), and of mushroom maki.

[vass]

I'm a vegetarian, so no raw fish for me. But inari is delicious. The rice has sesame seeds and soy sauce in it, and it tastes wonderful.