GINGER ("GARI")
Ginger is sliced thin when used for sushi, and it will keep for months. [Read our tutorial on making pickled ginger here]
JAPANESE HORSERADISH ("WASABI")
For home cooking, paste wasabi in tube form is adequate. But if you would like something more homemade, powdered wasabi (mixed with water) is a good solution, as is freshly grated horseradish.
RICE
For sushi, rice that has aged a while is the best. It is also important to purchase short-grained rice.
SEAWEED ("NORI")
After seaweed is harvested, it is dried, toasted, and sold packaged in standard-sized sheets. Seaweed that’s opened should be eaten in one sitting or placed in a container and stored in a cool, dry place. Toasting nori lightly enhances its flavor.
SOY SAUCE ("MURUSAKI" OR "SHOYU")
Dark soy sauce is used for sushi. Of course, dark soy sauce can get pretty extreme, so don’t go for the darkest soy sauce you can find, but rather, something in the medium range.
TEA("OCHA")
Green tea is generally drunken with sushi. Do not add additional flavors to it, as pure green tea will be a complement to the sushi taste. Boiling tea is generally always the same; place the leaves within a pot, add water (that is steaming hot but not boiling) and allow it to sit for two or three minutes.
VINEGAR ("SU")
Only rice vinegar is to be used.
TIP: Because wasabi and ginger most likely were first used for their abilities to kill bacteria, they go side by side with eating raw sushi. That being said, these things are paired with sushi for a reason, so if you don't eat these things, you better hope you have a strong stomach!
BASIC SUSHI-MAKING UTENSILS
BAMBOO MAT ("MAKISU")
Mat made of slender bamboo strips that are woven together by string. Used for rolling rolled sushi!
COLANDER ("ZARU")
For washing and draining rice. Make sure your colander has holes small enough to keep the rice from falling out (these are sometimes rarer to find).
CUTTING BOARD ("MANAITA")
For cutting, duh. Wood cutting boards are ideal, but it doesn’t really matter. At least, not when you’re an amateur.
FAN ("UCHIWA")
A flat fan made of bamboo. Good for cooling sushi and evaporating extra water to give sushi rice the right consistency. Cheap? No matter. The fan CAN be substituted by paper or cardboard.
FISH SCALER ("UROKO OTOSHI")
For scaling fish. Wow! Back ends of cleavers will also work.
KITCHEN CHOPSTICKS ("SAIBASHI")
Chopsticks that are two or three times larger than your typical chopsticks. These are ideal for cooking.
KNIVES
Steel knives are preferred by sushi chefs, and a set of good knives is extremely important as far as sushi presentation goes (that is, after all, half the fun, isn’t it?).
Knives a sushi chef might use include:
Cleavers (“Deba Bocho”)
Wide, heavy knives.
Vegetable Knives (“Nakiri Bocho”)
Lighter than cleavers, with a rectangular blade.
Fish Knives (“Sashimi Bocho”)
Long, slender knives. These come in blunt and pointed types.
Ideal for cutting fish as well as rolls themselves.
TIP: Serrated knives should not be used while make sushi, as they tear rather than cut.
RICE-COOLING TUB ("HANGIRI") A low-sided tub with a broad base for cooling sushi rice. Can be made of any material, including wood and plastic, so long as it has that shape.
SPATULA ("SHAMOJI")
Flat, round-ended rice-serving spatula. Generally made of wood, although they come in plastic nowadays as well.
