【Reading】うおずし

【English Name】Uo-zushi (Fish Sushi)

Uo-zushi (fish sushi) is a general, collective term for sushi whose main ingredient is fish. The prototype of sushi lies in a fermented preserved food combining seafood and rice, said to originate from the methods used by upland peoples of Southeast Asia to store fish over long periods.

In Japan, records of items such as abi-zushi (abalone) and iigai-zushi (mussel) appear in the Yoro Code (Yoro-ryo, 718) of the Nara period, and "nare-zushi"—seafood pickled with salt and rice—has been made since ancient times. The Engishiki of the Heian period also lists many names of sushi (sushi/sashi) as tribute goods from various provinces.

The funa-zushi of Shiga Prefecture is a representative example: nigorobuna (a type of crucian carp) is salted and then lactic-acid fermented with cooked rice. Similar nare-zushi is also made with a variety of fish such as sweetfish (ayu), Biwa trout (biwamasu), hasu (three-lips), and carp (koi). In the shima-zushi of the Izu Islands, a unique form developed in which local fish such as marlin, mahi-mahi, Japanese butterfish (medai), and splendid alfonsino (kinmedai) are marinated in soy sauce and pressed by hand into nigiri.

After the appearance of "haya-zushi" (quick sushi) using vinegar in the Edo period, the forms of fish sushi expanded widely into nigiri, pressed, rolled, and more, forming the modern sushi culture.