Our son, Joel, was married in Japan this past May to Ayako, a Japanese national. Now that we have a Japanese person in the family, we have become more conscious of English words that come from Japanese. So, I thought a few English words that have come from Japanese would be appropriate to share in this column. I begin this series with the word “sushi.”

For many Canadians, sushi conjures up images of eating raw fish. However, that is not the fundamental meaning of the word sushi. Sushi means “sour tasting” (a combination of sour plus umami, a savoury taste).

Sushi is vinegar rice. The word has come to be associated with vinegar rice and cooked or raw fish. The Japanese word “sashimi” is more associated with thinly sliced raw meat, typically fish (salmon or tuna) served without rice.

Sushi is cold rice dressed with vinegar, formed into any of various shapes, and garnished with bits of raw seafood or vegetables.

Sushi came into the English language via the 1873 Japanese-English dictionary by James Hepburn, a medical missionary with the American Presbyterian Mission. The word referred to vinegared rice, and only included raw fish if requested.

The modern sushi may have come from a dish promoted by chef Hanaya Yohei in Ryogoku, Japan in 1894. More properly termed “nigri-zushi”, it is seafood placed on hand-pressed vinegar rice. The seafood most often served was eel, squid, salmon, or tuna.

For added flavour pickled ginger, wasabi, and/or soy sauce was added. Originally termed “edomae zushi” because the fresh fish came from Tokyo Bay (Edo-Mae). Today the expression “edomae nigrizushi” means quality sushi.

Nigrizushi consisted of an oblong mound of vinegar rice that the chef pressed between the palms of the hands to form an oval-shaped ball, with a topping draped over the ball. Toppings were typically fastened to the rice with a thin strip of nori, dark green seaweed wrappers.

Nori is a type of algae, traditionally cultivated in the harbours of Japan. Originally, algae were scraped from dock pilings, rolled out into thin, edible sheets, and dried in the sun. Today, the commercial product is processed, toasted, packaged, and sold in sheets. Nori by itself is an edible snack and is available with salt or flavoured with teriyaki sauce.

The flavoured variety, however, tends to be of lesser quality and is not suitable for sushi.

The popularity of sushi has resulted in variations found in the Western world, but rarely in Japan. The California roll was created to suit the Western palate. It is a nori sheet with crab or imitation crab, cucumber, and avocado.

There are health benefits to sushi. The main ingredients of raw fish and vinegar rice are naturally low in fat, high in protein, and contain vitamins and minerals. Many of the seafood ingredients also contain omega-3 fatty acids, which have a variety of health benefits.

The omega-3 fatty acids found in fish has certain beneficial properties, especially on cardiovascular health, natural anti-inflammatory compounds, and play a role in brain function.

But beware. The rice in sushi contains a fair amount of carbohydrates, plus the addition of other ingredients such as mayonnaise added into Western sushi rolls might increase the caloric content. Sushi can also have a high sodium content if soy sauce seasoning is added.

Top sushi chefs spend a decade or more learning how to perfect vinegar rice and how to thinly slice raw seafood. However, you can try making sushi at home. One can purchase seaweed sheets, vinegar rice, and raw salmon at a store.

Lay a seaweed sheet on a bamboo mat or parchment paper. Spread the rice and thinly cut fish on the seaweed sheet. For the Western palate you might add avocado and cream cheese. Wrap tightly. Then use a very sharp knife to cut the roll into pieces. Be adventuresome and garnish with pickled ginger or wasabi.

Enjoy. Jaa ne! Genki de!