Chopsticks, wasabi, soy sauce: a little insight into sushi etiquette 

Not difficult at all - and yet of great importance: how to taste your favorite food properly without upsetting your hosts or ruining the taste 

Even if we no longer like to hear some proverbs, there seems to be something to many of them. The best example? "Less is more"! This is especially true for one of our - and perhaps your - favorite cuisines, namely Japanese cuisine, which we in Düsseldorf are more than blessed with thanks to the Japanese community. "The less cooked, the better cooked" is a long-established Japanese saying. And what specialty could it apply to better than, that's right, sushi! The fact that we usually eat the fish used for it raw is common knowledge. But how well are you initiated into the secrets of eating sushi correctly? Because even if it doesn't seem that difficult to eat, there are a few 'tricks' to follow - not only to avoid upsetting the hosts in a Japanese restaurant, but also to avoid spoiling the taste of the dish. In the following six points, you will find out what is important.  

Fish, fish and more fishs Fish 

Vegetarian or even vegan sushi with avocado, egg or cucumber? You'll hardly find any in Japan. After all, the sea is no further than 150 kilometers away anywhere in the country. And that needs to be used! Budding chefs have to train for at least five years before they can prepare sushi according to all the rules of the art. If they want to prepare the extremely poisonous puffer fish, their training is extended by a further five years. Traditionally, the Japanese see the preparation of the dish as a purely male affair; women supposedly have hands that are too warm to shape sticky rice. But that's just a little information to start with. 

Another custom, and this brings us back to the beginning of this section and the first golden rule: Never order "traditional sushi" and then top it with, for example, inside-out rolls with cream cheese. These are creations invented in the USA. Authentic sushi only includes the following varieties: maki (fish wrapped in rice in a roasted seaweed leaf), nigiri (a bed of rice with a slice of fish on top) and sashimi (raw fish eaten on its own).  

Bye-bye, cutlery! 

This may sound familiar to you, but you will look in vain for knives and forks in Japanese restaurants. Instead, the correct way to eat your sushi involves using wooden chopsticks ("Hashi" in Japanese) - or more rarely: porcelain. The tool is said to have found its way to Japan from China as early as 500 AD. How does it work? You hold one chopstick between your middle and ring fingers without moving it, while the other works against it with your thumb and index finger to pick up the rolls. Sounds complicated, but with a little practice it works without any problems. Eaten (almost) everything? Then put the chopsticks back on the small bench ("Hashioki"). Never put them in the last roll or across the plate or bowl - this is highly discouraged. This is a death ritual. 

Despite all your efforts, the appetizers just won't stick? Don't ask for cutlery - this is considered an insult to the sushi chef because it means that the rolls appear unsuitable for simple consumption. Alternatively - and in proper style - you can simply eat with your fingers. Although this is considered rather indelicate in Germany, in Japan women, men and children often enjoy their sushi in the same way, especially as it is often sold at markets there.  

Oh, and while we're on the subject of cutlery: The miso soup often served with sushi is simply drunk from the bowl. So long, spoons. 

One after the other 

Is your head spinning with all the rules? No need to despair, after all you won't be expelled from the restaurant even if you make a small misstep. It's more about showing mutual appreciation for the cuisine and eating etiquette of the other culture. Especially as the following point is less about "correct" or "incorrect" and more about a recommendation. After all, the order of the sushi determines the taste experience. So take note: Many Japanese people start their meal by eating a light, white fish, followed by a pink fish. This is followed by more fatty red fish such as tuna. Fatty fish such as salmon concludes the meal. Not unusual: the miso soup served at the end. 

Dipping, but the right way 

There are many legends about when sushi began its triumphal march. One says that it became very popular in Edo, now Tokyo, at the beginning of the 19th century. It is fairly certain that the sauce served with the specialty originated in China during the Zhou dynasty. Wondering what can go wrong with the dark liquid made from fermented soybeans, wheat grains and salt? Not much, really, but a few missteps can sometimes lead to great harm. For example, never dip the nigiri sushi with the rice into the sauce first, as the grains absorb too much of the distinctive liquid and distort the taste of the fresh fish or vegetables. Dip the maki rolls into the sauce from the side. 

Another faux pas that many of us in Germany like to make, but unknowingly: Mixing wasabi into the soy sauce. The liquid, which has often been aged for years, enjoys a special status in Japan, and correspondingly little of it is used. So here too, less is definitely more. Incidentally, you can buy a wide range of soy sauces with very different flavors at the "Shochiku" supermarket at Immermannstraße 15. At "Maruyasu" just a few doors down (Immermannstraße 11), you can get an excellent version specially brewed for the restaurant to take home for just a few euros.  

Everything is gone in one bite 

What may seem greedy to you at first, is actually very much in line with the Japanese: They always eat their sushi whole, i.e. without taking a bite. Only with large rolls with several components ("futomaki") is it more difficult, which is why it is perfectly fine to eat in two steps - whereby you eat the rest in one go. of the roll back onto the plate, but simply keep it between the chopsticks. You can also enjoy the often served take-shot in one go (green tea, white wine and pilsner go just as well with the dish).  

If you can't decide between all the sushi variations - "huromaki" (with just one type), "chumaki" with several components and the aforementioned "futomaki" - let the chef or sushi master decide. The process is called "domakase". 

Ginger/ Wasabi 

No sushi without ginger and wasabi! Strictly speaking, they are only supporting actors, but for many of us they are an indispensable part of the festive meal. But, you guessed it: There are mishaps lurking here too. Keyword soy sauce: mixing the wasabi paste into the soy sauce is a no-go (as mentioned, a huge amount of time and work goes into preparing the sauce, so it should remain as pure as possible). It is better if you add the spicy radish directly to the sushi and dip both together in the liquid. In good restaurants, the sushi masters often incorporate the wasabi into the rolls. 

What applies to wasabi does not apply to ginger ("gari"): if at all possible, do not put the ingredient on the sushi, as it traditionally does not belong there. Instead, eaten on its own, it serves as a kind of intermediate course to delicately separate the taste of the different types of fish from the others.  

Cover picture: Düsseldorf Tourismus