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Different Kinds of Sushi in Japan, There are More Than You’d Think

By Author Kyoko Nagano

Posted on Last updated:

Categories Food & Drink Products

We’ve all heard of sushi, but what is sushi according to the Japanese? And how many different kinds of sushi are out there?

Working in the travel industry, I deal with variations of this question almost every day from my guests, so decided to compile information about the different ‘sushi’ varieties we have here in Japan. (Note that California rolls and spicy rolls are not Japanese sushi so those will be excluded.)

I’m passionate about traveling Japan and am always fascinated by local food, including local sushi. It’s unfortunate that some traditional, local styles of sushi are diminishing. I hope this article inspires you to try as many as possible while you still can!

Kinds of sushi: A piece of prawn nigirizushi being held in frame by chopsticks is about to be dipped in soy sauce. Other pieces of sushi can also be seen on the wooden tray that the soy sauce sits on in its own shallow wooden bowl.
Let’s discover the different kinds of sushi in Japan /via Getty Images.

History of Sushi

The history of sushi (寿司, 鮨,鮓, すし) dates back more than 2000 years. Its origins are probably linked to a method of preserving salted fish introduced to Japan from China around the 3rd century BCE.

It then developed in its own way in Japan and ‘nigiri’ sushi (an ingredient placed atop rice), established during the Edo period (1603-1868), paved the way for Meiji-era (1868-1912) sushi chefs to develop the combination of toppings and rice widely known today in modern sushi.

There are three different ways to express the word ‘sushi’ in kanji characters: 寿司, 鮨 and 鮓

寿司 is a word that was created after the mid-Edo period and is a term that expresses all types of sushi generally. 

鮨 is a word referring to hayazushi (早寿司, はやずし) consisting of seafood and vinegared rice. Haya means ‘fast’ and reflects the fact that the vinegared rice doesn’t take much time to make.

鮓 is a word that describes sushi as a preserved food made by fermenting salt, rice, and seafood. This type of sushi is known as narezushi (馴れ寿司, 熟寿司, なれずし).

We’ll explain both ‘fast’ and ‘fermented’ sushi in more detail below.

Different kinds of sushi – ‘Fast’ vs ‘Fermented’

There are many different kinds of sushi, but let me first categorize them into two main categories: the first (and most common) using vinegar (‘fast’ sushi) and the other a result of lactic acid fermentation (‘fermented’ sushi). 

Vinegared rice sushi (Hayazushi, ‘Fast sushi’)

Vinegared rice doesn’t take much time to make so, in another words, it’s Hayazushi (‘fast sushi’). Types of Hayazushi include:

1. Nigirizushi (握り寿司, にぎり寿司, にぎりずし): One of the most common kinds of sushi and refers to sushi with toppings (fish, shellfish, eggs, etc.) placed on vinegared rice and pressed by hand.

A black tray with salmon, tuna and eel Nigirizushi (sometimes written as 'nigiri sushi' in English) on it.
Kinds of sushi: Nigirizushi (sometimes written as ‘nigiri sushi’ in English) is toppings on vinegared rice /via Getty Images.

2. Makizushi (巻き寿司, まきずし): Toppings and vinegared rice are wrapped in seaweed (examples include temakizushi (手巻き寿司, てまき寿司, てまきずし) and ehōmaki (恵方巻, えほうまき).

Kinds of sushi: Hands can be seen rolling a makizushi roll on a wooden cutting board using a bamboo mat. The sushi roll is wrapped in seaweed and there are various ingredients in the middle of the rice protruding out the end of the roll. Various ingredients sit on the counter in the foreground but are blurred, with the sushi roll further back the focus of the image.
Kinds of sushi: Makizushi (often referred to as ‘sushi rolls’ in English) are wrapped in seaweed and have ingredients in the center of the rice /via Getty Images.

3. Oshizushi (押し寿司, おしずし): Sushi made by pressing the sushi into a box-shaped mold (for example, Hakozushi (箱寿司, はこずし) and Bōzushi (棒寿司, ぼうずし).

Kinds of sushi: nine pressed, box shaped sushi (called 'oshizushi') sit on a blue and white ceramic plate with some pickles. They are similar to 'nigirizushi' in that the rice is on the bottom and the main ingredient on top, but have been pressed and shaped in a mold to look square.
Kinds of sushi: ‘Oshizushi’ has been pressed and shaped in a mold to look square and box-like /via Getty Images.

4. Chirashizushi (ちらし寿司, ちらしずし): Sushi made by scattering toppings and other ingredients on top of vinegared rice. Similar to Chirashizushi, there is Barazushi (ばらずし) in which you mix items like seafood with vinegared rice.

Kinds of sushi: A Japanese woman holds a large, open wooden container filled with 'chirashizushi' (rice with toppings scattered on top). The woman is smiling and tilting the container towards the camera to show its contents.
Kinds of sushi: ‘Chirashizushi’ is an open-style sushi with scattered toppings on vinegared rice /via Getty Images.

5. Inarizushi (稲荷寿司, いなりずし): Sushi wrapped in fried tofu (Aburaage) or vinegared rice stuffed in fried tofu. For a more in-depth look at this kind of sushi, please see my previous article on Inarizushi.

Kinds of sushi: Six 'inarizushi' (also written as 'inari sushi' in English) or sweet, fried tofu pockets stuffed with rice. One of them is still open, revealing the seasoned rice inside.
Kinds of sushi: Expect ‘Inarizushi’ to taste a little sweet thanks to the broth or condiments used in the preparation of the tofu, which usually contain some sugar /via Getty Images.

6. Inrōzushi (印籠寿司, いんろうずし): Sushi in which vinegared rice is stuffed inside squid or hollow bamboo. 

You might have heard of Onigiri (rice balls), but it doesn’t fall under the sushi category. Onigiri is more like a bento in its portability and doesn’t use vinegar. Some people may think they’re related since the word Nigiri is used in both sushi (Nigirizushi) and Onigiri. Nigiri means to ‘hold’ or ‘grasp’ and although both are made by hand, they are two different things.

Lactic acid fermented sushi (Narezushi)

This type of sushi is known as Narezushi, a preserved sushi made by mixing salt and rice, and fermenting it for a long period.

Examples include Funazushi (Funa 鮒 is crucian carp) from Shiga Prefecture, Ayuzushi (Ayu 鮎 or sweetfish, plecoglossus altivelis) from Wakayama Prefecture, and Hatahatazushi (Hatahata ハタハタ or Japanese sandfish) from Akita Prefecture.

Narezushi originated from the Yunnan province (雲南省) of China and north of Thailand about 1400 years ago, so it has a long history. Mention of Ayu (sweetfish) zushi, Funa (crucian carp) zushi, Shake (trout) zushi and Awabi (abalone) zushi can be found in the Engishiki, a 10th-century multi-volume text about the laws and customs of the Engi period.

The rice used for lactic acid fermentation-type sushi is almost similar to a nukadoko pickling style. It has a strong acidic smell and if it has been fermenting for years, the grains of rice will disappear.   

Other interesting examples of Narezushi include Izushi (飯ずし) from the Hokkaido and Tohoku regions, Kaburazushi (かぶらずし or turnip sushi) from Ishikawa and Toyama, and Nezushi in Gifu. They use the same principle as lactic acid fermentation, but instead use rice malt (komekōji) that ferments at a low temperature.

Japanese sushi styles by geographical region

Each region in Japan has its own unique sushi. Below are some representative regional sushi.

1. Kansai region (Osaka, Kyoto, Kobe)

Kansai-style sushi uses a wood mold to shape it. Makizushi, sushi wrapped in seaweed, is popular too.

Osaka’s sushi (Osakazushi) is steamed in a mold. Sometimes it is called Mushizushi (蒸し寿司, むしずし, steamed sushi) or Nukuzushi (luke warm sushi). This style can also be found in Nagasaki (Kyushu prefecture) and Kochi prefecture, but in Kochi, they use yuzu juice instead of vinegar.

In Kyoto, mackerel (saba) is a long-standing sushi ingredient, also commonly used in a square-shaped layered sushi, called ‘barazushi’. Kyoto-style sushi is also influenced by Shōjin Ryōri, the Buddhist vegetarian cuisine traditionally eaten by monks. This type of sushi uses rather sweet vinegared rice and looks like wagashi (traditional Japanese sweets) in cute Temarizushi (sphere-shaped sushi) form.   

As for Nigirizushi (toppings on rice), rather than maturing the fish, they tend to use fresh fish (with a preference for white fish) and a relatively sweeter vinegared sushi rice than the Kanto region. Also, the size of sushi rice is slightly larger than in Kanto. 

2. Kanto region (Tokyo, Kanagawa, Saitama, Chiba)

In the Kanto region, the vinegared rice is less sweet and it’s typical to mature fish before using it for sushi.

In Tokyo, the technique of Nigirizushi in particular has been highly developed since the Edo period. ‘Edomaezushi’ was the name given to vinegared rice with toppings that was served from the catches that came out of Tokyo Bay. Literally meaning ‘sushi in front of Edo’, Edo being the old name for Tokyo, it became a popular ‘fast food’ from the yatai food stalls and created a whole new culture around the dish.

3. Hokkaido

Hakodate, a popular tourist destination in Japan’s northernmost prefecture of Hokkaido, has Hakodatezushi, sushi characterized by fresh ingredients local to Hokkaido – sea urchin and salmon roe are among the most popular.

The Ainu (the Indigenous peoples of Hokkaido) have a habit of eating salmon frozen and storing salmon in the snow so that the cold kills any parasites. While salmon has become a modern favorite of sushi chains across Japan, traditional sushi restaurants in the Kanto region typically will not serve salmon in sushi because there isn’t a culture of eating salmon there.

Kinds of sushi: A black stone plate with four pieces of Hakodatezushi on it. They are 'nigirizushi' style with rice on the bottom and sea urchin, a specialty of Hokkaido, on top.
Kinds of sushi: Hakodatezushi features fresh, local ingredients from Hokkaido, such as ‘uni’ (sea urchin) as pictured here /via Getty Images.

4. Kyushu

In the south in Kyushu’s capital of Fukuoka, you can find Hakatazushi (also known as Hakatamaezushi), which utilizes fresh, local ingredients, such as horse mackerel, squid, and octopus.

Hakata is the old name for Fukuoka and is still used in many instances today, including for the city’s main train station and its famous ramen.

Local sushi by prefecture

Here are some specific kinds of sushi to look out for as you travel around Japan.

Tohoku Region

Kanto Region

Chubu Region

Kinki Region

Kinds of sushi: A plate of 'battera', a specialty of Osaka prefecture. The sushi has rice at the bottom and mackerel on top, and has been shaped into rectangles using a box mold.
Kinds of sushi: ‘Battera’, a type of ‘oshizushi’ (pressed sushi) with mackerel is a specialty of Osaka prefecture /via Getty Images.

Chugoku Region

Shikoku Region

Kyushu Region

This may not be an exhaustive list of every single type of regional variation, but the many unique local sushi styles rooted in climate, ingredients, and history of each region is something which fascinates me. I hope this rare local sushi will be served as long as possible.

Of course, culture has always adopted new ideas and adapted to changing demands, and sushi is no different. As such, new versions are appearing on the scene in Japan, including vegan sushi as demand for plant-based alternatives has increased, and decorative forms of sushi called Decozushi, that have stemmed from kawaii (cute) culture.

Traditional ingredients are also getting a shake-up by innovative establishments pushing the culinary envelope, such as this highly-recommended sushi restaurant in Tōno, Iwate prefecture, that uses uncooked fermented pork instead of fish.

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