Sushi is loved around the world for its unique flavors and delicate, refined ingredients. It is possible to prepare excellent sushi at home, with nothing to envy the sushi prepared in any restaurant. In addition to Japanese rice, raw fish, various vegetables, seaweed, soy sauce and wasabi, you will need a few essential accessories.
Wooden cutting board
The first basic accessory for making good sushi is the cutting board. A good wooden cutting board will always be used to assemble the different types of sushi with rice, without rice, with seaweed, without seaweed, Nigiri, Nunkan Nigiri, Hosomaki, Futomaki, Uramaki, Temaki, etc. Once the sushi is assembled, you can also serve it on the cutting board itself after cleaning it.
Bamboo mat
The bamboo mat, in addition to being convenient for eating sushi, is perfect to help prepare Futomaki and Uromaki. Indeed, the seaweed, once well stuffed, can be perfectly rolled with the bamboo mat which will give the right consistency to sushi filled with fish and rice.
Ceramic bowls
Ceramic bowls are a must for preparing soy sauce. In addition to the normal sauce that you can buy in any supermarket, you need to add the wasabi that you will have to dissolve little by little inside these ceramic bowls filled with soy sauce. This mixture will serve to moisten and spice up your sushi.
Japanese knife
The Japanese knife is an essential accessory for the preparation of sushi. Unlike normal smooth knives, it has a very long serrated blade, suitable for cutting rice-moistened seaweed, which is difficult to cut with a common smooth-bladed knife. You can buy these knives online or in stores specialized in Japanese cuisine.
Hangiri, the wooden container to cool the rice
Rice should be allowed to rest before being used to make sushi. Ideally, you should use a Hangiri, a classic container made of untreated wood, a perfect material to absorb excess moisture from cooked rice. It is a bowl in which the rice is left to cool, covered with a cotton cloth and then seasoned. It is not an essential tool for making sushi at home, but if you want to give a more professional touch to your preparation and especially to get better results, consider it.
Shamoji, wooden spatula for seasoning rice
To get closer to the Japanese culinary culture, and in general to the oriental one, you have to know that some materials used in most tools, like stainless steel, are forbidden. In Japan, wood, the natural material par excellence, is the master. So even the classic spoons we have in our kitchen drawers should be replaced by wooden tools like the shamoji. This typical wooden spoon, wide and short, is used to mix rice with the traditional mixture of rice vinegar and water or with vinegar, sugar and salt that gives flavor to sushi-gohan, or sushi rice. There are different types of shamoji.
Wasabi grater
In addition to the essential soy sauce, another essential ingredient is wasabi sauce. There are those who love it and those who hate it for its strong and very particular taste, but if you are a real sushi lover, the green sauce is a must. But you should know that this sauce is made from a Japanese root that is grated and then processed into a creamy paste. If you want to do things right, don't buy the wasabi ready but prepare it at home. To do this, you will need a classic wasabi grater.
Wooden chopsticks
Once you have prepared the sushi on a smooth and flat base, you will never have to pick it up with your hands, but you will have to place it with the special Japanese bamboo chopsticks, on rectangular plates suitable for eating sushi. With these accessories, you will certainly not have anything to envy to a famous Japanese restaurant.
