Sashimi (刺身) — "pierced body" — is sliced raw fish or seafood served without rice. The etymology is debated, but the most accepted explanation is that the dish name comes from the practice of leaving a fin or tail attached to identify the fish (the fish was "pierced" for identification). In modern Japanese, sashimi simply means raw fish sliced for eating.
Sashimi is not sushi. Sushi means vinegared rice — the rice is definitional. Sashimi is the fish alone.
This distinction matters because sashimi and sushi are different experiences: sashimi is about the pure flavor of the fish without the grain; sushi is about the balance between fish and seasoned rice. A great sashimi restaurant and a great sushi restaurant are different places with different goals.
Quality and Freshness: What You're Actually Reading
The Japanese concept of sashimi-grade fish is often misunderstood internationally. In Japan, sashimi-grade (sashimi-yo, 刺身用) is a commercial label meaning the fish was handled and stored in a way suitable for raw consumption — specifically:
- Caught and kept at very cold temperatures (near-freezing)
- Processed quickly without contamination
- Not previously frozen for extended periods (for most types)
Exception: tuna. Most commercial tuna (especially bluefin sold as maguro) is flash-frozen at sea immediately after catch at -60°C. This is not a quality compromise — it kills parasites, allows long-distance transport, and when thawed properly produces excellent sashimi. The "never frozen" narrative around tuna quality is largely a marketing claim.
Freshness indicators at a sashimi counter:
- Color: Bright and vivid. Dull or grayish coloring indicates age.
- Smell: Should smell like the ocean, not "fishy." Ammonia or strong odor = past peak.
- Texture: Firm, with clean edges where sliced. Soft or mushy texture = deteriorating.
- Eyes (for whole fish): Clear and convex. Cloudy or sunken = old.
Major Sashimi Types
Maguro (まぐろ) — Tuna
Japan's most consumed and beloved sashimi. Several cuts and grades:
Akami (赤身): The lean red loin. Deep ruby red, firm, clean tuna flavor without excessive fat. The classic image of tuna sashimi. Often the most affordable cut.
Chūtoro (中トロ): Mid-fatty tuna. From the belly and some loin sections, with visible white fat marbling. More complex flavor than akami — the fat provides richness without overwhelm.
Ōtoro (大トロ): Fatty tuna from the deep belly. Extremely expensive. The fat is so abundant the fish melts on the tongue rather than requiring chewing. Often has a slightly pink-white color from the fat. The most celebrated cut in Japanese seafood — and the most perishable (the fat oxidizes quickly).
Species: Bluefin (honmaguro, the premier species), southern bluefin, bigeye, and yellowfin (lower quality tier). Bluefin farmed in Japan and Spain has improved in quality.
Sake (サーモン/鮭) — Salmon
Atlantic salmon is relatively new to Japanese sashimi culture — it wasn't considered appropriate for raw consumption in Japan until Norwegian aquaculture companies successfully pitched farmed salmon to Japanese markets in the 1980s-90s. Now it's among the top-selling sashimi types.
The vibrant orange color, rich fat, and mild flavor make it accessible to first-time sashimi eaters. Farm-raised Atlantic salmon used for sashimi is typically treated to eliminate parasites.
Important distinction: Wild-caught salmon from Japan (sake, domestic) is traditionally cooked, not eaten raw (parasite risk from river fish). The sashimi salmon you encounter is almost always farmed Atlantic (salmon, saamon).
Hamachi (ハマチ/ブリ) — Yellowtail / Japanese Amberjack
One of the most complex and beloved sashimi fishes. Hamachi refers to the farmed, younger fish; buri refers to the older, larger wild fish. Buri is a seasonal delicacy — winter buri (kan-buri, cold-water buri) is considered peak, when the fat content is highest.
Flavor: rich, slightly buttery, with a distinctive yellowtail flavor profile that's different from tuna or salmon. Slightly more assertive than salmon, less neutral than tuna.
Hirame (ヒラメ) — Flounder / Flatfish
White-fleshed, firm, delicate. Very thin slices (usuzukuri) cut nearly transparent are the classical presentation — the thinness allows the slight sweetness of the flounder to come through.
Engawa (縁側) — the small, chewy muscle along the fin edge of hirame — is considered a delicacy for its textural contrast and concentrated flavor.
Hotate (ホタテ) — Scallop
Live scallops served as sashimi have a sweetness and freshness that cooked scallops don't replicate. The texture is firm but yielding; the flavor is clean and slightly oceanic.
Often scored with a crosshatch pattern on top for aesthetics and to prevent the muscle from contracting dramatically when cut.
Ika (イカ) — Squid
White, translucent, very firm. Mild ocean flavor. Often scored decoratively (the cuts make it easier to chew and slightly more tender). Depending on species and preparation, texture ranges from slightly chewy to very tender.
Aori ika (bigfin reef squid) and surume ika (Pacific flying squid) are the most common sashimi varieties.
Saba (サバ) — Mackerel
Rich, oily, full-flavored. Due to its high fat content and rapid deterioration, saba is almost always cured briefly in salt and vinegar before serving (shime saba) — this is not quite sashimi and not quite cooked, but a preserved preparation.
Shime saba: fillets salted (15-30 minutes), then marinated in rice vinegar (30-60 minutes). The vinegar "cooks" the surface slightly while the interior remains semi-raw. The flavor is bright, acidic, and intensely savory.
Ebi (エビ) — Shrimp
Ama ebi (sweet shrimp, spot prawns): small, translucent, with a natural sweetness. The heads are often deep-fried and served alongside. Extremely perishable — this is truly a fresh-market sashimi.
Botan ebi: larger prawn, similar sweetness, less common.
Uni (ウニ) — Sea Urchin
The roe (gonads) of sea urchins. Deep golden-yellow to orange, with a creamy, custard-like texture. The flavor is oceanic, briney, slightly sweet, and intensely umami — described as "the taste of the ocean."
Fresh uni is extraordinarily perishable and varies dramatically in quality. Bad uni has an ammonia bitterness and mushy texture. Premium fresh uni (murasaki uni or bafun uni) has almost no bitterness and a clean, complex sweetness.
Japan's Hokkaido and northern Pacific coasts produce the most prized uni. The varieties: murasaki uni (purple sea urchin, milder) and bafun uni (short-spined sea urchin, smaller, more intensely flavored).
How to Eat Sashimi
The Correct Condiment Use
Wasabi: Real wasabi (wasabi japonica) is freshly grated rhizome with a bright, horseradish-adjacent heat that dissipates quickly in the sinuses without lingering burn. Most international sashimi uses seiyō wasabi (Western wasabi, which is dyed horseradish paste) — quite different in character.
Do not mix wasabi directly into the soy sauce. This is considered improper technique at quality sashimi restaurants. Instead, place a small amount of wasabi directly on the fish, then dip lightly in soy. The wasabi is between the fish and your soy sauce, not dissolved in the soy.
Soy sauce: Dip lightly — only the edge of the fish. Heavy soaking overwhelms the fish flavor. The soy is accent, not marinade.
Grated daikon (daikon oroshi): Often served alongside as a palate cleanser. The mild radish freshness resets the palate between pieces.
Shiso (perilla leaf): Decorative and palate cleansing. Can be eaten alongside the fish.
Pickled ginger (gari): More associated with sushi than sashimi, but sometimes present. Serves the same palate-cleansing function.
Eating Order
At high-end sashimi or omakase, the chef serves sashimi in a specific order: lightest and most delicate first (hirame, white fish), progressing to richer and more intensely flavored (fatty tuna, uni, ikura last). Following this order allows the palate to experience each fish without previous flavors overwhelming it.
At casual sashimi restaurants, no particular order is mandated — eat as you prefer.
At a Sashimi Restaurant
How to order: Most casual sashimi restaurants offer either individual pieces at stated prices, set platters (moriawase) at different price points, or omakase chef's selection. Moriawase is usually the best value for variety; omakase gives you whatever is best that day.
What the price reflects: Fish freshness and handling, species quality (wild vs. farmed, season, origin), skill of cutting, and prestige of the establishment. A ¥500 sashimi set and a ¥3,000 sashimi set at different restaurants are genuinely different experiences.
Sashimi at its peak — truly fresh fish, properly cut, properly condiment-ed — is one of the cleanest, most direct, and most satisfying food experiences possible. There is nowhere to hide in sashimi. The fish is the dish.
Related reading: What Is Omakase | How to Read a Japanese Restaurant Menu | Japanese Knives Guide
The full recipes live in the book.
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