This is not accurate. Source: been living in Japan for 14+ years. In extremely rare cases (pun unintended but welcome) it’ll happen either at a high class joint (like in Jiro Dreams of Sushi) or in informal drunken situations, but if you come over here and start shoveling nigiri into your gob with your hands in a general restaurant setting, people are going to think you’re simply an idiot.
Good question. It’s been a while since I asked someone so forgive me if my memory is a little off, but if I recall the reasoning is that when sushi became big in the Edo era it was eaten by hand because it would fall apart easier. But times change and as techniques got better and you could eat it with chopsticks, that became the more ‘proper’ thing to do. Keep in mind that in izakaya (like a Japanese pub) people will even eat French fries with chopsticks - it’s just the thing to do (again, unless it’s super informal with friends and people are starting to get tipsy and then they may start snacking by hand bc they just can’t be bothered lol).
So I guess the reasoning is that the super high class joints pride themselves on their heritage and the “way it used to be done“ rather than worrying about modern sensibilities.
All that said, the best advice is watch what people around you are doing in a situation and follow their lead. That’ll usually keep you in pretty good graces. :)
Jesus Christ, who chose the colors for that website?
Black text on brown??
Anyway, I am not really surprised. When I was in middle school we were required to eat burgers with fork and knife. Apparently using hands was "uncivilized". As I never really went with people anywhere, they briefly made me believe this is what most people actually do.
Haven't seen that since.
Also, western "Sushi" is not the same thing as Japanese Sushi.
What Japanese people would consider "normal" Sushi we call Nigiri. These items will make up the majority of consumed items in Japan, where here we would consume primarily rolls.
They do not have these jam packed inside out rolls we see here, the only rolls you'll get in Japan are maki (one or two ingredient, very thin rolls, with the nori on the outside) and you usually only get 2 or 4 pieces at a time for these.
Dammit, now I want to get back to Japan for some good food again.
If I type in “Sushi Paris” the top three results all show rolls as the primary item on the plates.
More than a little selection bias is in play there. You've found restaurants with advertising budgets, which in many places is not representative of restaurants overall. I'd wager the bias is even stronger in big tourist cities.
In my European country you'll order sushi as nigiri at any cornershop sushi place.
It's most often sold as a set, where there's typically 4 pieces of some roll with three ingredients and nori on the outside (but variations are not uncommon).
It's quite close to what I've had in Japan. Although fish quality is very different.
In my experience, the jam-packed, inside-out, sauce-drenched rolls are characteristic of chain restaurants and shopping districts in the west.
If you're near a big city, chances are there are also small, independent restaurants that make more traditional nigiri, maki, and sashimi. What they serve is what I consider "normal" sushi. It's the only kind I ever seek out.
Normal is not defined as what you seek out, but what's most common in the area.
I can only think of one Nigiri only place, and it's a specialty place in Vancouver in an absolute sea of 600 (this is around the actual number) sushi restaurants across the metro which do serve rolls.
If you go to Osaka, it's the exact opposite, 600 nigiri places to 1 roll place.
What Japanese people would consider “normal” Sushi we call Nigiri.
The implication that "we" don't consider nigiri to be normal sushi doesn't match my experience at all. Among the people I've dined with, normal sushi is nothing like the "jam packed inside out rolls" you described. In other words, I think you're overgeneralizing.
Normal is not defined as what you seek out, but what’s most common in the area.
That's one sense of the word, sure. And in the areas where I've had sushi, the more traditional style is more common than the stuff you described. (It might be easy to miss, though, especially if you only notice restaurants with significant advertising budgets.)
I mentioned what I seek out not as a definition of "normal", but to demonstrate a response to what was already considered "normal" before I came along. I have rephrased that comment to try to make this more obvious.
"Among the people I've dined with" This is where you're going wrong. You cannot judge "normal" off your own little circle. You may think the word has other meanings, but they do not apply when talking about what's "normal" in terms of food.
Link me three sushi places in your area that do not serve rolls besides maki and don't cost $100 a head, I'll wait.
I have never been to a place that sold sushi and didn't have the option to order just nigiri. Other than the packed sushi at the supermarket.
I'd agree that most people here think of maki when you say sushi, but nigiri is absolutely not considered "not normal" and california rolls are called california rolls and are rarer than maki.