The History of sushi
Sushi is ubiquitous. With almost 200,000 Japanese restaurants worldwide, most of them serving some form of sushi, and the fact that sushi is ranking in more ‘Most popular foods’ lists than ever before, it’s arguably the most famous Japanese food in the world. But sushi didn’t always exist in the form we know it today. In fact, it has only existed in this form since around 100 years ago. Prior to that, it underwent various evolutions, transforming it into a number of diverse delicacies, all of which are still enjoyed in Japan today. Let’s take a look at the origin of sushi and delve into the history behind some of its most famous forms.
Narezushi
Our story begins in the mountain tribes of South East Asia. Living so far from the ocean, the tribesmen had little opportunity to obtain fresh fish. And so when they did, they would bring them back to their villages in large numbers and ferment them in rice. The process took approximately two years and resulted in a dish that would become known in Japan as ‘narezushi'(馴れ鮨). Once ready, the rice, having served its purpose, would be discarded, and only the fish would be consumed. How long this tradition had been continuing is unclear, but the first recorded mention of it in Chinese history books dates all the way back to the 4th century.
Funazushi
Narezushi was introduced to Japan in the 8th century. Fresh-water fish such as ayu(sweetfish) and funa(crucian carp) were covered in vinegar-soaked rice and fermented. The Chinese character for vinegar is 酢(su), which is used in an old Japanese verb ‘susu'(酢す), meaning ‘to sour’. The adjectival form of the verb is sushi(酢し), which is where the name of Japan’s most famous cuisine is derived.
The dish was considered a delicacy at the time, with only nobles and members of the aristocracy being able to partake of it. Several versions were created using different types of fish, the most famous being Shiga prefecture’s ‘funazushi'(鮒ずし), which can still be eaten in restaurants around the area it originated from even today. The smell(as you would expect) is awful, as evidenced in this story from the Heian era:
A sushi merchant prepared for work one morning, piling her narezushi into a large bucket for easy transportation. However, having been drinking heavily the night before, she was extremely hungover and wasn’t able to stop herself from vomiting right into the bucket containing her entire day’s wares. Panicking, she quickly mixed the vomit into the sushi until it merged with the colour of the rice, leaving no visible trace. The sushi’s smell was so strong that it covered the smell of the vomit and, apparently, no one complained about it tasting any different than usual.
Whether or not this story is true is anyone’s guess. However, the fact that it was written alone is testament to just how acquired a taste narezushi is.
Namanare
Narezushi’s popularity continued until the 15th century, when sushi underwent its next stage of evolution. People began fermenting the rice for shorter periods of time and eating it along with the fish rather than discarding it. This method became known as ‘namanare'(生熟れ). In addition, people began to cook the fish slightly rather than eating it completely raw, creating a kind of medium-rare sushi which is still available for purchase today as souvenirs in many parts of Japan. In the south of Nara, for example, ‘kaki no ha sushi’（柿の葉寿司）, a type of namanare wrapped in persimmon leaf, is a popular delicacy.
On occasion, namanare would be eaten without the rice. This was given the name ‘honmare'(本熟れ) in order to distinguish it from its rice-covered counterpart. The final major change from this era was the fact that people began using vinegar to flavour the rice and fish, bringing sushi one step further toward the form we know today.
Hayazushi
Sushi underwent even more significant changes between the 17th and 19th centuries as rice and fish distribution improved, allowing farmers, merchants and artisans to enjoy sushi along with members of the samurai class. As fresh fish could be caught and distributed en masse, there was no longer any need for fermentation. However, condiments such as vinegar and salt were used to recreate the acidic taste brought about by the fermentation process. This was known as ‘hayazushi'(早鮨). Hayazushi quickly became popular around Edo and other heavily-populated areas of the country, but nobles, daimyō and the shōgunate continued to eat namanare in order to keep the tradition alive.
Yatai sushi
In the 19th century, yatai―food stalls set up in the street to serve dishes such as soba and tenpura―started to become popular. A man by the name of Hanaya Yohei is credited with being the first person to open a sushi yatai. As refrigeration didn’t yet exist, eating the fish raw wasn’t an option. Therefore, yatai sushi chefs would either pickle the fish in soy sauce or cook it to avoid giving their customers food poisoning.
They served a slice of sashimi atop a block of vinegared rice, very similar to the ‘nigirizushi'(握り寿司) that is most well-known today, but with one major difference: one piece of sushi was twice the size of its modern-day descendant. Being too big to consume in one mouthful, chefs began cutting it in half―a decision that would eventually give rise to sushi being served two pieces to a plate, as it is today. It was in this period also that chefs began serving sushi with wasabi.
20th century sushi
As yatai became more widespread, a greater variety of seafood began to be introduced. By the late 19th century, maguro(tuna), shirauo(icefish), hirame(flounder), sayori(sticklback), aji(horse mackerel) and a number of types of shellfish were all being used. Ice distribution companies made it possible to preserve the fish longer, which, in turn, made it possible to eat sushi raw. Finally, in the early 20th century, electric refrigeration enabled sushi restaurants to preserve fish even longer, allowing chefs to experiment with greater varieties still.
And so in this way, sushi evolved into the form we are familiar with today. However, it was still limited mainly to Tōkyō. It wasn’t until the great Kantō earthquake of 1923 when many sushi chefs were displaced to other parts parts of the country that the dish began to become widespread.
Elsewhere, sushi began its journey to Europe and America in the early 20th century. It didn’t really catch on until the ’70s though, and even then, westerners couldn’t get used to eating nori―many claiming it was like eating crunchy black paper. To get around this problem, sushi chefs tried hiding the nori under a layer of rice, creating a kind of inverted sushi that became known as ‘uramaki'(裏巻き).
As Japan’s economy began to boom in the ’80s, the world began to focus more and more on Japan, its culture and, of course, its food. New variations of sushi began to appear, including the California roll, sushi tacos, and Poke Bowl. With sushi spreading to a wider variety of countries and the number of restaurants growing exponentially, who knows what kinds of weird and wonderful sushi await us in the years to come as Japan’s most famous dish enters its next stage of evolution.
