Did you know: In Japanese cuisine, sushi is vinegared rice, usually topped with other ingredients, including fish, various meats, and vegetables. Outside of Japan, sushi is sometimes misunderstood to mean the raw fish itself, or even any fresh raw-seafood dishes. The word sushi itself comes from an archaic grammatical form of a word that is no longer used in other contexts; literally, "sushi" means "it's sour".

Did you know: Sashimi is a Japanese delicacy primarily consisting of very fresh raw seafood, sliced into thin pieces about 2.5cm (1.0in.) wide by 4.0cm (1.5in.) long by 0.5 cm (0.25in.) thick, but dimensions vary depending on the type of item and chef, and served with only a dipping sauce (soy sauce with wasabi paste and thinly-sliced ginger root or ponzu), and a simple garnish such as shiso and shredded daikon radish.

Did you know: Makizushi is a cylindrical piece, formed with the help of a bamboo mat, called a makisu. Makizushi is generally wrapped in nori, but can occasionally be found wrapped in a thin omelette, soy paper, cucumber, or parsley. Makizushi is usually cut into six or eight pieces, which constitutes a single roll order.

Did you know: Tempura is a classic Japanese dish of deep fried battered vegetables or seafood. Thin slices or strips of vegetables or seafood are dipped in flour, then the batter, then briefly deep-fried in hot oil.

Did you know: sushi-meshi is white, short-grained, Japanese rice mixed with a dressing made of rice vinegar, sugar, salt, and occasionally kombu & sake. It is usually cooled to room temperature before being used for a filling in a sushi. In some fusion cuisine restaurants, short grain brown rice and wild rice are also used.

Did you know: The seaweed wrappers used in maki and temaki are called nori. Nori is an alga, traditionally cultivated into the harbors of Japan. Originally, algae was scraped from dock pilings, rolled out into thin, edible sheets, and dried in the sun, in a process similar to making rice paper.

Did you know: Japanese soy sauce or sho-yu, is traditionally divided into 5 main categories depending on differences in their ingredients and method of production. Japanese soy sauces include wheat as a primary ingredient and this tends to give them a slightly sweeter taste than their Chinese counterparts. They also have an alcoholic sherry-like flavor. Not all soy sauces are interchangeable.

Did you know: A piquant paste made from the grated root of the wasabi plant. Real wasabi (hon-wasabi) is Wasabi japonica. Hon-wasabi has anti-microbial properties and may reduce the risk of food poisoning. The traditional grating tool for wasabi is a sharkskin grater or samegawa oroshi.

Did you know: Chopsticks are a pair of small equal-length tapered sticks, made of wood, bamboo, metal, bone, ivory, and in modern times, plastic as well. Held between the thumb and fingers of one hand, chopsticks are used tong-like to pick up portions of food, which are prepared and brought to the table in small and convenient pieces.