How many people know how sushi differs from rolls? Indeed, in that and in the other dish that came to us from Japan, there is the same rice, the same fish (or seafood). And yet there are differences, despite the fact that the rolls are the same sushi, but they look a little different. Today they are different dishes, and they have different tastes, and the fillings are different, and they are served in Japanese restaurants, popular all over the world, in different ways.
Who has not heard of sushi (or rather sushi is more correct), a traditional dish from Japan, which has a rich history? Its main ingredients are seafood and rice. Sushi classics - dense rice cake, on which lies a slice of fish (fresh is a condition). This is the food of the Japanese poor, who have thus preserved fish since ancient times. Well, something, but these products in Japan were always available even to the lower strata of the population.
How was sushi prepared in those distant days? Rice was pressed with palms into a small oblong flat cake, fresh fish was placed on it, seasoned with wasabi (hot sauce). Then all this was dragged with a thin ribbon of seaweed or twisted into it. Nori usually took algae, but it was possible in another. Rice was once thrown away, since it was only a tool for preserving fish, but now it is used with filling.
Today, this dish has many kinds - these are rolls (makizushi), and oshizushi, and gunkan-maki, etc. So what is the difference between sushi and rolls? It seems to be the same dish, at least the rolls came from sushi. Just the second became the starting point for the appearance of the first. Sushi is a classic, and rolls are a more modern version of them.
So, sushi is a piece of fresh fish wrapped in rice and manually tied with nori. And rolls are a roll of rice, into which some filling is wrapped (not only fish) and which is twisted using a bamboo mat. Nori can be both inside the roll and on top of it.
The second difference between sushi and rolls is the variety of toppings in the latter. In sushi, the filling is always made of seafood (seaweed, fresh fish, caviar, etc.), but in rolls it can be fruits, meat, cheese, vegetables, and other ingredients, and sometimes even a mixture of two or more combined products.
What is the difference between sushi and rolls yet? The former always eat with chopsticks, while some types of rolls can be eaten with hands, such as temakizushi.
Sometimes, visiting a Japanese restaurant, we order sushi and bring us rolls without making any difference. How not to get into trouble? What is the difference between sushi and rolls, because in appearance they are so similar?
For those who have not yet learned the differences between the dishes, we repeat that sushi is a lump of rice on which a piece of fish is laid on top. All this is tied with seaweed (nori).
Rolls are a long puff bar. They first have a sheet of nori, on which rice is laid, seafood is laid on it, then other products, for example, cucumber or avocado. Everything is carefully rolled up (in specialized restaurants using a bamboo mat) into one dense bar, which is then cut into six parts. The composition of the products can be different, one thing remains the same - smooth roll bars.
So, we will fix the concepts of how sushi differs from rolls:
The first one. Rolls - just one of the modern varieties of sushi.
The second one. Sushi is a dense ball of rice on which the fish lies (even today it is most often fresh, that is, raw). Rolls - a twisted layer of rice with filling, most often with fish, but there are other options.
The third. Sushi is a dish in which each portion is prepared separately, and rolls are one roll, but cut into six parts, that is, into six portions.
Here are all the main differences between the two most popular dishes of Japanese cuisine.
And how are these two goodies similar? Both one and the second are served with sauce. Cooking them, chefs must observe the same principles: the ingredients in rice are distributed evenly. Both sushi and rolls should be tight enough (that is, keep their shape well) so as not to fall apart in their hands. And, of course, both dishes should have an attractive look.