“Sorry to keep you waiting,” says the sushi chef as he places a nigiri sushi in front of you, pieces of rice falling out. You may be served this kind of nigiri sushi at restaurants that have lines out the door. Of course, nigiri sushi that falls apart before it reaches your lips is a no-go.
Good nigiri sushi looks solid, but the rice naturally falls apart when you put it in your mouth. Secondly, the loosened rice absorbs the saliva that has the flavor of the topping, and does not make your mouth sticky.
On the other hand, if the rice is pressed tightly, it does not absorb the saliva. The taste of the toppings continues to linger in your mouth and gradually becomes a nuisance. In short, when they press the sushi, the surface is firmly pressed, but the inside is fluffy. This is the perfect way to press sushi.
At first, they will be too focused on the shape, their fingers will be too tense, and they will be pressing too hard. Once they relax their fingers and get a sense of the subtle pressure, they will be a full-fledged sushi chef. It is said that they should press the shari as if they were wrapping it in air.
For example, shari pressed for gunkanmaki should be hard enough to crumble after being placed on their index finger for five seconds. For nigiri sushi, it should be hard enough to sink a few millimeters when placed on a plate under the weight of the topping.
A master sushi chef is at the next level, and it is said that “nigiri sushi made by a master can be seen through when held up to the light.” He holds the sushi very gently. And it doesn’t lose its shape.
We hope this information will be helpful.
Revision date: June 13, 2025
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