Who wouldn’t want to experience the delightful taste and amazing health benefits of sushi? This dish can protect your heart health, maintain hormonal balance, boost the metabolism, improve circulation and reduce the risk of various types of cancer. In this article, we’re going to discuss the various health benefits of sushi as well as other facts about it, so if you want to learn more, keep reading!
What is Sushi?
The term sushi actually denotes a certain dish made of rice seasoned with sweet rice-wine vinegar. The rice if often stuffed with fish (raw or cooked) and vegetable. Although notably Japanese, some say it was introduced to them by the Chinese in the 17th century after they developed a particular technique to ferment the fish using rice and salt. This process took about 3 months-1 year for the fish to finish, so many people just ate the fish and left the sour rice. Since switching to vinegar to ferment things, the fermentation period is much shorter and the flavour of the sushi is better.
People in Osaka started to use wooden molds to press the rice and seafood together. In the 19th century, the harbinger of contemporary sushi was developed in Tokyo. This first mainstream sushi was known as edomae zushi, since the fish used in it was from the Tokyo Bay, and Tokyo is also known as Edo. Edomae zushi actually did not involve fermentation at all, making the sushi-making process even faster.
Types of Sushi
There are actually numerous types of sushi, including:
- Sashimi. In this kind of sushi, the slices of raw fish are served on julienned radishes instead of with rice.
- Uramaki. In this type of sushi, the fillings are covered by nori, which is then wrapped in rice. There is often an outer coating of toasted sesame seeds and other ingredients, which adds a distinct flavour to the sushi.
- Temaki. This particular kind of sushi is actually prepared the same way as maki sushi, but it is rolled in a conical shape for a better appearance.
- Maki. The maki sushi roll involved one or more vegetables and fish rolled in rice and wrapped with roasted nori seaweed.
- Nigiri. This type of sushi involves slices of fresh raw meat or fish over pressed rice. People usually season it with soy sauce and wasabi.
Nutritional Profile of Sushi
Sushi is a combination of various ingredients, so its nutritional profile is diverse. The rice is a good source of carbs and has a negligible amount of fat, while the seaweed wrap, nori, is oozing with iodine. Seafood is the major ingredient in it, an it contains huge amounts of selenium and omega-3 fatty acids.
Health Benefits of Sushi
Here are some of the most astonishing health benefits of sushi:
- Helps improve blood circulation. Both the fish and soy sauce in the sushi are oozing with iron. This mineral is important for the production of red blood cells and you circulation.
- Helps prevent cancer. This is one of the best health benefits of sushi. The ginger and wasabi in it possess anti-carcinogenic and anti-mutagenic properties because of their antioxidant compounds. These help neutralize free radicals in the body before cancer cells mutate.
- Helps boost the metabolism. The fish in the sushi is low in calories and fat, which helps the body function regularly.
- Helps maintain hormonal balance. The seaweed wrap of sushi is rich in iodine, which is an important element for the body. It is actually essential in the regulation and control of the endocrine system.
- Helps protect heart health. Sushi has a lot of rich, healthy fish in it, which means it’s rich in omega-3 fatty acids. This helps protect the heart.
