The first time I really looked at a sushi menu, I mean properly looked, I was standing at a conveyor belt sushi restaurant in a mall, watching plates drift past under fluorescent light. Someone next to me asked why the “chirashi“ was in a bowl while the “nigiri sushi” came on a plate, and neither of us had an answer. We just took what looked good and hoped.
So here’s the one thing that untangles most of it. Sushi isn’t defined by raw fish. It’s defined by vinegared sushi rice, called shari, that is the thread running through every sushi type below. The topping can be fresh seafood, cooked seafood, egg, vegetables, deep fried tofu, even fermented rice. Change the topping and you still have sushi. Take away the rice and you don’t.
That’s why sashimi isn’t sushi. A slice of raw salmon sushi on its own is sashimi. Lay that same slice over a small mound of vinegared rice and it becomes salmon nigiri sushi. The fish didn’t change. The rice did.
Once that clicks, the whole menu starts to make sense. Here are the eight types of sushi worth knowing.
1. Nigiri Sushi: A Topping Over Hand-Pressed Vinegared Rice
Nigiri sushi is the piece most people picture when they hear the word sushi. A small oval of sushi rice, pressed by hand, with a single topping laid across the top. Often there’s a whisper of wasabi tucked between the two, and sometimes the topping is brushed with a little soy sauce or special sauce before it reaches you.
You can eat nigiri sushi with your hands or with chopsticks. I’ve found the hands are easier, honestly, especially at a sushi ya or omakase counter.
Examples to try: maguro (tuna), ebi (cooked shrimp), and tamago (a sweet Japanese rolled omelette) that’s a gentle place to start if raw fish feels like a lot.
Good nigiri sushi is about balance. The sushi rice should hold together in your fingers but not feel packed tight, and the topping shouldn’t overwhelm the grain beneath it. When you get it right, the two arrive as one thing rather than fish sitting on a lump of rice.
Insider knowledge: Nigiri sushi originated during the Edo period as fast food, sometimes called edo mae, meaning “in front of Edo” (now Tokyo). At an omakase sushi restaurant, the chef has often already seasoned the piece with soy or sauce. Taste it before reaching for the soy dish. You might not need it at all.
2. Rolled Sushi (Makizushi): Nori Wrapped and Sliced
Makizushi, also called rolled sushi, is rice and fillings rolled inside a nori sheet using a bamboo mat, then sliced into bite-sized rounds. It’s the sushi type you’ll see most often on delivery menus and at sushi restaurants.
There are three shapes worth knowing. Hosomaki is thin, with one filling such as cucumber or tuna. Futomaki is fatter, holding several fillings at once, including wild vegetables, bamboo shoots, and seafood like crab or shrimp tempura. Uramaki, or inside out rolls, have rice on the outside and nori hidden within.
Examples to try: tekka maki (tuna hosomaki), kappa maki (cucumber), California roll (crab, avocado roll, cucumber), and spicy tuna roll.
Here’s something worth saying plainly. The sushi rolls piled with mayonnaise, cream cheese, deep fried bits, and sweet drizzle are international creations, not traditional Japanese sushi. There’s nothing wrong with enjoying them. Just know they’re a newer branch of the family, not the root.
3. Temaki: The Hand Roll You Eat Right Away
Temaki is a cone-shaped hand roll made of a nori sheet wrapped around sushi rice and other ingredients. You’ll find it at casual sushi restaurants and hand-roll bars around Singapore, and it’s one of the friendliest formats for beginners.
Examples to try: salmon sushi with avocado, negitoro (chopped fatty tuna with green onion), and shrimp tempura for something warm and crisp inside.
The whole point of temaki is the crackle of the nori sheet, and that crackle doesn’t last. Eat it the moment it lands in your hands.
4. Gunkan Maki: The Little Battleship of Sushi Types
Gunkan maki translates to battleship sushi, and once you see it, the name makes sense. A mound of sushi rice gets wrapped in a tall strip of nori, forming a little cup that holds soft or loose toppings that would never stay put on plain nigiri sushi.
Examples to try: ikura (salmon roe, glossy and popping), uni (sea urchin, creamy and quietly divisive), and negitoro (chopped fatty tuna with green onion).
Its name carries the word maki, but you’ll usually see gunkan maki grouped with nigiri sushi on menus. Don’t let that trip you up.
5. Chirashizushi: Scattered Sushi in a Bowl
Chirashizushi means scattered sushi. Instead of shaping each piece by hand, the toppings are arranged across a bowl of seasoned vinegared sushi rice. It’s the format I reach for when I want variety in one sitting without ordering ten separate plates.
Examples to try: kaisen chirashi (assorted raw seafood including fresh fish like sea bream and salmon sushi), bara chirashi (diced seafood and ingredients mixed through), and gomoku chirashi, a homelier version with cooked seafood, wild vegetables, mushrooms, and egg.
There’s a small but real point of confusion here, and it’s worth clearing up.
Common misconception: Chirashi and kaisendon look almost identical, but they’re not always the same dish. Chirashizushi is built on seasoned, vinegared sushi rice, while kaisendon is often served over plain steamed rice, depending on the sushi restaurant. The seafood may be the same. The base underneath tells the real story.
6. Oshizushi: Pressed Sushi or Box Sushi
Oshizushi is pressed sushi, also known as box sushi, and it comes from Osaka and western Japan rather than Tokyo. Rice mixed with toppings are layered inside a wooden mould, pressed down firmly, lifted out, and cut into neat rectangles. The result is denser and more compact than nigiri sushi, with clean edges that almost look architectural.
Examples to try: battera (pressed mackerel), hakozushi (Osaka box sushi), and masuzushi, made with trout and traditionally wrapped in bamboo leaf.
The seafood here is often cured, salted, marinated, or cooked rather than raw, which gives it a longer life. That firm shape also makes oshizushi a natural fit for takeaway and packed meals, which is part of why I like it on a travelling day.
7. Inarizushi: Sweet Tofu Pockets with Deep Fried Tofu
Inarizushi is sushi rice tucked inside a pouch of deep fried tofu called aburaage that’s been simmered in a sweet and savoury seasoning until it’s soft and full of flavour. It’s warm, gentle, and unlike almost anything else on this list.
Examples to try: plain inari, gomoku inari (with vegetables, mushroom, or sesame folded through the rice), and topped inari finished with egg, salmon sushi, or a little roe.
I’d suggest inari for anyone dining with someone who doesn’t eat raw seafood. It’s sweeter than most sushi and easy to love on the first bite.
One honest caution though. Inari looks vegetarian, but the seasoning that flavours the tofu and rice sometimes contains dashi made from fish. If you have strict dietary needs, it’s worth a quick question before you order.
8. Narezushi: The Original, and the Boldest Fermented Sushi
Narezushi is where sushi actually began. Long before the fresh pieces we know today, fish was preserved by packing it in salt and fermented rice and letting it ferment for months or even years. The rice was originally a preserving agent, sometimes discarded, and the fish came out sour, funky, and intense.
Examples to try: funazushi from Shiga Prefecture (made with a type of carp), saba narezushi (mackerel), and ayu narezushi (sweetfish).
You won’t find this drifting past on a conveyor belt in Singapore. It turns up at specialist sushi restaurants, occasional Japanese food events, or on a trip through Japan itself. The flavour is closer to a strong aged cheese than to a fresh slice of salmon sushi, so I’d only point you here if you already love fermented food and want to taste sushi’s deepest root.
A Beginner’s Guide to Ordering at a Sushi Restaurant
If you’re standing at a sushi restaurant counter in Singapore and feeling unsure, here’s how I’d think it through.
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Nervous about raw fish? Start with sushi rolls like maki, inari, or tamago nigiri sushi. All gentle, all satisfying.
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Want to understand what quality sushi actually is? Order plain nigiri sushi. Nowhere else does the quality of the fresh fish and the touch of the vinegared rice show up so clearly.
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Craving variety in one go? A chirashi sushi platter gives you several toppings without committing to plate after plate.
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Love that crisp seaweed snap? Head to a hand roll bar and order temaki, then eat it straight away.
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Curious about regional styles? Look for oshizushi, the pressed Osaka form.
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Comfortable with strong, fermented flavours? Only then try narezushi.
One more practical note. Premium toppings like sea urchin, otoro, and salmon roe almost always cost more than cucumber maki, tamago, inari, or a basic salmon sushi roll. If you’re watching the bill, build your meal around the simpler pieces and treat the premium ones as the occasional indulgence.
Sushi Types at a Glance
|
Type |
Defining feature |
Examples |
|---|---|---|
|
Nigiri Sushi |
Topping over hand-pressed vinegared rice |
Maguro, ebi, tamago |
|
Makizushi |
Rolled sushi sliced into pieces |
Tekka maki, kappa maki, California roll |
|
Temaki |
Cone-shaped hand roll |
Salmon avocado, negitoro, shrimp tempura |
|
Gunkan Maki |
Nori cup holding loose toppings |
Ikura, sea urchin, negitoro |
|
Chirashizushi |
Toppings scattered over sushi rice |
Kaisen, bara, gomoku |
|
Oshizushi |
Rice and toppings pressed in a mould |
Battera, hakozushi, masuzushi |
|
Inarizushi |
Rice inside seasoned deep fried tofu pouch |
Plain, gomoku, topped inari |
|
Narezushi |
Fish preserved through fermentation |
Funazushi, saba, ayu |
Sushi in Singapore: Conveyor Belt Sushi and Genki Sushi
Sushi culture in Singapore is vibrant and varied. Conveyor belt sushi restaurants, also called sushi train or kaiten sushi, are commonly found here. Plates of sushi travel around the restaurant on a conveyor belt, allowing diners to pick their favourites as they pass by. This fast food style of sushi dining offers a quick snack or a full meal, with sushi platters available for groups.
Genki Sushi is a well-known chain in Singapore that popularized the sushi train concept, combining the fun of conveyor belt sushi with modern ordering technology. Other Japanese restaurants in Singapore offer traditional Japanese sushi and omakase experiences, flying in fresh seafood from Japan to ensure quality sushi.
To know more sushi destinations you should try, click here.
Sushi in Convenience Stores and Other Countries
In Japan, sushi is commonly found not only in sushi restaurants but also in convenience stores, where you can grab sushi rolls, nigiri sushi, and sushi platters as a quick snack. This accessibility has helped sushi become popular in other countries, adapting to local tastes while preserving traditional Japanese sushi elements like vinegared rice and fresh produce.
If this guide was useful to you, come read more over at Food Reporter SG, where we keep sharing the food, the stories, and the quiet tables worth knowing about around Singapore.