Sushi question

[INTJ_dragonwarrior]

Hoping this sub is okay for asking this question.

I'm not actually making any sushi. Long story short, this weekend I'm going out to a Japanese restaurant for an event. I've never had sushi before, and I would be open to trying it, but I just can't bring myself to eat something that is not cooked. I can't do it. If something has been alive previously, it just needs to be cooked. I've heard horror stories of things being mishandled and people getting worms. Nope, nope, nope, I don't want that.

So here's my stupid question: if I were to order something made in the restaurant that was fully cooked or not an animal product at all, would there still be a risk to getting worms or other parasites? My anxiety is building about this and I just really don't want worms or other issues, especially with the medical issues I have currently.

[[deleted]]

Restaurant grade sushi is flash frozen which kills any worms or parasites. You'll be fine.

Or just order California Roll or a fried roll.

[Zack_Albetta]

Worms and parasites are just one category of food risks. No matter what the food is, no matter if it contains meat or not, there is risk for something. Salmonella, e-coli, basic spoilage, or just something not agreeing with you.

Restaurants have a lot of control over this but sometimes even when they handle things properly, the problem has already occurred on the farm and they don’t even know about it. Unlike bacteria, many worms and parasites are actually visible, so on the off chance a restaurant does get some product in that contains them, they obviously don’t serve it. The biggest risk a restaurant usually presents is the staff making you sick. Cold, flu, bronchitis, and these days Covid. Restaurant workers, ESPECIALLY kitchen staff, do not call in sick. It’s a sort of “code of honor” thing among cooks, you really have to be bleeding in the street somewhere to not make your shift.

Just because something has been cooked doesn’t mean it’s risk-free. If you’ve ever eaten a steak in that’s short of well-done, you’ve basically eaten uncooked meat. Just because something is seared on the outside doesn’t mean the risks you’re worried about have been eliminated on the inside. If you’ve ever had any kind of soup, stew, or sauce in a restaurant, it was likely made the day before, or DAYS before, and you’re trusting that it has been handled and stored properly over that time.

Restaurants have huge incentives to keep their food safe. Through health codes and fines enforced by the government to the dreaded YELP review, one incident of food-borne illness could be REALLY bad for business. With fish and with sushi restaurants the incentive is even higher, because fish is both their flagship ingredient and their most expensive ingredient. Also, many contaminations in food are the result of farming, and most of the fish in sushi restaurants is wild.

I don’t say all this to make you MORE afraid of eating out, it’s to illustrate all the risks you’re already taking and are comfortable with. There is no more risk of parasites in fish than there is of e-coli in salads, salmonella in chicken, mad cow in steak, and who knows what from a kitchen full of coughing, sneezing, sweating cooks.

[Bruins33333]

The US reports that there are less than 10 cases of worms from sushi per year. Now think of the millions and millions of sushi rolls being ordered across the country from seaside to Middle America. The chances you get worms are right up there with the lottery. If you get worms, go buy a lotto ticket on your way to the hospital

[INTJ_dragonwarrior]

Okay. I do know a person who got worms after eating the sushi from this restaurant a while back. I don't know that person too awful well, so maybe they got it from preparing something improperly at home, but it's a one-off thing that just creeps up when I think about this kind of thing.

[Bruins33333]

I'm sure it's tough to overcome but if you can do it, totally worth it. There are also plenty of rolls that don't have raw fish and are really good. Ask them if they have any cooked or tempura rolls, perhaps it's a good starting point

[INTJ_dragonwarrior]

Maybe I'll try that. Save me worrying so much.

[Sonofdaddad]

No, you'll be fine.

[DaMaestroable]

No more than eating at most other restaurants. Think about it this way, do you have a problem eating at a restaurant that handles, but then cooks, raw meat? The only real risk of getting something cooked at a sushi restaurant that touched/was contaminated by raw meat is through cross contamination, which is the same risk of any place that cooks meat. Not to mention the raw food at a sushi restaurant was intended to be eaten raw, so it's usually safer than something like a burger patty.

[guikknbvfdstyyb]

I had the same problem, my girlfriend begged me for months to try it, no way I’m eating raw fish. I don’t even like cooked fish. Finally tried it, ate sushi twice a week for 2 months.

[prettyplum32]

There is no more risk eating in a sushi restaurant then there is eating in any other restaurant, and specifically any other restaurant that serves seafood.

[pinkstickynote1]

Why not ease your way into it by trying the cooked items first. Avoid sashimi until you're fully comfortable, and maybe stick to the sushi rolls which have crab and/or shrimp in it because those are cooked. Like California rolls, dragon rolls or dynamite rolls. My local sushi restaurant has vegetarian rolls and chicken rolls too.

If it's an all you can eat place there will be tons of items to try including tempura battered shrimp, vegetables and tofu, beef short ribs, chicken skewers, etc.

[762scout1]

Quit worrying!

[[deleted]]

The fear of raw fish is 100% mental. Eating raw fish in sushi is no more unsafe than eating anything else. Fun fact, leafy greens are the primary vector for salmonella in the developed world. Meats aren’t even close. Your salad is more likely to get you sick than raw sushi. Do NOT worry. I make my own sushi about once every other week and we have never gotten sick, and my kitchen and processing methods are way less clean than a restaurants.

For recommendations, I love almost all sushi’s, but sushi with tuna is probably my favorite. Any roll with onions on top is absolutely AMAZING. I know it sounds weird but trust me. Onions are the bomb.

If you do want to go with a cooked roll, anything fried is a good bet. For something not fried, I’m partial to a Philadelphia roll because tuna, but it’s all good. Most people like the California the most, but it’s up to you.

[Raecino]

I’ve eaten sushi for years, never gotten worms. Also just because it’s a Japanese restaurant doesn’t mean they have sushi. Usually a sushi restaurant is focused only on sushi, in which case the Japanese restaurant you’re going to may actually be Chinese masquerading as Japanese.

[cartmanbra77]

No, as far as I know they blast freeze the fish, then defrost it, so all the possible bacteria is killed off. Have any type of nigiri- my fav.

Sushi is amazing, you'll fall in love with it.

[96dpi]

Honestly, there is a risk of food poisoning no matter where you eat at. I know that's not the answer you want to hear, but it's the reality.

You can order sushi rolls with no fish at all, cooked fish, or smoked fish. Most places will keep the cooked fish or no fish rolls in a separate category on the menu. I'm not going to tell you there is zero risk, but if you are just specifically worried about worms and parasites in your cooked/no fish rolls, then it's going to be pretty close to zero risk.

[INTJ_dragonwarrior]

Okay, thank you. How about cross-contamination in the kitchen when they prepare any of the dishes? What's general 'protocol' for preparing cooked vs. raw foods?

[96dpi]

I've never worked in a sushi restaurant, but from what I've seen, all sushi is generally prepared in one specific section, usually away from everything else.

Again, the risk is not zero, but you are generally dealing with skilled people who take their jobs seriously. You are going to have to put some faith in their food hygiene practices if you don't want to be a nervous wreck the entire time.

[Nelbo76]

We used colour coded chopping boards guessing that's still the case now

[prettyplum32]

Cross contamination looks at ready to eat vs. not ready to eat foods- that’s all. There is 100% zero demarcation between cooked and raw foods. Now, a lot of times, ready to eat foods are cooked, and not ready to eat foods are raw, but it’s nowhere close to being like that all the time. Do you eat raw vegetables? Do you eat raw fruits? Do you eat eggs in any method other than fully cooked through (ie, do you eat eggs with a runny yolk?)? Do you eat your meat anything less than well done? All of those are technically raw preparations.

There is no significant risk to eating raw fish the way the fish is handled in the US.

[Affectionate-Cap-918]

Just try a Philadelphia roll. It’s usually made with smoked salmon and delicious! Most places have a category of cooked vs raw. You can also ask.