California roll is a type of inside-out sushi roll, which is made with vinegared rice (instead of nori, an edible seaweed) forming the outside of the roll, usually including cucumber, crab (or imitation crab), and avocado. This type of sushi roll is relatively new compared to the traditional Japanese types, and this is usually the reason why people don't consider California Rolls as real sushi. My sushi-loving friends would openly disapprove of it, as the California roll, a mixture of cooked crab meat and avocado rolled in rice, although served with traditional slices of ginger and wasabi (a green radish type pasta), is not, by their standards, real sushi. However, the server doesn't seem to care.
Although rolled sushi originated in Japan, California Rolls are not from Japan. They are rolled sushi made with crab and avocado in nori and seasoned rice. California roll is a popular type of sushi in the U. S., which also has global appeal.
As the name suggests, California roll is not traditional Japanese food. However, like all sushi, its roots go back to feudal Japan. The first sushi was actually fish combined with rice and left to ferment for months at a time. The more familiar rolled makizushi or maki arrived in the early 18th century around the time when sheets of roasted algae called nori developed. The most widespread story is that Ichiro Mashita invented the roll when he realized that the oily texture of avocado is a perfect substitute for toro, a fatty tuna.
The competing theory is that the Californian vibe was, in fact, invented in California's Little Tokyo in the 1970s. Diners soon began exploring more exotic sushi options, but the California Roll is still popular all over the world, including Japan. The reason California Rolls are considered “real sushi” is because they weren't popular in Japan at the time. American sushi usually fills as many types of fish as possible in a roll inside, on top, around, and includes many types of sauces and dressings. The California roll tends to simply include avocado and cucumber, while a traditional sushi roll uses those two, as well as asparagus, carrots, eggplant, radish, 'negi' (Japanese onions) and 'shitake' (Japanese mushrooms), to name a few. That said, California rolls are often made with imitation crab which is pre-cooked and processed to make it safe to eat cold.
That also includes the California roll as it is usually low in fat and calories and contains nutritious ingredients such as avocado and crab (real crab meat is recommended instead of imitation crab).Now that you know what a California roll is, let's take a closer look at why it's often not considered “real” sushi. For the rest of us who can legitimately claim credit for the California list doesn't make sense.
