寿司オタク Sushi Otaku

寿司オタク

Take raw fish seriously.

Sushi Otaku is a structured, cited reference for sushi nerds — every neta decoded by real names and kanji, taste, peak season (shun), sustainability, mercury, and how often it's faked at the counter.

Shun

In season in May

Peak-season neta right now, plus the full month-by-month calendar.

 Safety

Mercury index

High-mercury fish, safer everyday picks, and pregnancy labels in one table.

 Ordering

Beginner order

What to try first, and what to save until you know your palate.

In season now

Karei

Karei is the right-eye flounder family — hirame's close cousin, leaner and often at its best in summer (the seasons are flipped). Telling them apart is a classic test.

Katsuo

Katsuo (skipjack bonito) is a deep-red, lean relative of tuna with a bold, irony flavor — classically seared as tataki. It marks two seasons: spring's first catch and autumn's fatty return.

Mirugai

Mirugai is giant gaper clam — the crunchy, briny siphon prized for deep oceanic sweetness and an emphatic snap. Frequently confused with (and faked as) geoduck.

Shako

Shako is mantis shrimp — always boiled, with soft faintly sweet flesh and a flavor all its own. A vanishing Tokyo Bay classic, and not actually a shrimp.

Tai

Tai (madai) is red sea bream — Japan's celebratory white fish: firm, clean, subtly sweet, best in spring. Often called 'red snapper' on menus, but it's a different fish.

Torigai

Torigai is the Japanese cockle — its glossy blue-black foot blanched to a sweet, springy bite. Named 'bird shell' for a shape (and a flavor) that recall poultry.

See the full seasonal guide →

Start with the encyclopedia

Aji

Aji is Japanese horse mackerel — a silver hikarimono served fresh (not cured), bright and clean with a little ginger and scallion. Summer's quintessential shiny fish.

Akagai

Akagai is ark shell — prized for deep-red, crunchy flesh and a clean briny sweetness. Slap a fresh one on the board and it visibly flinches.

Akami

Akami is the lean, deep-red back muscle of tuna — the most traditional cut, all clean iron and umami, and the one with the most mercury per bite.

Albacore

Albacore is the only fish that is legitimately 'white tuna' — a real tuna with pale-pink, mild flesh. If your 'white tuna' is opaque white, it isn't this.

Amaebi

Amaebi is raw 'sweet shrimp' — served uncooked for a soft, slippery, almost creamy texture and a pronounced sweetness. The heads are often grilled and served alongside.

Anago

Anago is saltwater conger eel — the lighter, more delicate eel of true edomae sushi, simmered soft and brushed with sweet tsume. Not unagi.

Browse all 54 entries →

Settle the confusion

Hamachi, buri, kanpachi, yellowtail — the same fish or four different ones? See the side-by-side →

And the big one: that "white tuna" you love? About 84% of the time it isn't tuna at all — it's escolar. Albacore vs escolar →