Ingredients: Rice, seaweed, salmon, crab, avocado, cucumber, mayonnaise

Preparation: Inside-out

Popularity: Low

So you’ve tried the California Roll, and you’re like, okay, not bad. A little bland, but good lunchtime filler.

So what’s the next step up? Try the Tiger Roll.

The Tigey is a California Roll with baked salmon draped over the top, which while it might sound like only a slight variation on the usual theme, if the fish is fresh, it’s really frickin’ good.

Of course, the majority of Americans will order this because it has a funky name and the white and orange of the salmon gives it a somewhat tiger-like appearance, but there’s more to this dish than meets the eye (alone).

Think of it this way – if you usually order salmon sashimi and a california roll… doesn’t it make sense to save time and combine the two?

Ingredients: Rice, seaweed, spring roll paper, crab, egg yolk

Preparation: Prepared like a spring roll, only with rice and seaweed paper along the inside

Popularity: Minor

Another novelty sushi roll built for not-so-honed tastebuds, the Sushi Spring Roll is essentially a Crab Roll made with spring roll paper on the outside, dabbled with egg yolk to seal the roll, and then deep-fried.

What will you get out of it that you wouldn’t get from a stand-alone spring roll? Not much. But if you’re eating Japanese and the spring roll urge hits, and you spot this on the menu… why not?

Filler ingredients may vary, but we most often find the Spring Roll Sushi Roll containing crab. You may find it done with vegetables, fish, pork – whatever – but if you have a taste for the crab, you’ll generally find (a version of) it here.

Ingredients: Rice, seaweed, sweet egg, burdock root, avocado, asparagus, crab meat, cucumber, shitake mushrooms, daikon

Preparation: Standard

Popularity: Low in US, high in Japan

Not a sushi dish for rookies, the Futomaki Roll is a Japanese specialty that combines a whole load of flavors in one tight package.

Even the names of the ingredients tend to get Americans a little fearful, with tamago (egg), yamagobo (burdock root), radish pickle (daikon) not exactly being staples of the Starbucks crowd.

But hey, you only live once – take a chance on a flavor you haven’t tasted before and mark the Futomaki down as something to try on your next visit to your favorite sushi chef.

Ingredients: Rice, seaweed, tuna, salmon, crab, shrimp, avocado

Preparation: Inside-out

Popularity: Moderate in the US, not so much in Japan

If you like stuff the comes from the sea, this is truly the sushi dish that will get you there. A Rainbow Roll is essentially seafood on seafood on seafood on seafood, wrapped in seaweed, with a California Roll in the middle.

The salmon usually comes in the form of a piece of sashimi draped over the top of the roll, leaving the tuna, crab, shrimp mix to combine inside, often with Japanese Mayonnaise as a means of keeping it smooth and together.

Usually, to create the ‘rainbow’ appeal of the dish, sushi chefs will add lines of tuna, yellowfin, albacore, and shrimp to the top, so that each piece has a different colored (or even multi-colored) appearance.

The Rainbow Roll is part of the California-family of sushi, which is all made inside-out, and frequently comes with cucumber, avocado and mayonnaise.

Ingredients: Rice, seaweed, prawn tempura, crab, cucumber, avocado, mayonnaise

Preparation: Inside-out

Popularity: High in the US, not so much in Japan

The Dynamite Roll sounds like it would give you a big hot kick, and that’s a mistake some less educated sushi first timers sometimes make.

In reality, this is a nice variation on the California-family of sushi menu items – think of it as one step beyond the Spider Roll, which is a step beyond the California Roll.

Generally, when dynamite Roll is served, the last piece of sushi on the roll features a prawn tail sticking out the end. Just so you know, it’s not offensive to leave the tail uneaten.

As one of the ingredients in this dish is deep-fried, be aware that it’s just a little more calorific than many other dishes.

Ingredients: Rice, seaweed, crab meat, avocado, cucumber, daikon sprouts, mayonnaise

Prepared: Inside-out

Popularity: Huge

The spider roll, though not exactly named for those with a queazy stomach, is essentially a california roll with the addition of daikon sprouts (sometimes) and with the crab meat deep-fried before preparation.

The crab, cucumber, avocado, mayonnaise combo goes down well with a Western tongue that is perhaps unfamiliar with more exotic types of sushi, but the crunchiness of the fried crab makes for a more ’substantial’ meal for those who feel rice and a piece of crab isn’t a ‘real’ menu item.

Because it involves frying, a spider roll has about 15% more calories than a Cali Roll, but so be it – we love it!

Ingredients: Rice, seaweed, crab, avocado, cucumber, mayonnaise

Prepared: Inside-out

Popularity: Huge

If you’re looking for a simple, easy-to-eat sushi item for beginners, the California Roll is a nice one to start with. It’s the sort of menu item that contains nothing ’scary’ for westerners, nothing chewy for those who get queazy with new textures, and let’s face it – crab, avocado and a little mayonnaise sounds like something you’d order from a corner deli. That means, if your dinner date has never tasted sushi before and is a little timid about the experience, start with a california roll.

Lots of sushi restaurants will use imitation crab meat for a California Roll, which means you’re really getting shark meat colored to look like crab, but the difference isn’t overly noticeable unless you’re a sushi snob.

Usually a Cali Roll will be covered with sesame seeds on the outside, though better establishments will use tobiko (or flying fish roe) which looks like yellow or orange caviar. In some areas, such as the Philippines, a slice of mango is added to the California Roll.

A great base dish – try the Spider Roll variation, with fried crab!