How Scary Is Sushi at a Gas Station?
Sushi at the gas station has become something of a zest, a thing that obviously shouldn’t be eaten, a thing that shouldn’t be. But can sushi actually cause more food poisoning than a ham sandwich next to it in the refrigerator at a gas station? And is it really that different from the sushi made in a trendy restaurant?
To find out if there was really something wrong with the sushi at the gas station, I asked Don Schaffner , a food safety expert at Rutgers University.
Is sushi safe at gas stations?
“Unless it’s made with raw fish (like a California roll),” Schaffner says, “it’s probably as risky as a ham sandwich. If it’s made from raw fish, I would stay away. “
Sushi is probably best known for its raw fish chunks, but many sushi dishes use pre-cooked seafood. California rolls are made with boiled crab (or, often, imitation crab, which is actually made from fish). Eel (unagi) is always cooked. Shrimp, squid, octopus and shellfish are often cooked .
California rolls are probably the most common type of prepackaged sushi (and personally I love Trader Joe’s Spicy California Roll), so this might be your best option the next time you need sushi at the gas station. However, if the deals only include raw fish, you might be better off waiting until you get to a real sushi restaurant.
Where it came from is more important when the fish is raw
Raw fish can be tasty, but they carry a higher risk of foodborne parasites and diseases than most cooked foods.
Some lower quality sushi are made from peeled tuna , which is a raw fish product that has been linked to salmonella outbreaks. This is not necessarily unsafe, but the fact that it is handled more carefully means it has a better chance of becoming infected.
Schaffner says he eats raw sushi, but only in a real sushi restaurant. “I don’t want this risk [of raw fish] to be taken by the lowest bidder on the gas station sushi contract, or the employee who also sells gasoline and cigarettes. I would prefer to entrust risk management to trained chefs and staff who know what they are doing. ”