inari is always a good option - it works for vegos, ties in with sushi, and won’t freak the non-fish-eaters out

I know there are plenty of sushi options that don’t involve raw fish; I’ve had really delicious california rolls, which have cooked crab, avocado rolls, and cucumber rolls. Maybe those would be more accessible?

Actually, “sushi” is just short-grain rice tossed with a mixture of vinegar and sugar. In the town where I grew up, the local sushi specialty was that kind of rice with a certain type of seaweed/sesame seed sprinkle on top that you eat out of a bowl. Of course, oftentimes, sushi also is prepared with raw fish, but raw fish is actually called “sashimi.” (Sorry…maybe you know all this already…)

Anywho…the point of all that being you can absolutely have “sushi” that doesn’t involve raw fish. I personally never touch raw fish (too big a chance of getting parasites in Japan, so I never developed a taste for it), but I love sushi rice in its various other preparations.

Apart from all of that, you’ve got some good suggestions already. Are you planning on making the food yourself, or are you having the reception catered? If you’re making the food yourself, I could recommend a couple of good cookbooks that you can probably get from the library. Gyoza, teriyaki chicken in bite-size chunks, kara-age (Japanese fried chicken…I have a great recipe!), and tempura would all be great options for appetizers or an asian section of a buffet table.

Sushi! This is going to be the best wedding ever. I love sushi and all those fabulous Japanese restaurant-related foods.

I would second the idea of california rolls. You can easily make cali rolls at home and it’s really fun! Cali rolls have artificial crab meat chopped and mixed with japanese mayonaise rolled up with avocado and thin slivers of cucumber. Then it is rolled inside out with the rice and seaweed so that the rice is on the outside. Sprinkle it with toasted sesame seeds, and voila! It’s delicious and average-person-friendly.

I would also recommend plain ol’ cucumber rolls (they have cucumber, japanese mayo, and toasted sesame seeds), tamago rolls (sweet egg), and avocado rolls. I think prawn tempura rolls (tempura prawn, cucumber, avocado, mayo) and BC rolls (cooked salmon with green lettuce, cucumber, mayo, and teriyaki sauce) would also work. Teriyaki chicken roll is good too.

In addition to rolls, you could serve prawn and vegetable tempura (but keep it fresh so it doesn’t go soggy), chicken karrage, gyozas, salad with japanese dressing, japanese noodles or rice… there are a lot of raw-fish-free japanese dishes available to you. Oh, and there’s always pan seared fish with teriyaki sauce or soya sauce, and deep fried tofu.

I also like inari (thin sweet egg envelope around a little pillow of rice). Inari look really nice if you sprinkle the top with a little black sesame seed.

Dessert-wise, there’s green tea ice cream or mango gelato. Okay, mango gelato’s not really japanese, but it’s tasty…

Oh, for the really non-Japanese roll, you can go with philadelphia rolls. They have smoked salmon, cream cheese, and cucumbers. They sometimes include avocado. It still looks japanese-y with the rice and seaweed wrap, but it’s very americanized. Sometimes the seaweed and rice are wrapped insided out and the smoked salmon is draped on top (so that it looks more dramatic).

Hopes this helps. Cheers!

Congratulations on your upcoming nuptuals Casey! Sorry I didn’t say it sooner but I’ve been on a blogging break and only catching up reading blogs now.
Wow, I go away for a month and 3 bloggers I read are on a summer/extended blogging break, one is pregnant and you’re getting married!
Um no help with the Japanese food I’m afraid, not big on it myself :/

This has nothing to do with the particular post, but I wanted to drop you a note. While I have nowhere near your sewing expertise, I kept on watching all of the clothes you’ve refashioned and thought “I could do that,” but the thought of actually cutting up clothes was so scary. But just this afternoon, I was going through drawers getting rid of things I never wear and I came across an ankle length skirt that I thought “I should just get rid of this, I will never wear it.”

And then I said “no. Casey would save this skirt. I can too!” And in less than an afternoon, I was able to turn it into a cute, flirty knee length skirt which I now am wearing. It may be a simple refashion, but thanks for giving me faith that yes, it is okay to rip apart and resew mass marketed clothing. Its fun to think that I am the only one in the world who has this particular (at least at this length) skirt.

Hope your wedding planning keeps on going well!

Lovely dress - you’ve worn so many beautiful white, summer dresses lately that I’ve been looking over my wardrobe again in search of some similar ones.

As for the sushi, I give my support to the vegetarian option (in combination with “real” sushi if you think enough of your guests wouldn’t mind the rawness). I know as a vegetarian myself, I’ve enjoyed the avocado version!