Sushi, tacos or pasta?

Sushi originated in Southeast Asia around the 4th century BCE as narezushi, a preservation method where fish was salted and packed in fermented rice for months. Modern nigiri (raw fish atop vinegared rice) was invented in Edo (now Tokyo) in the 1820s by Hanaya Yohei, who served it as an early fast food. Sushi rice (shari) is seasoned with rice vinegar, sugar, and salt. Common toppings include tuna (maguro), salmon (sake, a Norwegian import that became popular in Japan only in the 1990s), and sea urchin (uni). Wasabi (Wasabia japonica) is a true Japanese root; most served outside Japan is dyed horseradish. The Michelin three-star restaurant Sukiyabashi Jiro, run by Jiro Ono (born 1925), and the documentary Jiro Dreams of Sushi (2011) cemented sushi as art globally.

Tacos originated in Mexico, with archaeological evidence suggesting indigenous peoples in the Valley of Mexico were eating tortillas filled with fish as early as the pre-Columbian era (before 1519). The word taco may derive from silver miners in the 18th century who used the term for small explosive charges wrapped in paper, resembling the food. Corn tortillas trace to about 10,000 years ago when teosinte was domesticated into maize. Authentic Mexican tacos include al pastor (Lebanese shawarma-inspired pork on vertical spit, brought by Lebanese immigrants in the 1930s), barbacoa, carnitas, and pescado. Hard-shell American tacos were popularized by Glen Bell's Taco Bell chain (founded 1962). UNESCO recognized traditional Mexican cuisine as Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2010.

Pasta has roots in both ancient China and the Mediterranean. The Etruscans made a primitive pasta around 400 BCE, and Arab traders likely brought dried noodles to Sicily during the 9th-century Muslim conquest. Marco Polo's 1295 return from China is a myth; pasta predates his journey. Italy now produces over 3.5 million tons of pasta annually, with average consumption of 23 kg per person per year (the highest in the world). There are over 350 documented pasta shapes, from spaghetti and penne to lesser-known orecchiette (little ears, Puglia) and trofie (Liguria). Each shape pairs with specific sauces by physics: ridges hold meat sauce, tubes catch cheese. Carbonara was created in Rome in the mid-20th century; authentic recipes use guanciale (cured pork cheek), pecorino romano, egg yolks, and black pepper, no cream.