The origins of sushi are widely unknown, but that doesn't mean we can't enjoy an old wise tale. An elderly Japanese woman once said that she hid her rice in osprey nets because she didn't want anyone stealing her rice. The rice began to ferment and when osprey's fish scraps mixed in it, it had a wonderful taste. Thus starting the invention of sushi. Historically, it has no evidence.
A second possibility is that early Chinese texts wrote about salted fish being placed in cooked rice initiating the fermentation process. Mix salt and lactic acid together, bacterial growth on the fish is halted.
A third hypothesis is that sushi entered Japan around the ninth century when Buddhism began to spread. Buddhism calls for strict dietary guidelines that includes abstaining from the consumption of meat. Luckily for Japan, there is a large supply of water and fish to catch.
In the mid-1700s, people starting developing ways to cut the fermentation process of sushi in half. Around this time, chefs added vinegar to the rice with a layer of fish then placed it in a box that was covered for a couple of hours then served. A wonderful man named Hanaya Yohei created nigiri sushi and opened up the first sushi stall. He figured he would make this into a fast food stall by cooking rice and adding rice vinegar and salt. He would take the rice and make it into a ball then placed a thin slice of freshly caught fish then served. Sushi hit the United States first in Los Angeles then sushi spread like wild fire across the United States. Now, I can enjoy sushi whenever I want (or at least when I have enough funds for it.)
http://www.pbs.org/food/the-history-kitchen/history-of-sushi/
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