Chicken sashimi sounds exotic—perhaps even a little daring—to those familiar with Japanese cuisine. After all, when we think of sashimi, we typically imagine fresh, raw fish like tuna, salmon, or sea urchin served with nothing more than a whisper of wasabi and a pool of soy sauce. But can this same principle apply to poultry? Is it safe, palatable, or even traditionally accepted to serve chicken raw in the style of sashimi?
In this article, we’ll explore the concept of raw chicken sashimi from multiple angles: its viability in traditional Japanese cuisine, the health risks and microbiological concerns associated with consuming raw poultry, the rare instances where it is consumed in Japan, and the cultural and gastronomic implications of offering it elsewhere in the world.
Whether you’re a culinary adventurer, a restaurant owner considering innovative menu items, or simply a curious food enthusiast, this detailed article will provide you with everything you need to know about chicken sashimi.
The Tradition and Definition of Sashimi
Before we jump into the issue of chicken, it’s necessary to understand what sashimi actually is. The word sashimi (刺身) translates to “pierced body,” and it refers to finely sliced raw meat or fish, typically served with condiments like soy sauce and wasabi.
Traditionally, sashimi is made from seafood—especially fish that are safe to consume raw when properly handled and prepared. The practice stems from centuries of Japanese culinary evolution, and depends heavily on high-quality ingredients, skilled butchery, and a deep understanding of food safety.
Why Fish, Not Meat?
There’s a reason raw fish is the standard for sashimi: it generally carries fewer harmful bacteria (assuming it’s sushi-grade and properly handled)—which aren’t as prevalent or dangerous as those found in raw land animals, especially chicken.
Beef and sometimes horse meat (sakura or basashi) are also occasionally served raw in Japan, typically in dishes like yukke (a Korean steak tartare-style dish) or in carefully prepared steak tartare-style presentations. However, these meat sources are considered less risky than poultry when served raw, given the different pathogen profiles.
Common Sashimi Ingredients
- Tuna (maguro)
- Salmon (sake)
- Yellowtail (hamachi)
- Sea urchin (uni)
- Turbot or flounder (hirame)
- Squid (ika)
- Octopus (tako)
Now we’ve covered the foundational understanding of sashimi. Let’s move to the central topic: chicken.
Can You Eat Raw Chicken Safely?
The short answer is: Not safely. Although some people might be bold or foolish enough to eat raw chicken without cooking it, there is a very high risk of foodborne illness associated with the practice.
Why Chicken Is a Concern
Raw chicken can harbor several potentially deadly pathogens:
- Salmonella
- Escherichia coli (E. coli)
- Listeria monocytogenes
- Staphylococcus aureus
- Campylobacter
Not only are these bacteria frequently found in poultry, but they can also be more virulent than those found on red meats. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Salmonella alone causes about 1.35 million illnesses, 26,500 hospitalizations, and 420 deaths in the U.S. every year, primarily from undercooked or raw poultry.
Cooking Destroys Harmful Bacteria
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Japan Food Safety Commission both recommend that poultry be cooked to a minimum internal temperature of 74°C (165°F) to kill pathogens like Salmonella. That level of cooking destroys bacterial cells and makes meat safe for human consumption.
Thus, while raw seafood is generally safe when prepared under strict conditions, raw chicken is considered unacceptably dangerous globally—especially in institutional, commercial, or public food service settings.
Is There Such a Thing as Chicken Sashimi in Japan?
This is where things get more nuanced. While generally discouraged and rare, there are exceptions to the global safety norms—and Japan sometimes pushes the envelope with ingredients Westerners might find strange or risky.
What Is Toriwasa?
In some rural or Okinawan restaurants in Japan, chefs serve a dish called “Toriwasa (鳥わさ)” or “Tori no Wasabi-yaki”, which includes chicken served rare or partially raw, even in sashimi-like preparations.
However, it’s a misconception to call this “chicken sashimi” in the true sense. In many cases, the chicken is lightly seared or flash-boiled—not completely raw—although the center may still be pink and soft, resembling steak tartare in texture and preparation.
In What Regions?
The practice is most notably found in regions like:
- Okinawa
- Kagawa
- Kyushu
It’s typically prepared using chicken breast, thinly sliced and dipped into a boiling broth for a few seconds—a style known as shabu-shabu-style poaching. The result is seared on the outside but rare inside, making it technically not raw, but still considered “uncooked” by most nutritional standards.
Is It Legal?
Legally speaking, this kind of dish falls into a grey area. In 1999, a serious Salmonella outbreak was linked to Toriwasa served at a Japanese restaurant, prompting the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare to issue a statement that “raw meat, especially chicken, should not be consumed raw.”
Following this, most major restaurant chains and cities (especially Tokyo) banned raw chicken dishes, and Toriwasa fell out of favor in public-facing dining establishments.
Today, dining on raw chicken—depending on the region – may still be technically legal in Japan but is heavily discouraged and increasingly rare, reserved for local and limited consumption in niche dining spots.
Why Is Chicken Sashimi Riskier Than Fish?
Another critical question is: why raw fish is considered safe enough for mass consumption, but not raw poultry or red meats?
Differences in Bacterial Load
Seafood, especially sushi-grade fish, undergoes specific safety protocols:
| Seafood | Land-Based Meat |
|---|---|
| Less bacterial load | Higher bacterial load |
| Often flash-frozen at sea | Not typically flash-frozen |
| Less risk of Salmonella or Listeria | High risk of Salmonella, Listeria, and campylobacter |
| Processed in strict FDA-certified facilities | Processed under regular meat safety standards |
Marine vs. Farm Environments
Fish, especially ocean-caught varieties, live in relatively sterile environments compared to poultry farms. Chicken farms—especially mass commercial operations—often house birds in dense, moist, warm conditions that are ideal for bacterial growth like Salmonella.
The Science Behind Cooking Chicken
Temperature is a key factor in killing pathogens. Here’s how it works at a biological level:
When we cook chicken to above 74°C (165°F), heat energy causes the bonds within proteins and cellular membranes of bacteria to denature irreversibly, effectively inactivating them. No such destruction occurs in raw preparations, meaning any Salmonella or E. coli cells in the meat remain very much alive and virulent.
What Temperature Destroys Salmonella?
| Bacteria | Killing Temperature | Time Required |
|---|---|---|
| Salmonella | 60°C (140°F) | 15 minutes |
| Salmonella | 65°C (149°F) | 10 minutes |
| Salmonella | 70°C (158°F) | 2 minutes |
Attempts to Serve Chicken Sashimi Internationally
Over the last decade, a number of high-end restaurants or culinary experiential chefs have attempted to recreate raw chicken experiences in their own ways, often with dramatic flair and intense food safety control measures.
Chefs with Interest in “Unconventional Sashimi”
For example, in 2019, a Parisian fusion restaurant briefly offered a “Modern Chicken Sashimi”—a dish inspired by Toriwasa but using cry-oxygen flash freezing, high-pressure pasteurization, and sterile processing to kill pathogens prior to consumption. This approach aimed toward a laboratory-based “safe raw” chicken sashimi concept.
However, it was met with skepticism—not just from regulators but also gastronomists—about whether it could really taste like true sashimi, given the impact of sterilization on delicate chicken proteins.
Commercial Considerations
Most standard food safety regulations around the world (e.g., FDA, EU Food Safety Authority, and the World Health Organization) strongly discourage raw poultry consumption. Offering such a dish, especially in a commercial setting, could lead to:
- Legal liability
- Health inspection violations
- Loss of restaurant license
What About Cooking Chicken for Sashimi-Style Presentation?
Let’s now consider a different but related possibility: lightly cooked chicken in sashimi slices or served in a sashimi presentation.
Shabu-Shabu and Other Alternating Methods
Shabu-shabu is a Japanese cooking method where thinly sliced meat is dipped in boiling water for just a few seconds. The result is a semi-cooked, sashimi-like dish. Some interpretations even serve chicken in this way, providing a comparable mise en place—but with a far safer profile.
This approach is often called “pseudo-chicken sashimi”—though it’s more accurately a “meat tataki” like dish, popular in regions like Oita, where grilled or half-cooked meat is thinly sliced for serving.
How to Prepare Chicken for “Sashimi-Style” Presentation:
- Select high-quality chicken breast
- Freeze at -20°C for 2–3 days (optional, but recommended for safety)
- Thinly slice and sear on both sides, or dip into boiling broth for 5–10 seconds
- Serve with wasabi, ponzu, and traditional garnish
Does Chicken Really Taste Good Raw?
Leaving out safety for a moment—another crucial consideration: Does raw chicken really taste good? The answer, even for culinary purists, is typically no.
Flavor Profile of Raw Chicken
Raw meat has different mouthfeel and flavor from cooked meat. Fish sashimi is beloved for its clean, briny, delicate flavor that doesn’t require cooking. Chicken, on the other hand, is generally considered somewhat bland, unpleasantly moist, and lacking any rich umami characteristic that we typically expect from sashimi-grade fish.
The only way to bring out chicken’s flavor is through heat, seasoning, or aromatics. Without heat to trigger the Maillard reaction or to denature the myoglobin and proteins, chicken doesn’t deliver those savory characteristics that diners crave.
Alternative Raw or Rare Meat Options
If you’re intrigued by the idea but put off by chicken risk, consider these:
| Meat | Raw or Rare Presentation | Safety and Legality |
|---|---|---|
| Beef | Beef tataki, Yukke, steak tartare | Generally legal and safe when properly handled |
| Horse | Basashi | Served raw in Japan; legal in some countries |
| Deer | Venison tartare | Legal in Europe under strict sourcing |
| Lamb | Raw lamb tartare | Less common but consumed in France and Middle East |
None of these animals present the same health threats as raw chicken, and many cultures have long traditions of eating them safely this way.
Conclusion: Chicken Sashimi Is Risky, Rare, & Refined
So, can you make chicken sashimi? Technically, yes—thin slices of raw chicken can be served as mimicry to sashimi. Realistically and safely, however, chicken sashimi is not recommended, especially for mass or public consumption, due to the high risk of foodborne illness.
Final Takeaways:
- Raw chicken carries severe risks of bacterial contamination, including Salmonella, E. coli, and Listeria.
- Raw chicken dishes like “Toriwasa” exist in Japan, but are generally a niche and declining trend owing to health concerns.
- Properly prepared dishes like shabu-shabu chicken can offer a similar taste and texture experience in a food-safe way.
- Consuming raw chicken at home or in restaurants is not advised unless following FDA-grade, lab-tested safety protocols—which are not feasible or affordable in most settings.
For adventurous gourmands, raw chicken should not be the goal—it’s far from worth the risk. However, by exploring safe, semi-cooked alternatives or other raw meat experiences, culinary innovation can still be exciting, safe, and rooted in tradition without stepping into dangerous territory.
What is chicken sashimi?
Chicken sashimi is a dish that involves consuming raw or undercooked chicken, prepared in a manner similar to traditional fish sashimi, which is a staple in Japanese cuisine. While fish sashimi is widely accepted and practiced around the world, chicken sashimi is much less common and largely absent from mainstream culinary traditions due to safety concerns. The idea is largely inspired by delicacies such as toriwasa, a dish served in some parts of Japan where very fresh, high-quality chicken is thinly sliced and served raw or flash-seared on the outside but still raw inside. This dish is typically found at specialty restaurants that follow strict hygiene protocols and use poultry raised under specific conditions to minimize bacterial contamination.
However, even in Japan, chicken sashimi is not a widespread or universally accepted dish. Most restaurants that serve raw chicken are required to follow stringent government guidelines regarding temperature control, storage, and sourcing to ensure safety. Even then, health authorities and chefs emphasize that only certified, ultra-fresh chicken should ever be considered for consumption in a raw state. For the average consumer or restaurant, serving chicken raw is considered a high-risk practice due to the potential presence of harmful bacteria such as Salmonella and Campylobacter, which are commonly found in poultry and are only killed through proper cooking.
Why is chicken sashimi controversial?
Chicken sashimi is controversial primarily due to health and safety concerns related to consuming raw poultry. Unlike raw fish, which can be flash-frozen to kill parasites and safely served under strict guidelines, raw chicken poses a higher risk of bacterial contamination that is difficult to eliminate without cooking. Pathogens such as Salmonella and Campylobacter are prevalent in chickens and can cause serious foodborne illnesses if not properly handled and cooked. These risks are compounded by the fact that chicken meat is more prone to contamination during processing and distribution than seafood.
In countries where raw chicken dishes like chicken sashimi or tartare have been proposed or attempted, public health agencies often warn against them. Even in Japan, where raw chicken is sometimes consumed, authorities and culinary professionals stress the importance of sourcing meat from certified farms and preparing it in controlled environments. Any deviation from exacting standards can lead to outbreaks of illness, legal complications, and public backlash. Thus, the controversy surrounding chicken sashimi is not purely cultural or culinary, but also a matter of public health policy and food safety regulation.
Is it safe to eat raw chicken?
The general consensus among health authorities is that eating raw chicken is not safe due to the high likelihood of bacterial contamination. Raw poultry often contains harmful microbes like Salmonella, Campylobacter, and Clostridium perfringens, which can cause severe food poisoning. Cooking chicken to an internal temperature of at least 165°F (74°C) is necessary to kill these pathogens and ensure it is safe for consumption. While some specialty dishes, particularly in Japan, use raw chicken that has been processed under stringent safety conditions, the average consumer cannot reliably determine if raw chicken is free of harmful microbes.
Even when chicken is sourced from reputable farms, cross-contamination during cutting, packaging, and handling remains a significant risk. Therefore, unless the chicken is specifically certified for raw consumption and prepared in a controlled culinary setting, eating it raw is strongly discouraged. For home cooks and diners alike, the safest approach is to fully cook chicken before eating. If someone still wishes to try raw chicken dishes, it should only be done at licensed, high-standard establishments that have strict traceability and safety measures in place.
What are the risks of making chicken sashimi at home?
Making chicken sashimi at home carries significant health risks because most home kitchens lack the infrastructure, control, and oversight necessary to safely handle raw poultry. Unlike professional kitchens that may have access to ultra-fresh, certified chicken for raw consumption, home cooks typically purchase chicken from standard grocery stores where the meat has been processed and refrigerated under conditions not designed for raw-eat preparation. Even if the chicken is organic or farm-raised, it may still contain harmful bacteria that can only be eliminated through thorough cooking.
Additionally, contamination can easily occur via cutting boards, knives, hands, or other foods in the kitchen. The risk of foodborne illness is greatly increased without proper training, temperature control, and sterilization practices. For this reason, making chicken sashimi at home is not recommended. If someone is interested in the experience of eating raw meat, opting for high-quality, sushi-grade fish that has been previously frozen to eliminate parasites is a much safer alternative that provides similar textural and visual enjoyment without the same risk of infection.
Can raw chicken be made safe through freezing or other preservation methods?
Freezing can reduce some risks in raw seafood by killing parasites, but it does not effectively eliminate all bacterial pathogens in chicken. Unlike fish, where freezing is a standard practice for making sushi-grade products safe, freezing raw chicken may not guarantee its safety because bacteria such as Salmonella and Campylobacter are not necessarily killed by cold temperatures. They may become dormant but can reactivate and multiply once the chicken is thawed and brought to room temperature. Even with flash freezing or controlled cooling methods, the process doesn’t address contamination that may have occurred earlier in the supply chain.
There are also no widely accepted or approved methods of preparing chicken to be safely consumed raw that include freezing. Traditional preservation techniques like curing, drying, or fermenting are not used for raw chicken due to the high-fat content of poultry meat and its susceptibility to spoilage. Most safe raw meat preparations are reserved for beef, which has a lower bacterial load on its surface and is less likely to harbor dangerous internal pathogens. For chicken, the only reliable method to ensure safety remains adequate cooking to recommended temperature guidelines.
Are there any traditional dishes that involve raw chicken?
While uncommon in most world cuisines, there are a few Japanese dishes that incorporate raw chicken, the most notable being toriwasa. This dish typically features very fresh, thin slices of chicken breast or thigh that are briefly seared on the outside but remain raw inside. It is served in specialty izakayas under strict food safety guidelines. Another example is chicken tataki, which is lightly cooked on the outside, sometimes charred, and then sliced thin and served with a dipping sauce, though this is often considered a semi-raw dish rather than completely uncooked.
These dishes are typically only served in restaurants that adhere to high-quality sourcing and preparation standards. In such establishments, the chicken is specially certified and handled in a way that minimizes bacterial risk. Despite this, public health advisories in Japan and internationally urge caution. These dishes are considered niche and are not widely promoted or encouraged, especially for individuals with compromised immune systems, pregnant women, children, and the elderly.
What should you consider before eating or preparing chicken sashimi?
Before considering the consumption or preparation of chicken sashimi, it’s essential to evaluate the source of the chicken and the safety measures taken throughout the supply chain. It should come from a certified, trusted supplier that follows strict hygiene protocols and is specifically labeled for raw consumption. Even then, the storage and handling of the meat must be closely monitored to prevent bacterial growth or cross-contamination, which are common in average kitchen environments. Without proper certification and training, preparing raw chicken should be avoided.
Additionally, one must consider personal health and risk tolerance. Even in a controlled environment, raw chicken may carry some level of risk that is unacceptable for many people. If you are in a vulnerable population group or serving others, the decision to eat or prepare chicken sashimi must be made with extreme care. It’s also important to understand the legal and regulatory environment in your area, as some jurisdictions may prohibit or strongly advise against serving raw poultry. When in doubt, choosing safer, more traditional raw dishes like sushi-grade fish sashimi is a more responsible and enjoyable alternative.