This tutorial will show you how to draw six types of sushi, with step-by-step examples for each. These are maki, uramaki and nigiri.
This type of food is often seen in manga and anime when characters are out with their friends for drinks. These characters are usually older (college age) and more mature.
You can follow the link to the tutorial to learn how to draw food for younger characters.
1 – Step by Step How to Draw Maki Sushi
These two examples are of a very common type of sushi. Maki is rice wrapped in seaweeds and filled with various types of fillings.
This can be either one or more ingredients, as shown in the illustration.
Step 1: Draw the outer shape of the sushi roll
Start by drawing a maki roll’s outer shape. It should look like a cylinder. You don’t have to draw it perfectly, but you must ensure that the bottom of the roll is at least slightly larger than the top. The roll will appear odd if it is drawn flat.
This is explained in detail by the tutorial with the cup.
Tutorial for Beginning Artists and How It Relates To Anime
Step 2 – Draw your Filling
Fill the roll with the filling.
This is a mixture of several ingredients. These may vary in shape depending upon what they are.
Most often, there will be fish mixed with vegetables (or just vegetables).
Remember that the roll will be viewed from an angle. Draw the ingredients flattened so they are in line with the angles of the top.
Step 3 – Fill in the other type of filling
The simpler version of the maki can be drawn with only one ingredient, as shown above. This could be a piece of fish or a small vegetable.
Step 4 – Color your Maki Drawing
This example shows you how to color. The seaweeds should be dark grey. Leave the rice white. Color the rest of the ingredients as you wish.
Fish can be orange/pink, and vegetables can have different types of green.
2 – Step by Step Instructions on How to Draw Uramaki Sushi
The uramaki looks similar to the mark, but the rice is on the outside of seaweed. You can usually avoid showing the seaweed because it is beautiful and difficult to see in such a roll.
This type of sushi is also not common in manga and 3dvkarts.
Step 1: Draw the base shape of the roll
As in the previous example, draw the roll’s outer shape. Use very light lines when drawing with pencil and paper. This will be different from the example above. You will have to erase the entire shape.
Step 2: Add the Rice Details and Filling
Use the cylinder to guide you. Add a few bumps of random sizes and shapes to create the shape of your sushi roll.
You can show the upper edge of the roll by creating a row or small curves that look similar to rice grains. Once you are done, you can remove the guidelines (the cylinder created in the first step).
The uramaki tends to have more filling than the maki, so the filling will be more peaceful and larger relative to the roll. You can also draw it in the same manner, just be aware of the angle of your roll.
Step 3 – Continue to Add Rice Grains
You can finish the line drawing by adding a few rice grains along the curvature. You don’t need to add any rice on top, as the rice will be sliced more smoothly.
Step 4 – Color your Uramaki Drawing
You can also add color to the ingredients, depending on your preferences.
3 – Step by Step Drawing Nigiri Sushi
This sushi is basically a piece of fish on small pieces of rice. The sushi is often loosely rectangular with the fish slices being longer than the rice they are sitting on.
Step 1 – Draw Outlines for the Rice & Fish
Draw the fish slice first, then add the rice beneath it. As with the uramaki, you will need to draw the rice’s overall shape without the grains. If you are using a pencil, draw very thin lines.
Step 2: Add the details of the rice
Once you are done, draw in the rice grains bumps along the previous step.
Step 3 – Continue to Add Rice Grains
You can also add a few grains to the rice shape.
Step 4 – Color your Nigiri Drawing
This particular sushi type will require some tricky coloring. To make the fish slice look more like fish, you can add lighter streaks to its surface. This is because a patterned fish has a lot of them. You can also add small highlights to show the fish is moist.
These can be added to digital drawings, or you can draw them on paper.
You can make the meat appear more three-dimensional by coloring the sides slightly darker than the top. Light tends to reflect off objects’ surfaces more, making them appear lighter.
Darkening the area of rice where the fish hangs off can be done as well. This will create a little shadow.
4 – Step by Step Drawing Ebi Nigiri Sushi
Similar to the previous example, this one also has a shrimp tail instead of a fish slice. The shrimp tail is cut through the middle and then split in half (butterflied).
Step 1: Draw the Outlines for the Shrimp and Rice
Draw the sushi’s upper portion. This will be the simplified shrimp shape. Then, add the outline of the rice beneath it.
If you draw in pencil, keep your lines light.
Step 2: Add the Details
As shown in the example, draw the sections of the shrimp tail and the outline of rice grains. Once you are done, erase the outline from the previous step.
Step 3 – Continue to Add Rice Grains
To complete the line drawing, add a few hints of rice grains to the rice bed.
Step 4 – Color your Ebi Nigiri drawing
You can color shrimp orange or pink, leaving some highlights for the little bumps/sections.
A small shadow can be added to the rice near the tail.
5 – Step by Step Instructions on How to Draw Tamago Sushi
Similar to the two previous examples, this one also has an egg omelet on top. The egg is attached to the rice by a small piece of seaweed.
Step 1 – Draw Outlines for the Egg & Rice
Next, add the egg. Then draw the outline of rice. Finally, add the seaweed. Remember to use light lines for rice, especially.
Step 2: Add the details of the rice
Draw the rice grains using the outline of the rice in the previous step. Once you are done, erase the drawing.
Step 3 – Continue to Add Rice Grains
You can also add hints of individual grains to the rice.
Step 4 – Color your Tamago Nigiri Drawing
Add a little shadow to the rice that hangs from the egg.
6 – Step by Step Drawing Ikura Nigiri Sushi
This is a similar example to making sushi, but with red fish roe. Similar to the Maki, first create a cylindrical bottom shape and then add the red fish roe. You can draw the roe one at a time, with slightly different sizes.
Step 1: Draw the base of the roll
Similar to the maki/uramaki, draw the outline for the main shape of your roll. Make the “cylinder” look more like an oval by making it a bit smaller.
Step 2 – Add the Fish Roe
Although this part is a little tedious, you will need to draw each egg one at a time. You will want to start with the ones closest to you and then move on to the ones behind them.
Step 3 – Finish the line drawing
Continue “stacking” the roe until there is a nice little heap, as shown in the example.
Step 4 – Color Ikura Nigiri
You can color the ikura-nigiri by making the seaweed darker than in the previous example. You can make the roe orange but only highlight the most prominent eggs.
This is another time-consuming process that will make the roe appear more shiny and wet.
Conclusion
It’s a very unusual food, making it a fun food to draw. Drawing sushi is easy because of its simple shapes, especially in simplified anime/manga styles. Although there are many types of sushi, you can still draw them all in the same way. Begin by drawing the outline of the main shapes. Next, add details like the rice grains and fillings.
You can also find more tutorials on food:
- How to Draw Anime Christmas Santa Hat Girl
- Step by Step Instructions to Draw a Rice Bowl
- Step by step Drawing a Slice of Cake
- Step by step Drawing Hands with Chopsticks
- Step by Step Instructions to Draw a Candy Apple
- Step by Step Drawing Takoyaki
