Looking for some good sushi, but don’t want to pay the high prices for your favorite roll? This is a problem we continually face as college students; our lack of jobs can pose a problem when we want to be adventurous in our dining activities.
Pizza and burgers are great, but sometimes you have a hankering for something different to satisfy your taste buds. The solution I pose for you today is homemade sushi.
Homemade sushi is much easier than you would believe and can be turned into a dinnertime activity with your dining guests. Supplies to make your sushi can be found at our local Safeway or the Metropolitan Market.
Because you are making sushi at home, you have an endless array of options to personalize your sushi. Feeling like a meat-free Monday? Go vegetarian! Digging the idea of smoked salmon or other fish? Buy all the fish!
The items that are essential to creating delicious at-home sushi are a bamboo mat, short grain white rice, and nori (seaweed wrap).
My brother and I used the ingredients we had at home and made vegetarian sushi (avocado, mango, and asparagus), but we have used smoked salmon in the past and had delectable rolls.
1) To cook the rice, use more water than rice. Bring the water to a boil before you add the rice.
If you cook one cup of sushi rice then a cup of water plus a couple tablespoons should be sufficient. To create perfect sticky rice, a couple tablespoons of sugar and a half teaspoon of salt should be added to the boiling water.
2) Add rice to boiling water for 2-3 minutes and stir a couple of times to prevent any sticking on the bottom, then turn down the heat and let rice simmer. Ten to 15 minutes should be long enough for the rice to absorb the water.
While the rice is cooking, prep the fish, fruit and/or veggies you want to roll into your sushi.
Slice your fruit into long thin strips for an easier time when it comes to cutting your sushi.
If you also are interested in using asparagus, steam them until they are no longer at a chewy, al dente consistency. The rice can be spread when the water is absorbed.
Leave a half inch of room at the top of the seaweed for pressing the roll together at the end.
Lay your thinly sliced ingredients length wise at the bottom edge of the spread rice.
With the bamboo mat begin to tightly roll your sushi. Press the edge of the seaweed together to hold the roll in place.
Slices will hold together best if they are about two inches thick.
A cup of rice should yield approximately three rolls and will allow you to mix and match all the ingredients you choose.
Take your sushi to the next level with a sauce for dipping or spreading.
Using only three ingredients this creamy sauce is sweet and pairs perfectly with the mango and avocado.
The sauce:
2-3 tablespoons sweet Thai chili sauce
2 tablespoons mayo
1-2 teaspoons sesame oil
Play with the proportions to satisfy your own taste buds.
Enjoy the company of friends, creating your own entertainment and an inexpensive meal with this recipe or your own variation.
