Sushi Night Tutorial
I. Love. Sushi. Really, like...LOVE sushi. But, know what I love even more than sushi? Not leaving my house to have sushi. Tonight, we had Shrimp Tempura, California Rolls, and Spicy Tuna Rolls and I didn't change out of my pajamas. Awesome.
Sushi sounds and looks daunting. But, really, it's not that hard! You don't have to be a trained sushi maker to make sushi at home. It doesn't have to be perfect (mine isn't) as long as it tastes good. Which it will!
Ingredients for Sushi Night
1/2 pound of fresh shrimp, peeled-leave the tail on
Tempura Batter mix (found in the Asian aisle)
Oil for frying
Sushi Rice
Rice vinegar
Nori (Seaweed Sheets) (I cut mine in half width-ways)
1/2lb fresh tuna steaks
Imitation crab meat
Cucumber
Avocado
Rolling mat (found at Asian markets)
Soy Sauce
Wasabi and/or spicy mayonnaise (found in Asian aisle)
Shrimp Tempura
First, you need to cut along the back of the shrimp and remove the vein. Ew.
Then turn the shrimp over and cut it down the middle (not going all the way through. You are "butterflying" the shrimp.
Prepare the tempura batter per the instructions on the box. Dip the shrimp in, let the excess batter fall.
Drop the shrimp in 350 degree oil and cook until golden. About 8-10 minutes.
Preparing the sushi rice:
In a small sauce pan add 1 cup of sushi rice. Rinse the rice with tap water until the water runs clear. Add 1 1/2 cups of water to the rice. Cover and bring to a boil. Once it begins to boil, turn down the heat and let the rice simmer, covered, for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, remove the pan from the heat and let sit, covered, for 15 minutes.
Fluff with a fork and pour into a glass bowl. To the rice, add 2 Tbsp of rice vinegar. Mix together gently while fanning the rice. This cools the rice off, making it sticky and perfect for rolling.
Once your rice is ready, prepare your ingredients:
- Peel your cucumbers, cut in half, lengthways, and scrape out the seeds. Cut into sticks.
- Imitations crab sticks: Cut in half lengthways.
-Avocado- Cut in half (around the seed) with a knife. Open the halves up, hit the seed with your knife, twist and remove the seed. Run a spoon between the avocado and skin, scoop the avocado out and slice in the strips.
Assembling the California Roll
Take a half sheet of nori. Add 1/2 cup of rice. Wet your hands and spread the rice over the nori.
Add two crab sticks, cucumber stick, and two slices of avocado.
Begin rolling. Hold the back of the rolling mat with your thumbs while supporting the crab and avocado with the rest of your fingers.
Roll gently over, once. Making sure the filling isn't creeping out of the nori. Now, with your thumbs behind the rolling mat, support the roll with your fingers, and roll again. The ends should overlap slightly. Don't worry if they don't, mine didn't this time.
Dip a knife in water. Cut the roll in half, then each half into four rolls.
Assembling the Spicy Tuna Roll
Take a half sheet of nori, add 1/2 cup of rice, two strips of tuna and a bit of the spicy mayonnaise (Sriracha works, too)
Roll gently, making sure the tuna isn't escaping.
Cut into 8 rolls.
Enjoy your sushi with soy sauce and Wasabi! Also, experiment with fillings. We make Philadelphia rolls with smoked salmon and cream cheese. Roll some of those shrimp tempura's for a Shrimp Tempura Roll, just have fun!
Sushi sounds and looks daunting. But, really, it's not that hard! You don't have to be a trained sushi maker to make sushi at home. It doesn't have to be perfect (mine isn't) as long as it tastes good. Which it will!
Ingredients for Sushi Night
1/2 pound of fresh shrimp, peeled-leave the tail on
Tempura Batter mix (found in the Asian aisle)
Oil for frying
Sushi Rice
Rice vinegar
Nori (Seaweed Sheets) (I cut mine in half width-ways)
1/2lb fresh tuna steaks
Imitation crab meat
Cucumber
Avocado
Rolling mat (found at Asian markets)
Soy Sauce
Wasabi and/or spicy mayonnaise (found in Asian aisle)
Shrimp Tempura
First, you need to cut along the back of the shrimp and remove the vein. Ew.
Then turn the shrimp over and cut it down the middle (not going all the way through. You are "butterflying" the shrimp.
Prepare the tempura batter per the instructions on the box. Dip the shrimp in, let the excess batter fall.
Drop the shrimp in 350 degree oil and cook until golden. About 8-10 minutes.
Preparing the sushi rice:
In a small sauce pan add 1 cup of sushi rice. Rinse the rice with tap water until the water runs clear. Add 1 1/2 cups of water to the rice. Cover and bring to a boil. Once it begins to boil, turn down the heat and let the rice simmer, covered, for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, remove the pan from the heat and let sit, covered, for 15 minutes.
Fluff with a fork and pour into a glass bowl. To the rice, add 2 Tbsp of rice vinegar. Mix together gently while fanning the rice. This cools the rice off, making it sticky and perfect for rolling.
Once your rice is ready, prepare your ingredients:
- Peel your cucumbers, cut in half, lengthways, and scrape out the seeds. Cut into sticks.
- Imitations crab sticks: Cut in half lengthways.
-Avocado- Cut in half (around the seed) with a knife. Open the halves up, hit the seed with your knife, twist and remove the seed. Run a spoon between the avocado and skin, scoop the avocado out and slice in the strips.
-Cutting the Tuna: You want to cut thin slices, against the grain. This makes it easier to eat when it's rolled up in the sushi.
Assembling the California Roll
Take a half sheet of nori. Add 1/2 cup of rice. Wet your hands and spread the rice over the nori.
Add two crab sticks, cucumber stick, and two slices of avocado.
Begin rolling. Hold the back of the rolling mat with your thumbs while supporting the crab and avocado with the rest of your fingers.
Roll gently over, once. Making sure the filling isn't creeping out of the nori. Now, with your thumbs behind the rolling mat, support the roll with your fingers, and roll again. The ends should overlap slightly. Don't worry if they don't, mine didn't this time.
Dip a knife in water. Cut the roll in half, then each half into four rolls.
Assembling the Spicy Tuna Roll
Take a half sheet of nori, add 1/2 cup of rice, two strips of tuna and a bit of the spicy mayonnaise (Sriracha works, too)
Roll gently, making sure the tuna isn't escaping.
Cut into 8 rolls.
Enjoy your sushi with soy sauce and Wasabi! Also, experiment with fillings. We make Philadelphia rolls with smoked salmon and cream cheese. Roll some of those shrimp tempura's for a Shrimp Tempura Roll, just have fun!
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