Sushi is definitely one of my favourite foods. It tastes so fresh and is very healthy for you. For an island nation a lot of people don’t like fish, especially sushi, because everyone thinks immediately its raw. Sashimi is the term for raw fish. All the basic ingredients like the Nori(dried seaweed), sushi rice, rice vinegar, rolling mat, wasabi and ginger can be gotten at Tesco and are all very cheap. You can even buy the miso soup there if you like that. I think each item is €1.75 so its definately worth giving it a go. I’m gonna put up a couple of rolls, one being made from smoked salmon(for the people who wont try raw fish) called a Philadelphia Roll and the other, which is raw, is made from sushi grade tuna which can be gotten at any good fish shop.
Any rolls that you are making you will have to cook the rice in plenty time as it takes some time to cool down. Japanese rice is a short grain rice which sticks together when cooked. Regular long grain rice doesn’t do this so it doesn’t work for sushi. Follow the directions on the packet when cooking the rice. When the rice is cooling down add a small bit of rice vinegar and mix well.
Both these rolls are known as inside out rolls because the rice is on the outside. You can roll it with the rice on the inside if you want to do that.
Philadelphia Roll
Ingredients:
- 1/2 a Nori sheet
- 2 slices Smoked Salmon(I buy it from dunnes)
- Plain Philadelphia Cheese
- Avocado
- Toasted Sesame Seeds
1. With the nori in front of you take a handful of rice and place it in the centre of the nori and spread it out evenly using your fingers to press it to the nori.Make sure you keep your hands a bit wet so the rice doesn’t keep sticking to you.You don’t want to have the rice to thick only about a 1/4 inch all around.
2. Once the rice is spread out you can now flip it over so the rice is on the rolling mat and you have the other side nori sheet facing you.Place some salmon in the centre of the nori in a straight line and place the avocado next to it(I quarter the avocado and make each quarter into approximately 4 slices).Now spread some philadelphia on top.You dont want to fill it to much as it might not roll properly.
3. Now its time to flip it which you might find tricky for the first few times.With the nori in the middle of the rolling mat, begin flipping the mat over with your fingers ensuring to tuck the nori sheet back in on itself once it has gone around the fillings. Try to keep it tight as you don’t want everything falling out once its rolled.
4. When you have it rolled sprinkle some of the sesame seeds along the top. Using a very sharp moist knife cut the roll in half then putting both halves side by side make a further 2 cuts. You should end up with 6 pieces. Try to make smooth cuts and making a sawing motion with the knife into as it will fall apart.
Enjoy.
Tuna roll
When buying the tuna ask it to be cut about 1/2 inch thick.I usually buy 2 tuna steaks in the english market in cork for around €9
Ingredients:
- Sushi Grade Tuna
- Avocado
- Chilly flakes(optional)
This is my favourite roll and i always add some chilly flakes to the top of each piece when cut to give it that extra kick.To make this follow the same steps as the roll above just change the fillings.You can add whatever fillings you like to the rolls the ones I’ve used are my favourite.
Other Filling :Crab,Prawn,Cucumber etc…
Soy-sauce and Wasabi
When you are ready to eat the sushi rolls put a small bit of wasabi into a bowl and just put a few drop of soy-sauce over it and mix together.Once it has become like a paste add more soy sauce until you think theres enough for you.People always put the soy-sauce in first and then the wasabi but end up with clumps of wasabi floating around which isn’t to nice if it ends up in your mouth.I’ve seen grown men weep after eating a clump of wasabi because its so hot…
