Lite for Life^© Janet's Sushi Rolls Extraordinaire

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A healthy Japanese appetizer or finger food perfect for your dinner party or get together. They will rave about these delicious suhi rolls. Have a spare platter ready. They will disappear quickly.

Preparation Time: 60 minutes
Servings: 2 rolls, 16 pieces, serves 4 people

Ingredients:

Rice Ingredients:
2 cups sushi rice (Japanese short grained white rice)
2 – 3 ½ tablespoons Japanese unseasoned rice vinegar
2 teaspoons sea salt
2 – 2 ½ tablespoons white sugar
2 tablespoons black or white sesame seeds

Sushi Roll Ingredients :
2 -3 sheets of Nori (available in a large grocers, or Asian food supply store)
½ English style cucumber, washed, and sliced into julienne strips
1 medium sized carrot, peeled and julienned
1 bunch green onions, green tops only and julienned
2 stalks of green celery, washed, peeled, and julienned
1 small tin salad shrimp, finely chopped
1 small zucchini, washed and julienned
Wasabi (HOT)(available in a tube at larger grocers, or Asian food supply store)
Pink pickled ginger (available in jars at larger grocers, or at Asian markets)

Method:
1. To prepare the rice:

1. Rinse rice in a strainer under cold water until the water runs almost clear. Remove any dark bits of rice as it is being rinsed. Set rinsed rice aside.
2. Gently heat the vinegar, sugar, and salt in a pot on medium high heat until the sugar and salt dissolve. Remove from heat.
3. Cook the rice either in a rice cooker (follow manufacturer’s instructions). OR, Bring 2 cups of water to a boil in a medium sized saucepan over high heat. Add rice, cover the pot and cook over low heat until the water is absorbed and the rice is soft. If using a saucepan do not lift the cover off the pan until the rice is cooked! Will take about 20 – 25 minutes to cook in a saucepan on low heat.
4. Remove the cooked rice from the heat and add the vinegar seasoning mixture to the rice.
5. Pour the rice carefully into a non-reactive glass, wooden or melamine bowl. Mix the rice gently, being careful not to break the grains of rice. Lift the rice up and stir it gently back into itself to cool and add a glossiness to the rice. When the rice is cooled, sprinkle the sesame seeds over the surface and gently fold these into the rice-vinegar mixture. You may use a fan (hand held) to cool the rice as it being stirred. This last step helps the rice to cool.

2. To prepare the sushi rolls:

1. Cover a bamboo mat (available in a large grocers, or Asian food supply store) with a piece of plastic wrap to cover the entire mat.
2. Place a sheet of Nori, shiny side down, on the plastic covered bamboo mat.
3. Place ¾ cup of prepared, cooled sushi rice on the Nori and, with moistened hands, spread the rice over the surface of the Nori sheet to within ¼ inch of one of the longs sides of the Nori. It's ok if you can see a bit of Nori here and there through the rice.
4. Place one piece of the fillings of your choice for a combination (e.g. Zucchini, carrot, celery, green onion, chopped shrimp in a thin row alongside the vegetables.)
5. Cover a bamboo mat (available in a large grocers, or Asian food supply store) with a piece of plastic wrap to cover the entire mat.
6. Lift the bamboo mat and gently roll the Nori-rice-vegetables forward just until the roll touches Nori. Press the roll with your fingers applying gentle pressure the full length of the sushi roll.
7. Continue rolling the sushi by pushing it forward while lifting the bamboo mat.
8. When the roll comes to the end of the mat, gently press the full roll again.
9. Unroll the bamboo mat.
10. If there is any feeling that has come out of the sides of the sushi, the gently tucked this back in.
11. Wrap the whole sushi roll in the plastic wrap that was on the bamboo mat and place on a plate in the refrigerator until you have made another sushi roll.
12. Once all sushi rolls are made, remove the plastic wrap and place on a cutting board.
13. Take a very sharp large knife and dampen the blade with a bit water.
14. Slice each roll in half across the middle. Repeat cutting 1/2s in half until you have 8 pieces of sushi.
15. To serve, place pieces, in a decorative manner, on a large serving platter that also has the wasabi paste and pink picked ginger arranged on it.
16. Pour a small amount of reduced sodium soya sauce in a small bowl and place this bowl on the serving platter with a small spoon.

3. To eat: Use the small spoon to drizzle a small amount of soya sauce over a piece of sushi, then add a small amount of wasabi paste to the sushi roll piece. Enjoy a piece of pink pickled ginger between eating sushi pieces.

 

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