Why You Should Make Sushi
I wouldn’t call myself a sushi enthusiast, so it might surprise you to learn that I know how to make it and have done so multiple times. Especially now that you’re reading an article about that very subject, written by me.
It’s true — when I first heard of sushi, the very idea grossed me out. Seaweed? Uncooked fish? No, thanks! I was flat out against it from the day I heard about it. Ever since then, family and friends have been gradually coaxing me out of my shell, tempting me to try this spicy roll or that salmon or tuna sushi. At first, it seemed like just an excuse to eat squishy fish with a lot of other tasty ingredients. But after years of waning resistance, I now consider myself a convert.
I hope to interest you by showing you why you should make sushi, and how to make it. Surprisingly, the two go hand-in-hand.
1. Knowing how to make something helps you appreciate it better
If you watch a blacksmith forge a blade, you probably are as about as impressed as the next guy who isn’t a blacksmith. They train for it, so they have the strength. They know how to do it. It’s not really part of your life, so it doesn’t matter. It’s just something other people can do.
Until it isn’t, and you begin to see a different perspective that you didn’t realize existed. When you view a blacksmith’s work through the eyes of a blacksmith, it takes on a whole new meaning. Suddenly the difference between a red-hot glow and a white-hot glow is critical instead of mildly interesting. A balanced blade begins to seem like a real work of art, a mark of perfection, instead of just a novelty. The same is true for any craft.
2. Variety is the spice of life
Sushi operates in a whole different spectrum of tastes than your day-to-day foods, whatever they are (unless you are already a sushi fan). That isn’t to say they can’t be combined or customized, but when learning to appreciate another culture, it’s best to first approach it as-is before attempting to adapt it to your own preferences. You might find that it doesn’t need any customization after all.
Asian cuisine makes a nice counter-balance to the Western diet. Rice, fish, ginger and other alkaline foods tend to have a tightening effect on the body, as opposed to an acidic or loosening effect. Furthermore, of the 16 components the human body is made up of, 75% are alkaline, which indicates that we need three times more alkaline foods in our diet to achieve a proper balance.
I personally find that pickled ginger and wasabi make a great color and flavor complement with each other, while the milder rice and sushi flavors sit smack dab in the middle. It’s all about the condiments! Don’t miss out on those.
3. Fish is good for you (and needn’t be uncooked)
I am still not a big fan of uncooked fish. However, sushi-grade fish isn’t uncooked. It’s different than raw fish. You can’t just catch a fish and then immediately use it to make sushi. Besides, sushi doesn’t have to be made with sushi fish anyway. I make perfectly good sushi (though some might consider it unorthodox) with smoked salmon that is already fully cooked, or even Korean BBQ (bibimbap/bulgogi beef).
Fish contains omega-3 oils that are great for your health, as well as being easier to digest than other meats. Normal sushi improves on this by a lot, and it’s almost like giving your body a protein boost without the normal energy required to digest meat. It’s something that can’t really be explained; it has to be experienced.
How To Make Sushi
Now that you presumably want to make some sushi, I think you’ll find it quite fun. Here are some basics and tips on how to make it.
Ingredients
You’ll need
· Bamboo mat (used for rolling the sushi)
· Seaweed sheets
· Sushi rice (any short grain rice will do, but sushi rice is preferable)
· Meat (whatever you want to put in it; fish is best)
· Vegetables (see below sections)
· Soy sauce, pickled ginger, and wasabi (condiments)
· Chopsticks and sushi trays (to go full-tilt)
· Saké お酒 (makes a great alcohol pairing)
Rice is Nice
Making good sushi is all about the rice. If the rice doesn’t turn out quite right, nothing else probably will either. Luckily, rice is usually pretty easy to make. Put some rice in some water, bring to a boil, then cover and simmer for 10 to 20 minutes until the water is gone and the rice is fluffy.
However, sushi rice is a little bit more complicated. It can’t just be rice. It needs to be sticky rice. The sticky part is very important. Just remember, sticky rice is picky rice.
To make sticky rice, make sure you use a short-grain rice. They look like thick, fat grains instead of thin, long ones. Also, because they’re more dense, they usually require a longer cooking time. Basmati or jasmine rice is usually done in 5 to 10 minutes. Sushi rice takes longer, often 15 to 20 minutes. I’ve also found that it requires more water than what the package indicates. If it says 1 cup of water, try adding another half cup. My rule of thumb is 1.5 to 2 times the amount of rice. If you make 1 cup of rice (which makes about 4 sushi rolls), you’ll need one and a half to two cups of water.
While the rice is cooking, be sure to get your other ingredients ready to go. You don’t want to be opening some plastic or fumbling with a package while your sushi roll is waiting for ingredients. You’ll also have some prep time while the rice cools.
Get Your Hands Dirty!
Once you have your rice, give it a chance to cool off (unless you want to burn your hands). Keep fluffing it with a fork so that it doesn’t sit there seething under the surface until you stick your hands in. However, don’t let it cool completely as it will start to set and harden, and it will become more difficult to work with.
Get a bowl and fill it with water. It just needs to be big enough to dip your hands into repeatedly.
Dry your hands if they’re wet and lay a new seaweed sheet on your sushi mat (wet seaweed becomes sticky). Put it length wise so that the longer edges are on the top and bottom.
The mat should be taller than the seaweed, with the bamboo horizontal. Make sure you have a fairly large area, with a big knife and a cutting board nearby. Also, prepare a wet rag with which you can wipe the knife.
Now comes the fun part. Take some rice and mash it down onto the seaweed! Dipping your hands in the water keeps the rice from sticking to your hands. Keep dipping your hands as often as you need to, so that you can maintain proper control over the rice while mashing it down.
What you’re going for is a thin, even layer — just enough to completely mask the green color of the seaweed. It’s easy to make your rice too thick. We want a straw, not a burrito. Don’t pack too much on top — either rice, or the other ingredients. If it’s too thick, it may prove difficult to cut later.
The real trick here is getting the clumps sort of spread out and mostly in the right place before you start mashing down on them. Otherwise, the seaweed may tear as you try to move the partially-mashed rice around. If it’s too thick in one area, mash it down and spread it out from the center. If it’s too thin, grab a little bit more rice and put it near the edge closer to an empty area. Mash the rice into place, downward and outward, towards areas of the seaweed where there is no rice yet.
The seaweed is pretty fragile, so it’s best to start in the center and move outward. Lay out the rice in clumps, but then mash it together and gradually move it towards the edges, spreading it thinner. You want an even layer that goes all the way out to the left and right edges, and almost all the way to the top and bottom edges. You’ll be closing the sushi roll from bottom to top, like you roll a sleeping bag shut.
Stuff It
Now that you’ve got your rice layer, and your ingredients ready, you can begin placing the ingredients on the rice. Lay them out in a bundle at about the center (top to bottom) but closer to the bottom, going all the way from the left side to the right side. Try to push them together and keep them bundled if possible. Some may fall out on either side when you start rolling, and that’s fine. You can always push it back in.
Choose ingredients carefully for this step. You want things that are long and thin. Pickles are good, especially sandwich slicers, if you slice them in half or even in thirds first, lengthwise. Avocados are another great option. Fully ripe avocados may prove too mushy and difficult to work with. Better to have them a little on the unripe side so that they can be sliced into long strips and easily placed.
Put your chosen meat in the center and layer the other ingredients above and below it, making a little hill shape. Then pack it together so that it sticks into the rice. Lastly, take hold of the bottom of your sushi mat (not the seaweed) and with the ends of your fingers, grab the upper part of the ingredients ‘hill’ so that you can keep it from moving away from you as you roll.
Start the rolling motion and ensure the edge of the seaweed sheet goes down into the rice just above your ingredients. Keep rolling, and as you roll, press down with your palms to pack the roll more tightly (again, think of a sleeping bag). Don’t squash it, just compress it firmly enough so that it stays together.
Eventually the roll will be ready and you can take it off the mat and put it on the cutting board nearby. If the slit doesn’t seem to stay shut, it probably means you packed too many ingredients into the roll, or the rice layer was too thick. The rice really needs to be mashed down into a thin layer, with some empty space on the top and bottom for the ends to stick together. Too much stuffing and/or rice will make a burrito, not a straw. Think of a straw — you want it long and thin.
Once you have your roll ready to cut, wet the cutting edge of the knife with some water (either from the bowl or faucet, or by using the rag you prepared). Begin cutting and make sure you keep the knife moving back and forth quickly.
Every two to three cuts, wet the edge of the knife again, wiping off any sticky debris with the rag. A knife that’s too dry or debris-covered will grab the rice and pull the roll apart, while a wet knife should slide right through.
Now that the sushi roll is cut, enjoy with some wasabi, soy sauce, and pickled ginger!
Or save it in a container in the fridge to enjoy later.
