On the Menu: Homemade Sushi

Sushi rice

2 cups medium grain white rice

2 cups water

3 tablespoons rice wine vinegar

3 tablespoons sugar

2 teaspoons salt

Rinse rice 3-5 times until water is starting to run clear. Drain rice in colander or strainer while making the vinegar mixture. Combine rice wine vinegar, sugar, and salt in a bowl and mix well. Add the drained rice and water to a pot. Bring rice to a boil quickly and then reduce heat to a simmer and cover the pot. Simmer for 15 minutes, remove from heat and let sit for 10 minutes, covered. Transfer the rice to a bowl to let it cool and slowly add the rice wine vinegar mixture, stirring carefully.

*The key to good rice is not taking the lid off the pot until done!

Salmon roll

Nori (seaweed) sheets

Thinly sliced cucumber 

Thinly sliced carrot

Cream cheese

Smoked salmon

Sushi mat or dishcloth and syran wrap

Before preparing your ingredients, put your cream cheese in the freezer to make it easier to cut. Thinly slice cucumber and carrots (as shown above), keeping them about the length of the nori sheet you'll be using. Cut smoked salmon into strips. Remove cream cheese from the freezer and cut into strips. 

Lay out your sushi mat and cover with syran wrap if desired. Lay nori sheet on top of the syran wrap and add a thin layer of warm-room temperature sushi rice, making sure to leave a thin border of nori so that your roll will stick together nicely. Add cucumber, carrot, smoked salmon, and cream cheese at the end of the roll keeping the ingredients within the borders of the nori. Slowly roll the sushi up, pressing down with the mat while rolling to keep it firmly pressed. Once rolled, remove the syran wrap and mat and slice sushi with a knife dipped in warm water. 

Serve with wasabi, soy sauce, and green tea and enjoy!

*Sushi rice recipe modified from this recipe.