Preparation:

Make rice: I use "sushi rice" but if you can't find it, use the short grain rice you can find. While it's still warm, put it in a big bowl and add the sushi vinegar while stirring.

You can make your own (see the archives) but I just use seasoned rice wine vinegar. I add vinegar by guessing - about 1/4 cup for 3 cup cooked rice. In the end, the rice should be subtly flavored.

Chop or steam desired veggies.

Put it all together: One recipe in the archives calls for putting plastic wrap between the bamboo rolling mat and the seaweed, but I don't know why.

I put a dishtowel on the table, and the bamboo rolling mat on top. Take a piece of nori seaweed and put it on the mat. (A Japanese woman I met at a sushi restaurant told me to toast the seaweed in dry skillet briefly to reduce the fishy flavor. I've never been overwhelmed by fishiness, but I might try this someday when I'm bored). Shiny side goes down, but it doesn't make much difference.

Spread some rice on the sheet of seaweed, approximately one grain thick. This is much easier if you dip your hands in water, since the rice is very sticky. Leave a strip bare of rice at the top of the sheet, so that the roll will seal

Add your veggies. I don't add wasabi here, though you can. Roll up the rice and seaweed carefully. Moisten the bare strip with water so that it sticks to the roll, sealing it. With a sharp knife, cut up the roll into short pieces.

This is really very easy, though it is difficult to describe. I recommend going to a bookstore or library to look at a Japanese cookbook, since they usually have pictures of how to do this.

To eat sushi: Mix a little wasabi (Japanese horseradish) and soy sauce. Take a piece of pickled ginger and place it on the sushi. Dip everything into the soy and enjoy!

Servings:
Source: Susan Lehman
Submitted by: Recipe Group Member
Date: Mar 12, 1997

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