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Sushi

Sushi is a traditional Japanese dish that has become very popular on an international scale. There are many types of sushi. Sushi can be simply a salad of rice and vegetables that is called chirashi zushi or gomoku zushi. It can be rice with vegetables, pickles, or fish inside rolled in nori and sliced into rounds.This type of sushi is referred to as nori maki or maki sushi. There can also be maki without nori or with the nori rolled into a spiral on the inside of the roll. Sushi can also be small bales of rice with raw or cooked slices of fish placed on top.

Sushi is a great picnic food. It is wonderful when traveling, and great for special meals or holidays. It is quick and easy to make and can serve as a snack. The best sushi is made from rice that has cooled to room temperature. Leftover rice can also be used. Do not be discouraged if your first attempt at making sushi is a little frustrating and not so attractive. Practice makes perfect. With a little practice, you will be able to make delicious and appetizing sushi.

•2 sheets nori, toasted
•2 to 3 cups cooked brown rice
•1 carrot, cut into 1/4 inch thick lengthwise strips
•4 scallions, roots removed
•umeboshi paste or umeboshi plums

Step 1: Roast the rough, dull side of a sheet of nori over a high flame, being careful not to burn it, until it turns from a purple, black color to green. Place the sheet of nori, with the smooth shiny side down, on a bamboo sushi mat. Wet both hands with a little cold water and spread 1 to 1 1/2 cups of leftover cooked rice evenly on the nori. Leave about 1/2 to 1 inch of the bottom part of the nori, the part closest to you, uncovered by rice. Similarly, leave about 2 inches at the top of the sheet, the part farthest from you, uncovered by rice.

Step 2: Slice the carrots into lengthwise strips about 8 to 10 inches long and about 1/4 inch thick. Place the strips in a small amount of boiling water, cover, and boil for 1 to 2 minutes. Remove the carrots and place them on a plate to cool. Place the scallions in the same boiling water, cover, and cook 1 minute. Remove and place on the plate with the carrot strips.

Step 3: Take a small amount of umeboshi paste and spread it evenly across the width of the rice about 1 1/2 to 2 inches from the bottom of the sheet so that it is almost centered on the rice. You can also take small pieces of umeboshi plum and make a line in the same fashion. Use the umeboshi paste moderately, as it is salty. Next, take two carrot strips and lay them on top of the umeboshi paste or plum. Then take two scallions and lay them on top of the carrot strips. You should now have umeboshi, carrots, and scallions lying in a straight line across the width of the nori.

Step 4: Use the bamboo mat to roll up the rice and nori, pressing firmly against the back of the mat with your thumbs, and tucking and rolling forward with your fingers on the nori and vegetables. Roll up until you are about 1" from the top of the nori. Wet your fingers again and moisten the end of the nori across the entire width. Continue to roll into a round log or cylindrical shape. The vegetables should be fairly well centered in the roll. Roll the mat completely around the roll and press firmly but gently to seal the nori together. The ends of the rolls are uneven as you can see by looking at either end of the sushi mat. To make the ends even, so that you get eight equal-sized pieces of sushi out of each roll, take a teaspoon of rice and pack it into the ends of the roll. Remove the sushi mat from the roll and set it aside.

Step 5: Wet a very sharp knife and slice the roll in half. Next, slice each half in half. You will now have 4 quarters of a roll. Slice each quarter in half, so that you have 8 equally-sized pieces of sushi.

Step 6: Arrange the sushi rounds (or maki) on a serving platter with the cut end facing up, showing the rice and vegetables.

Step 7: Repeat the above process with the remaining ingredients, so that you have 16 pieces of maki arranged on the platter. Garnish and serve.

Sushi is often served with a dipping sauce made with a small amount of tamari soy sauce, water, and a little ginger juice or grated daikon. However, a dipping sauce is not really necessary for brown rice (rather than white rice) sushi, or if you are not using fish. Wasabi a hot, green Japanese mustard, is sometimes added to the dip sauce or placed inside the sushi. However, wasabi is not necessary when you are using brown rice and vegetables in your sushi.