Sushi rolls Nori, sushi rice, rice vinegar, mirin (Japanese rice wine), pickled ginger and wasabi (a type of Japanese horseradish) are sold in many health food shops, in some better supermarket chains and in specialist Japanese stores. Nori is usually sold ready-toasted and perforated to make it easier to cut through after rolling. If you cant get hold of any nori, use a thick layer of lightly coated sesame seeds as the exterior coating – the seeds will adhere to the rice. You will need a bamboo sushi mat or a double layer of greaseproof paper on a tea-towel to roll the sushi.
Serves 6 (makes about 30)
Ingredients
- 200g uncooked sushi rice
- 1 tablespoon salt
- 1 tablespoon mirin
- 3 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 55g sesame seeds, very lightly toasted in a dry pan
- 3 sheets of toasted nori (Japanese seaweed), about 18x20cm
- 3 tablespoons wasabi
- About 8-10 cooked shelled tiger prawns, butterflied open
- About 115g mixed crab meat
- About 115g smoked salmon, cut into strips
- Dark soy sauce
- Pickled ginger
- More wasabi
Method
- Put the rice in a sieve and rinse under running cold water until the water runs clear, then drain well. put into a large pan, cover with 450ml cold water and add the salt. Cover tightly, bring to the boil and boil for 1 minute. Then turn the heat down and cook gently for about 15 minutes, or until all the water is absorbed and the rice is tender but still has a slight resistance to the bite. Remove from the heat and allow to stand, still covered, for 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile, mix together the mirin, rice vinegar and honey in a small pan and heat gently. Turn the rice out into a large flat plate, sprinkle over the sesame seeds and gently fold them and the dressing into the rice with a wooden spoon. Cool the rice by fanning it with a damp cloth. When the rice stops steaming, cover it with the cloth.
- Place a sheet of nori, with its shiny side down and the perforations running vertically, on a sushi mat or on a double layer of greaseproof paper set on a clean tea-towel. Spread one-third of the rice over two-thirds of the nori, leaving a clear margin at the top, and smooth the surface.
- Lay one filling in a horizontal line just off centre towards the end closet to you, then smear a line of wasabi across the remaining rice just up from the filling. Pick up the mat or towel at the end closest to you, pull over the top, then push down gently with your fingers so that the end of the sushi roll tucks in and you can use the mat or towel to roll the whole thing up quite firmly, like a swiss roll.
- With a little water, dampen the bare edge of nori to help it stick. Tap the ends to neaten, leave to rest for a few minutes, then gently unroll the mat or greaseproof paper.
- Slice the roll through the perforations or, if there aren’t any, cut it into about 10 pieces. Repeat the process to make 2 more long rolls, each using a different filling, and cut each into pieces as before.
- Serve with little bowls of soy sauce and side plates with some pickled ginger and a smear of wasabi for each person.
Variations: other suggestions for fillings include strips of cucumber, cooked spinach mixed with chopped anchovies, asparagus, avocado, salmon mousse, fresh tuna, or shiitake mushrooms lightly sautéed in olive oil.
Phytoestrogens are available from the rice and essential oils from the selection of fish and sesame seeds.
Healthy Eating for the Menopause by Dr Marilyn Glenville with Lewis Esson (Kyle Cathie, £12.99) with photography by Ian Wallace.
Please note: the image above is for decorative purposes only and is not an original photograph of the dish described, and has not been taken from Healthy Eating for the Menopause.