Monday, May 10, 2010

How to Make Sushi like a Ninja Master!

Ok, this wasn't on my list and I have no clue if ninjas make sushi, lol, but I decided to add it after going to a Japanese restaurant and having that epiphenal (hell, I could totally make this myself!) moment. 

And you know, I must say as an aside, this is one of the positive effects of being a life-lister...the ongoing belief that I can do almost anything if I just try. That nothing is beyond my capabilities and if someone can do it, then I can learn how to do it, if I'm willing to sacrifice the time and energy. Plus I, of course, imagined myself eating yummy sushi and impressing all my friends and family with my newfound skills, lol. Remember kids, if you have a big enough WHY you can endure almost any HOW! So imagining all kinds of great things will motivate you like nothing else. :)

So, as soon as I got home from the restaurant I went online and started researching how to make this stuff.
You won't believe all the videos I found on YouTube alone, it was amazing. There's a video for making almost any kind of sushi you can think of...covering every step of the process.
Here's a quick link to some how to make sushi videos.

Here's what I found out I needed -
  • Bamboo Mat - this is for rolling the Nori around the sushi ingredients
  • Ingredients - to keep it simple I stuck with the basics - 
    • Sushi Nori - roasted seaweed paper
    • Inside ingredients 
      • seafood (I used imitation crab)
      • cucumber
      • avocado
      • short grain (sticky) rice 
      • sushi vinegar (optional)
    • wasabi sauce or paste
    • soy sauce
  •  And here are 5 simple steps I followed to make it
    1. For sticky rice - Rinse 1 cup of rice until water is clear, then low boil in 1 cup water until cooked through but not too tender.  Let cool and then if it's not sticky enough you can mix in a spoonful of sushi vinegar
    2. Place seaweed paper on bamboo mat, and with a wet spoon spread scoops of sticky rice over the paper, leaving an edge open at the top about an inch wide
    3. add sliced crab, cucumber, avocado across the rice horizontally, about 2 inches above the bottom of the paper
    4. Roll from bottom up of bamboo, creating the roll as you pull upward
    5. Cut the roll with a wet knife in 1 inch slices and serve with wasabi and soy sauce on the side
Ok, that's pretty much it! I know, lol, don't try this without watching some youtube videos. But once you do you'll see what I mean.

This has turned out to be a very cool skill to develop. I've practiced making a few rolls now and am really getting the hang of it.
Next I'll try tempura shrimp sushi (battered and fried shrimp instead of the crab meat).

Check out the picture of my first attempt.
Ok, now watch one of these videos, give this a try, and become a master at the art of sushi. :) 

Best of luck!

Pablo

4 comments:

Julia said...

Bravo Pablo! That is so great that you tried it. I have made some at home and it was ok but it does take patience and time to perfect. I am not so good on that front yet.

Jessica said...

Very awesome! (and that's a great photo too) And isn't it amazing what you can learn from YouTube!?

Pablo Baez said...

YouTube is amazing! You can literally learn almost anything.
What to do next? hmm?

Thanks Julia...I've been practicing and have done crab, salmon, tuna, and california rolls...next I'm gonna try making my own creation...caribbean roll. :)

diana... said...

You are getting betta sushi master and me as your predilect helper I helped you made the gigantic monster diana's rolls that we can't even fold them! LOL