My Attempt at Sushi

I have been wanting to make my own sushi for quite a while because it is one of my favorite things to eat. Adam got really sick off of some unagi a few years ago and so he won't touch any type of sushi. He is still in Chicago, and with him starting his new job making him around for dinner a lot more, I thought that tonight would be the perfect night to try it. As you can see, it is not the most pretty assortment of sushi ever, considering I used way too much yummy rice that I didn't make sticky enough and I used an old folder as my bamboo rolling mat, but let me tell you, it was delicious! I ate ever bit of it. I filled it with some of my favorite things that I like to have in my sushi rolls. It's like a California roll with a cream cheese twist.

Sushi - California Roll

Serving- 1 roll

Lemon juice
1/2 avocado
1 sheet nori (toasted seaweed)
1/4- 1/2  batch sushi rice, recipe below
Toasted sesame seeds
1/4 small cucumber, peeled, seeded, and cut into thin matchstick-size pieces
1 stick imitation crab, sliced in half long ways
Cream cheese
1/2 tablespoon scallions (optional)
Pickled ginger, for serving
Wasabi, for serving
Soy sauce

Prepare all your filling ingedients for the sushi and get them sliced and prepared how you would like. Pour some lemon juice on the avocado to prevent it from browning. Cover a bamboo rolling mat with plastic wrap (in my case, I covered a folder). Cut nori sheets in half crosswise (which I forgot to do and that's why mine turned out so fat, but it's your choice if you want to cut it.) Lay 1 sheet of nori, shiny side down, on the plastic covered mat. Wet your fingers with water and spread rice evenly onto the nori until it is fully covered. Sprinkle the rice with sesame seeds. Turn the sheet of nori over so the rice side is down. Spread desired amount of cream cheese across the middle of the nori. Sprinkle cream cheese with scallions. Place cucumber pieces, avocado, and crab sticks in the center as well on top of the cream cheese. Grab the edge of the mat closest to you, keeping the fillings in place with your fingers, and roll it into a tight cylinder, using the mat to shape the cylinder. Pull away the mat and set on a plate. Cut roll in to 6-8 pieces. Serve with pickled ginger, wasabi, and soy sauce.

Sushi Rice

1 cup uncooked sushi rice
1 1/4 cup cold water
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon oil
pinch of salt

Rinse uncooked rice in strainer until the water flows clear. Place on a medium sized skillet and add the cold water. Bring to a boil at high heat. When it is at a boil, lower heat to low, cover, and let sit for 20 minutes not lifting up the lid. When the twenty minutes are up, remove from heat, keeping it covered, and let it sit for another 10 minutes. Take the lid off and let it cool until it is handable. In a small sauce pan, heat the vinegar, sugar, and oil until the sugar disolves. Pour over the rice and add a pinch of salt and stir until the rice becomes more dry again.