Norimaki Sushi and Sashimi....

We all eat sushi at the restaurant but when it comes to preparing them at home we step aside... Please, don't be afraid of preparing something with raw fish as I will reveal to you a secret to eat it safely. 
 First of all, buy fresh fish from your trusted fishmonger. Ask if the fish was already prepared to be eaten raw, that is as sushi or sashimi. If not, freeze the slice of salmon or tuna for 24-48 hours at -18C minimum: this is done to kill the eventual harmful parasites.  Defreeze the fish slowly in the refrigerator, this procedure is used in order not to destroy the fish fibers. 

The word "norimaki" practically means "rolls with Nori seaweed wrapping" and this is the most used type of sushi for the Westerners.
Sashimi are the thin rectangular pieces of raw fish, usually served with daikon salad and Ponzu seasoning.   
As sushi is an exotic dish for many of the Westerners (even if we eat them quite often), I am going to fill this recipe with the notes for you to understand many peculiarities of the Oriental cooking.
 

INGREDIENTS:
Servings: 2-3 (24 sushi and 6-8 sashimi)


250g rice
5x5 piece of Kombu kelp
2.5 tbs rice vinegar
1 pinch sugar
2tbs Mirin
1 pinch of salt
300ml water  (20% more then rice)

4 nori seaweed sheets
150g raw tuna
150g raw salmon
1/2 avocado
soy sauce
marinated ginger 
wasabi


First we'll prepare sushi rice, the most important part of the recipe.
Note: You need to use the Japanese rice but if you cannot find it, use the short round grain type of rice, for example "Roma" or "Vialone Nano"... but of course the Japanese one is better!!! It's essencial for the right outcome of the dish to use the rice with high gluten content which makes it "sticky".
 

1. Place the rice in a sauce pan and pour some cold water to cover the rice and start washing it: take the rice with the palm of your hand and squeeze gently, then leave it in the water and repeat various times. 
Note: The water will become very cloudy.

2. Drain the rice carefully.  
3. Repeat the whole process for 5-6 times till the water will result in being clear.


4. Drain the water the last time and cover it with clean water again. Leave the rice to soak for 30-40 minutes. 
Note: The rice will become puffy and white.

5. Drain the rice and pour the clean cold water. Add a slice of Kombu kelp.
Note: There should be 20% more water than the rice amount: so if you use 250g of rice, you need to use 300ml of water.   
Note: Japanese say that kombu contains Umami, the fifth basic taste, that is described as savoriness.  It's taste is a perfect to flavour any dish.
 

6. Cover the sauce pan with a lid and cook over medium heat without uncovering it for about 8-10 minutes or till all the water evaporates. Switch the heat off and keep the rice steaming in the pan for 10-15 minutes more without removing the lid.
Note: Don't remove the lid, if you need to control that the water is gone, just uncover slightly and cover again as fast as possible. 
  
7. In a small bowl prepare the dressing for the rice: mix rice vinegar, Mirin, salt and sugar and stir well till sugar and salt melt.
Note: You may also put the bowl in microwave oven for 20 seconds. 
Note: Use Rice vinegar as it has less pungent and less sour taste as the normal wine vinegar. 
Note: Mirin is a special Japanese rice wine used for cooking.

8. Transfer the cooked rice into a wide low bowl. Discard the kombu piece.
Note: You may use a glass or ceramic baking pan.  
Note: Never use metal bowls.
9. Distribute the dressing over the rice. 

10. Using a wooden spoon make cutting movements to separate the rice and then wave a fan or just a cutting board over the rice to cool it down.
"Cut" the rice with the wooden spoon again and again waving with a fan from time to time till the rice is completely cool.

After the rice is ready we can get to the sushi rolls, we'll be preparing 2 tuna rolls and 2 salmon rolls which we'll cut into 6 pieces each.

11. Cut half an avocado and peel it. Cut avocado in sticks finger size. 
12. Cut salmon into 1x1cm thick sticks as well, cut tuna a bit thicker.

13. Unroll the bamboo sushi mat and place it on the table short side in front of you.
Note: You don't necessary need the expensive sushi mat, ANY bamboo mat will do and you can buy one in any Oriental goods store or even in IKEA...

14. Nori seaweeds sheets are usually about 20x20cm, we don't need them square. Cut 3.5-4cm from one side of the nori sheet, cut against the light perforated lines. 
Nota: Nori sheets are made with pressed nori seaweeds and as all the seaweeds they become darker in colour when dry, that is why nori sheets are not green but almost black.
15. Lay one nori sheet shining side down over the mat, long side close to you. Be careful that the perforated lines run across and not long the bamboo slats. 

16. Wet the fingers with some water and take one fourth of the rice. Press the rice over the nori sheet with the fingertips. When rice starts sticking to the fingertips, wet them again with water. Keep the opposite side of nori free of rice, just 1-1.5cm stripe.
17. In the middle of the rice layer, put one stripe of salmon sticks and one of avocado from one side of nori to the other.

18. With the help of the bamboo mat next to you start rolling the nori sheet. 
Note: The rice edges should meet one another and the excess of nori should overcome the roll.
Note: If you won't meet the rice edges and the nori sheet will go inside the roll, it will create kind of a "snail" and it's not nice to see. 

19. Form a nice roll with rolling the bamboo mat.
20. Set the roll aside.
Note: While you are preparing the other rolls the nori will get softer absorbing the rice liquid.

21. For Tuna norimaki fill the roll with tuna stripes only.  

22. When all the rolls are ready, use a sharp knife to cut each in 6 parts.
Note: The easiest way is to cut the roll into halves first, then cut each half into three parts. 
Note: To prevent the knife from sticking and not making a clean cut: clean the knife with wet paper towel each time you make a cut. 
    
23. Display 6 rolls together: 2 rows of 3 pieces.
24. Serve the sushi with a drop of wasabi, some marinated ginger and some soy sauce.
Note: Wasabi is a green paste that has an extremely strong taste and is prepared with Japanese horseradish.  
Note: Marinated ginger may have pinkish or yellowish colour. 
Note: You may also substitute soy sauce for Ponzu sauce (if it is available).   
    

 25. Cut 3 slices of fish per serving: make a neat cut with a sharp knife across the fibers - and your sashimi is ready.  
Note:You may also serve sushi and sashimi together on a small plate for each table companion.          

 

ITADAKIMASU!!!