Crab and Red Caviar Rolls

Cooking method

1. Step 1:

   

   How do you make crab meat rolls? Gather all the ingredients and equipment you'll need. You'll want a rolling mat and plastic wrap.

2. Step 2:

   

   Make the rice for the rolls. Use short-grain Japanese (sushi) rice — it has the stickiness the rolls need. With any other kind, the rolls will likely fall apart. Put the rice in a bowl and rinse it about 4 times, until the water runs clear. Transfer the rice to a saucepan and add water in a 1:1 ratio. Cover with a lid and set it over the heat.

3. Step 3:

   

   Bring the water to a boil (keep the lid on the whole time). Once it boils, turn the heat down to its lowest setting and let the rice cook for 15 minutes — by then all the water will have absorbed. Turn off the heat and let the rice rest, still covered, for another 10 minutes to finish steaming to the right texture. Cooked rice roughly doubles in volume.

4. Step 4:

   

   Now, in a separate small saucepan, combine the rice vinegar, sugar, and salt. Set it over low heat and stir until the sugar and salt dissolve into the vinegar — but don't let it come to a boil.

5. Step 5:

   

   Take a wooden bowl and wipe it down with a damp paper towel so the rice won't stick. Transfer the cooked rice into it. Pour the vinegar mixture over the back of a wooden spoon, drizzling it in a thin stream evenly over the rice. With a wooden paddle, gently fold the seasoning through the rice. Then let the rice cool completely, covered with a damp towel.

6. Step 6:

   

   Wrap your bamboo rolling mat in plastic wrap. This keeps things hygienic and makes the mat easy to work with — nothing sticks and the mat stays clean. It also extends the mat's life, keeping rice and filling from working into the bamboo slats and meaning you have to dampen it less often.

7. Step 7:

   

   First, cut the nori sheet into two equal halves with scissors. Lay one piece on the mat, shiny side down. Mix up some hand-dipping water (tezu): stir rice vinegar and water in a 1:3 ratio in a small bowl. Wetting your hands with it makes the rice easy to handle. It's best to use filtered water here, since it goes straight into food that won't be cooked further.

8. Step 8:

   

   Wet your hands with the vinegar water, take about 150 g of rice, and spread it onto the rough side of the nori. Smooth the rice over the whole sheet so that it overhangs the far edge by 1 cm and falls 1 cm short of the near edge. Flip the sheet over so the glossy side is up and the rice is underneath.

9. Step 9:

   

   Prepare the filling ahead of time. Grate the crab meat on a fine grater (this makes the roll more tender and airy). Cut the cucumber into long strips, and fill a piping bag with cream cheese — snip off the tip when you're ready to use it. It helps to take the cheese out of the fridge ahead of time so it's easier to work with. Down the center of the nori, lay a line of cream cheese, then the crab meat, cucumber, and a little red caviar (about 15 g).

10. Step 10:

    

    Holding the filling in place, gently roll it away from you so the rice on the overhanging edge meets the rice on the nori. Press the roll firmly with the mat to make it tight and round. Set it at the edge of the mat and tuck in one end, then do the same on the other side.

11. Step 11:

    

    Slice the roll with a sharp knife into 8 equal pieces. Dip the knife in the vinegar water as you cut — this keeps the rice from sticking and the rolls from getting squashed. Arrange the cut pieces, filling side up, on your work surface.

12. Step 12:

    

    Top each piece with the remaining red caviar.

13. Step 13:

    

    Transfer the rolls to a platter and finish by garnishing them with rings of green onion.