Homemade Sushi Rolls and Nigiri

Cooking method

1. Step 1:

   

   First, cook the rice. Add 400 g of rice to 600 ml of water and cook it on the standard setting in a rice cooker.

2. Step 2:

   

   Once the rice is cooked, stir in 50 ml of rice vinegar (available at any large grocery store). If you don't have rice vinegar, you can make a rice seasoning from sugar, plain vinegar, and salt, though I haven't tried it myself — it's easier to just buy rice vinegar, and it's inexpensive. After adding the vinegar, mix the rice thoroughly so it soaks up the seasoning evenly. That seasoning is the real secret to good sushi rice. Once mixed, let the rice cool a bit.

3. Step 3:

   

   I used to always roll sushi with a bamboo mat, but friends gave me a special "Sushi Magic" set, and now that's all I use. So instead of a bamboo mat, lay a sheet of nori on the mold.

4. Step 4:

   

   Spread the rice over the nori, but not all the way to the edges — as shown in the photo. To keep the nori from curling, lightly dampen its dry end with a little water. So the rice doesn't stick to your hands, keep a small bowl of water nearby — rice barely sticks to wet hands, making it easy to spread.

5. Step 5:

   

   Lay the filling on the rice. Mix and match the salmon, cucumber, and bell pepper to your taste. Some people add avocado, but it's hard to find a ripe one around here. I like a generous amount of filling, so I usually add everything :) By the way, it's best to use cucumber with the seeds removed — it tastes better that way.

6. Step 6:

   

   Roll up the mat to form a neat, even roll — all that's left is to slice it.

7. Step 7:

   

   To make an inside-out roll (rice on the outside, like a Philadelphia), trim the nori sheet, spread the rice over it, flip it over along with the rice, and then add the filling. If you're using a bamboo mat, you'll need plastic wrap and the process is a bit trickier — but it turns out just as delicious :)

8. Step 8:

   

   After rolling an inside-out roll, wrap it in thinly sliced salmon (for a Philadelphia), or coat it in sesame seeds, or top it with tobiko roe.

9. Step 9:

   

   From 400 g of rice, I got 8 rolls (one didn't make it into the photo — it was devoured at lightning speed by the household predators, led by my husband :)) plus 16 nigiri sushi from the leftover rice.

10. Step 10:

    

    For some variety, you can make nigiri sushi using the molds from that same set. Place pieces of salmon in the mold, and if you like it spicy, add a little wasabi. If you don't have molds, just form the rice into little oval mounds by hand and lay the same pieces of fish on top.

11. Step 11:

    

    Set the second mold on top.

12. Step 12:

    

    Fill the resulting cavities with rice.

13. Step 13:

    

    Remove the top mold and flip the remaining piece over, so the rice mounds end up under the salmon.

14. Step 14:

    

    And here's what our finished nigiri sushi look like. 2 rounds of 8 pieces = 16 nigiri.