Most of us probably have tried Sushi before and know what it is and what it looks like…. Vinegared rice topped with fish or veggie or wrapped by Nori seaweed…. But do you know where the name “Sushi” came from?
In Japanese, “Su” means “Vinegar” and the record says that the word “Sushi” came from describing its taste “something sour with “Su” (vinegar). Apparently, the word “Sushi” already appeared in an old book in the 8th century in Japan. It sure does have a long history!
Sushi is a pretty popular food in Japan and also a part of the everyday life of many Japanese people. I remember My mom used to make “Chirashi Sushi” (Sushi rice in a bowl with a variety of toppings) for many special occasions or for home parties. When I was a kid, I used to help her making Sushi rice and liked eating plane sushi rice, just rice with sushi vinegar. Now my kids also like plain sushi rice!
Good sushi rice is simple, yet tastes great. It really makes the whole taste of Sushi much better. So today, I’d like to share my favorite recipe of Sushi vinegar and how to make sushi rice. It’s super simple & easy and uses a very basic ingredient that you can get everything from your local supermarket.
Here is the list of ingredient and quick instruction:
Ingredient:
Rice
You can use white rice or brown rice, but I’d recommend white rice for beginners. It’s easier to cook and handle. Please make sure to choose short grain rice instead of long grain. Short grain rice holds water better and it makes sticky rice that Sushi needs.
Rice Vinegar
There are many types of vinegar, but I’d recommend rice vinegar. It tastes milder and rounder in my opinion. You can certainly try a different type of vinegar, but please choose clear color rather than brown vinegar, like balsamic…
Sugar and salt
We add a bit of sugar and salt in vinegar to make sushi vinegar
That’s all you need!
How to make Sushi Rice:
Cooking RiceFirst, you measure the rice. 1 cup of rice makes sushi for about 2-3 people.Then wash & rinse rice 2-3 times with water.Put the washed rice in rice cooker, add the same amount of water (1 cup of rice with 1 cup of water), then press “cook”. That’s all! The amount of water vs rice can differ by the type of rice, but I normally add an equal amount of water to the white rice and 1.5 – 2 times of water for the brown rice.If you don’t have a rice cooker, you can cook them with a pressure cooker or on the stove. It requires more attention, but it’s totally doable.You want the rice to be sticky, but not too wet. You might have to try a few times to find the best amount of water for the particular rice, but the above percentage normally works well for me.
If you cook rice regularly, I highly recommend having a rice cooker. It’s so much easier and worth spending money! I personally can’t live without a rice cooker!
Making sushi vinegar
1. While rice is being cooked, we can make Sushi Vinegar. I have tried many different recipes, but below recipe has been my favorite so far.
2. All you need is to measure each ingredient, add them in a small pot and cook on medium heat till sugar and salt are dissolved.
That’s it, super easy!
Mixing the rice and vinegar
Once the rice is cooked, you want to mix the Sushi vinegar while it’s hot. I have a wooden barrel for mixing, like above picture. First, I wet the barrel (so the rice doesn’t stick), then put the cooked rice while it’s hot.Sprinkle sushi vinegar and mix them with a cutting motion. You don’t want to press the grain of rice too hard, so I usually mixed it in cutting motion, as if I’m cutting the big chunk of sushi rice, then scoop from the bottom.Once the rice and vinegar are well mixes, you need to cool it down. I normally cover it with a wet cloth and leave it for 15-30 mins to cool it down.
That’s it. Now you have shiny tasty sushi rice!
You can spread the sushi rice on top of a sheet of Nori seaweed, top with your favorite toppings and roll it, voila! You got the homemade sushi!!!
On my next post, I’d like to show you how I make the flower Sushi roll.
It needs a few more ingredients and tricks, but it’s not as hard as it looks.
Hope you’ll enjoy your sushi rice and see you next time!
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