California rolls are probably one of the tastiest - and healthiest - snack foods ever created. And while they may, at first glance, look daunting to make, all it takes is a little know-how for you to be making the freshest and most flavoursome California rolls you've ever tasted. Here's how:
Ingredients:
2 cups sushi rice
2.5 cups water
100ml rice vinegar
2 tbsps white suga
2 tsps salt
1 crab, dressed (white meat only)
1 ripe Hass avocado
3-4 sheets Nori seaweed
Mayonnaise (to taste, but allow a couple of tablespoons)
2 tsps wasabi paste (optional)
Sesame seeds and/or flying fish roe to garnish
Utensils:
Saucepan with close-fitting lid (or use your rice cooker if you have one)
Wide shallow bowl/dish
Plastic or bamboo rice paddle or spatula
Bamboo sushi rolling mat
Sharp knife
Some clingfilm
First, don't be put off by the long ingredients list! The starting place for any sushi is in preparing the rice. Wash the rice in a sieve until the water runs clear, then put it into a saucepan with a close-fitting lid. Add the water, put the lid on and bring the water to the boil. Once the water has boiled, turn the rice down to simmer for 10 minutes with the lid still firmly on. Resist the temptation to lift the lid and check on progress - you should be able to hear whether it's doing OK. Turn the heat out beneath the pan and leave the rice to stand for another 10 minutes before you even think about removing the lid.
While the rice is standing, mix the rice vinegar, sugar and salt together and heat gently until the sugar and salt have dissolved. You can do this in a saucepan over a low heat or put the ingredients in a microwave for 15 second bursts, whichever is easier for you.
Transfer the rice to a wide shallow dish. If you're using a wooden or bamboo dish, make sure you soak it in water for 15 minutes before putting the rice in, or it's likely to stick. Spread it out to help it cool, and start to mix in the rice vinegar mixture as evenly as you can with the rice paddle. Not only does this help it cool, it gives the sushi rice its characteristic glossy look, as well as stopping it from becoming too sticky. Since rice brands may vary, you may need more or less of the vinegar mixture: stop adding it once the rice is still holding together, but can easily be separated. Using less will make life easier than using more!
While the rice finishes cooling, prepare the remaining ingredients for your California roll. First, take the crab from its shell and separate off the white meat: the more pungent dark meat and coral doesn't get used in this recipe. Then halve the avocado, remove take the half that has no stone in it and peel it. Slice it lengthways into quarter inch batons.
Now take a sheet of nori and cut it in half, in the same direction as the perforations. Take one of the pieces and place it shiny side down on your sushi rolling mat, long edge in front of you. Leaving empty a one-inch strip on the long edge closest to you, wet your hand and spread a handful of rice evenly across the nori until it's about half an inch thick.
Next, move the nori and rice to one side and put a sheet of clingfilm over the mat. Now take the nori and rice and turn them over onto the clingfilm, rice side down, with the clear strip of nori nearest to you. If you're using wasabi - I don't, because I don't want to spoil the delicate taste of the crab - smear a thin line of paste across the nori at the point where the rice layer beneath begins. Then smear a line of mayonnaise down over the wasabi - how much you put in is a matter of personal preference, but try to put in enough to taste without it overpowering the crab.
Next take some of the crab and spread it in a line next to the wasabi. It's up to you how much you put in: if you like monster rolls, use a larger piece of nori and leave a slightly larger clear strip. Never mix the crab with the mayonnaise before putting it in the roll, as the mayo will drown out the crab. Finally, take a few sticks of avocado and place them on top of the crab in a line.
Now you're ready to roll - literally. Pull on the clear strip of nori and position the whole shebang so that the clear edge is lines up with the edge of the mat (bamboo sticks running horizontally not vertically). Lift up the edge with the mat and start rolling it forward over the filling. It can be helpful to tuck the nori over the filling with your fingers the first few times you do it until you're more confident. Now, keeping an even pressure across the mat so everything remains compact, roll the mat forward: if you could see this from the side it would start out looking like a C and then, as rolloing progresses and you have excess mat at the top, would take on an S shape as the mat flops back over your hands.
The end result should be a nice inside-out roll. You can either eat it as is or give it more of a restaurant feel by scattering either sesame seeds or flying fish roe on a board and rolling your California roll in them. To finish, wet a sharp knife with a good size blade (6-7 inches), cut the roll in half, then line the two halves up and cut through both twice to create 6 even pieces.
While this may not net you the perfect California roll first time round, a little practice should soon have you impressing friends and family alike. Enjoy!