Sushi is one of the most characteristic and extremely popular dishes of Japanese cuisine. The dish, which includes raw fish, vegetables, pressed algae and a specific type of rice, won the hearts of gourmets around the world. How to make sushi rice?

Sushi rice – characteristics

Sushi consists of cooked and seasoned with vinegar rice with the addition of eggs, fish, vegetables, mushrooms, seafood and nori seaweed. Sushi restaurants are prepared “live” due to the short shelf life of the dish. Shari is a type of acidified rice that the Japanese use to make delicious sushi. Rice, which is used to prepare this world-famous Japanese dish, is slightly different from the classic addition to dishes. Shari always prepares one type of rice – it is strictly forbidden to mix species. The very method of preparing shari is important – rice for sushi is different, for example, from rice, which is added to Indian dishes. Short-grain rice grains reach a length of about 5 mm and take a slightly round shape. Due to the high content of amylopectin, the grains after cooking easily stick together, which makes making sushi easier.

How to cook rice for sushi?

We cook rice for sushi in a slightly different way than e.g. loose rice for Indian dishes. The basis here is the small amount of water we use. There are many different varieties of short-grain rice on the market, and the proportions of rice: water may be slightly different in some cases. If we see that after cooking, the rice does not stick well enough to be able to prepare e.g. maki-sushi, the next time you need to change the proportions a bit, as well as cooking time. As in many cases, in this case, the best way to prepare the perfect rice for sushi is nothing but practice, because as you know it makes perfect!

How to make sushi rice?
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Ingredients:

  • 500g rice for sushi
  • 600ml water
  • 1 piece of Kombu algae (optional)
  • 8 tablespoons sushi mortar (or 8 tablespoons rice vinegar combined with 2 tablespoons sugar and 1/2 teaspoon salt – see recipe how to prepare rice mortar correctly)

 

Here’s a recipe on how to cook rice for sushi correctly:

  • Wash the rice in cold water until the cast water is clear
  • Pour rice with cold water in a 1: 1 or 1: 1.2 ratio (rice: water), do not salt!
  • put the pot down for 10 minutes
  • we cut kombu in several places to release the aroma during cooking and put rice on top
  • cover tightly with a lid, put on gas and bring to a boil
  • Immediately after boiling, pull out the kombu and cover the pot back
  • reduce the heat and cook for about 10 minutes
  • remove from heat and leave for 10-15 minutes, all the time covered. After removing the combi lid, never remove the lid!
  • translate hot rice into a wide, non-metallic bowl,
  • we add mortar to rice and mix with a wooden spatula – vigorously but gently, so as not to break the beans
  • cool the rice, e.g. by fanning it to room temperature, then cover it with a damp cotton cloth to prevent the grains from drying out

So prepared, slightly shiny rice at ambient temperature, it is ready to make sushi. Remember not to apply hot rice to nori! Nori will quickly absorb moisture, making it rubbery and unfit for consumption.

 

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