Simply Sushi

Say sushi to anyone who hasn’t discovered the delights of this ancient Asian treat and chances are they will turn up their nose and declare, “I’ll never eat raw fish!” Yet the kind of sushi that uses raw fish wasn’t even invented until 1824. 

Sushi actually originated about the 4th century B.C. in Southeast Asia as a way to preserve fish. Salted fish was stored in rice which fermented and helped to preserve the fish. After several months, the fish was eaten and the rice was thrown away. Around the 8th century this method was introduced to Japan where the people were used to eating rice with their fish. Slowly sushi evolved from a preservation method to a cuisine. During the Edo era, the rice began to be mixed with vinegar, vegetables and other foods. Today, each area of Japan has its own traditional type of sushi. 

Here are some easy ways to prepare delicious sushi rice without the use of raw fish or of seaweed. 


Sushi Rice Cakes

1 cup sushi (short grain) rice
1 ½ cup water
2 Tbsp. Marukan Seasoned Gourmet Rice Vinegar 
Lite Dressing (or any flavored vinegar)
2 Tbsp. Sugar
½ tsp. salt
8 sweet potato leaves or lettuce leaves
Regular size canning jar lid and band
Vegetable toppings (see suggestions below)
Sauce (see suggestions below)

Cook rice and water in a rice cooker, or follow directions on package of sushi rice. Dump rice in a large bowl and allow to cool slightly. In a small pan, bring the vinegar, sugar and salt to a boil just long enough for the sugar to dissolve. Allow to cool for a few minutes. Gently stir your vinegar mix into the rice. Cover a cutting board with waxed paper to turn out your rice cakes on. Spray the jar lid lightly with cooking spray to keep the rice from sticking. Turn the lid upside down in your hand and fill it with rice, pressing the rice down with the bowl of a spoon. Place a sweet potato or lettuce leaf face down on the top of your mould and turn the mould over onto the waxed paper covered board. Unmould your rice cake by pushing down on the lid. When all your rice cakes have been molded, decorate the tops however you wish. This amount will make 8. When cakes have cooled thoroughly, move them to a serving platter. Serve with a sauce if you like.

Toppings: any type of raw or slightly cooked vegetable, a cooked shrimp, piece of crabmeat or other meat if you like. We put a handful of frozen shelled edamame (soy beans) in a bowl with a few frozen carrot slices and added about a tsp. of water before microwaving them for 2 minutes. We also soaked dried black fungus in warm water and drained for an accent. On some, we used small pieces of pickled ginger. You could use pieces of cucumber, green onion tops, celery curls, etc. Toast a few sesame seed and sprinkle on top if you like. A hard boiled egg sliced would make a nice topping. Part of the charm of Asian food is that is it presented in such an attractive manner. 

Sauces: Another part of the fun of Asian food is the use of so many different types of sauces. These little sushi cakes don’t really need a sauce, but you can have fun experimenting with one or more. Mix very small amounts in a tiny sauce dish and present with a demitasse spoon so your guests can drizzle a little on their sushi cakes. 

Some simple sauces to try:

- Soy sauce and rice vinegar, half and half; add a few slices of pickled ginger.

- Soy sauce with a small amount of crushed garlic.

- Soy sauce with lemon juice and garlic powder (not salt!).

- Teriyaki sauce with slices of pickled ginger.

- Olive oil with a few crushed basil leaves.

Sushi with shrimp

Thin bamboo skewers
Large uncooked shrimp, shell on
Shrimp boil
Rice vinegar

Run a skewer lengthwise through each shrimp; you can put about three on each skewer and cut the skewer with kitchen shears between each when threaded. Cook in your favorite shrimp boil just until the shrimp turn pink, about 3 minutes. Plunge shrimp immediately into a bowl of ice and water. Remove skewers. Peel shrimp, leaving tail on. De-vein if necessary and with a sharp knife, slit the shrimp on the inside almost to the back to butterfly. Sprinkle a couple of Tbsp. rice vinegar on shrimp to marinate for a few minutes, storing in refrigerator until ready to stuff. 

Put a cup of ice water by your work area; dip your fingers in the water as needed to keep the rice from sticking to you. Pack each shrimp with rice and sprinkle on black sesame seed, toasted sesame seed, or decorate with a thin piece of pickled red ginger. Present on a lime slice. Store in refrigerator until ready to serve. 



Confetti Sushi Moulds

Sushi rice
Chopped additives
Small individual tart mould

Chop about ¾ to 1 cup of additives into very small pieces. We used a few boiled shrimp, celery, 1 piece of carrot, a few edamame, a few pieces of softened black fungus, 1 small green onion. Prepare sushi rice as above. Gently stir in the additives. Lightly spray the inside of a decorative mould with cooking spray. Fill mould and pack down using your fingers. Keep a cup of ice water on your work area to keep rice from sticking to your fingers. When mould is tightly packed, turn each piece out on a potato or lettuce leaf. Decorate each piece with something pretty and colorful such as a boiled egg slice, parsley, a single boiled shrimp, a few edamame, etc. Refrigerate, covered, until serving.



Sushi and ham

Sushi rice
Thin honey sliced ham
Wasabi mayonnaise

Put a piece of waxed paper on a cutting board. Put a large ball of sushi rice on the paper and cover with another piece of waxed paper. Use a small book or another cutting board to press down until the rice spreads out into a flat layer about ½” thick. Remove top paper and spread a thin layer of wasabi mayonnaise on the rice. Place a thin layer of honey ham next. Top the ham with more sushi rice. Replace the second paper and press again to make a top layer like the first one. Chill in the refrigerator for about 20 minutes to set rice. Using a sharp knife, cut the ham sushi into squares. It helps to dip the knife into ice water between each cut. Carefully life each square onto a potato or lettuce leaf and place on serving tray. Garnish with small colorful vegetable pieces.



Wasabi mayonnaise

In a small sauce bowl, mix a couple of Tbsp. of mayonnaise with a small amount of wasabi powder. ½ tsp. will make a spicy batch. Don’t be fooled. The wasabi needs to set for about 30 minutes to bring out the flavor. If you use too much, after about 30 minutes even a taste will tend to blow your head off.