Future Foods SUSHI Rice
Sushi rice is a type of short-grain, sticky rice that’s typically used for Japanese dishes. It has an optimal texture when it’s cooked to be slightly on the drier side and holds together well without being too wet or dry. The glutinous quality of sushi rice makes it perfect for making rolls because they’ll stay together in your hand as you roll them up like a cone shape. This article will provide a step-by-step guide for how to make sushi rice that you would find at a sushi restaurant
Introduction
Sushi rice is what makes sushi, well, sushi. It’s a type of short-grain Japanese rice (as opposed to regular rice like medium-grain rice or long-grain rice) that has been seasoned with salt and vinegar. Traditionally, the grains are steamed over boiling water. The resulting rice should have a sticky texture and be sticky enough to handle but not so sticky that it becomes impossible to work with once cooled.
The term ‘sushi’ itself refers to vinegared rice combined or topped with other ingredients such as raw fish or vegetables which have both been prepared separately by themselves before being assembled together atop the bed of warm white rice.
The process of making sushi is a multi-step, laborious one that can take up to an hour and often requires the assistance of another person in order to prepare. It starts with putting rice vinegar into a bowl before adding it to cooked white rice. This mixture will be left for around 15 minutes (or more) so as the grains absorb all the liquid while becoming tender at the same time. The steamed rice should then be cooled down using ice or cold water before being seasoned with salt; this step also ensures that each grain of sushi ends up tasting evenly salted without any clumps depending on where you add your seasoning from.
Once mixed, sushi rice needs to rest again for several hours – ideally overnight if possible – so it’s best to prepare the grains ahead of time if you’re planning on making sushi for a large group.
The following day, your rice should have come out with an even consistency and ready to be used in any type of poke bowl or homemade sushi dish from nigiri or temaki hand rolls, nori seaweed wrapped makizushi, inside other rolled dishes such as chirashi-zushi which is then topped off with vegetables and more fish before being cut into bite size pieces (a similar process that happens when slicing cake), or California rolls.
History of sushi rice
The earliest form of sushi was a type of fast food that originated in Japan. It consisted of cooked rice mixed with vinegar and salt, which was served at some local restaurants as early as the 1820s (probably earlier). In time, other ingredients were added to the dish such as smoked fish or pickled vegetables. One legend tells us that this “fast” cuisine became known as “Edomae-zushi” because it would be ready to eat within hours after being made.
Sushi is believed to have been introduced outside Japan by Hanaya Yohei who started selling Edomae zushi near the end of 1800s up until WWII but he passed away before its popularity began to grow.
Today, sushi is the most common form of Japanese cuisine served outside Japan and it has been adapted to suit local needs and preferences.
The ingredients for sushi rice can vary, but the most common are: cooked short-grain white or brown rice seasoned with a mixture of salt and sugar. The seasoning ratio is usually around one tablespoon of sugar for every cup of Japanese variety Rice (Japonica). The salt is either table salt or sea salt, which will depend on personal taste preferences as well as other dishes being served alongside it in accordance to the idea that “one dish should not overpower another.”
In order to make this type of dish you need very specific tools and materials like a bamboo mat called an “oshibako” or “ohenro,” which helps with shaping the round nigiri into their distinctive cone shape while still keeping them intact. You also need a bamboo rolling mat, which is used to form the perfect sushi roll and keep it from unravelling in one direction.
The process of making this delicious dish usually starts with cooking rice – either by steaming or boiling methods. Once you’ve finished preparing your rice, you can put some on a plate or large bowl and cover it with plastic wrap for up to 30 minutes before use. This allows the grains of cooked rice to absorb moisture so they are not too dry when pressing them together (similarly, if over-cooked then additional water will be required). In addition: if using Japanese short grain Rice (Japonica), add sugar during soaking time; otherwise, wait until after draining off excess liquid.
Add a mixture of vinegar, sugar and salt to the cooked rice. The ratio for this is usually about one tablespoon of each per cup of Japanese variety Rice (Japonica). This should create enough liquid to coat all grains in sushi rice without any remaining dry patches on them. Add more seasoning if necessary at this time. Taste-test your sushi rice broth before pouring it over the individual pieces – then adjust accordingly until you get just the right balance between salty and sweet; or up your measurements with either vinegar or sugar as needed until satisfied with taste.
Do not discard leftover cooking water! You can use it when making other dishes like soup, stir fry noodles, dumplings etc., because while boiling away some of the nutrients, it’s also concentrating the others.
Once everything has been mixed well together, leave it to cool down in order for the flavors to penetrate throughout every grain of cooked rice by steaming off some water vapor from cooking process while still leaving its raw flavor intact. It will be better if you wait about 30 minutes after mixing with vinegars and sugars before serving to let rice cool down.
Do you want create a delicious plate of sushi with clean white grains and rich deep colors? Then it’s time for the rolling mat! The process starts by taking your bamboo mat, which is used to form the perfect roll and keep from unravelling in one direction. Place some cooled down cooked rice on top of this rolling mat with a wooden spoon – then spread evenly so that there are no gaps between layers. Wet hands with water or sake if necessary, grab small amounts of cooked rice but do not press too hard; instead use gentle strokes to shape them into long sticks called nigiri. Once they have been shaped properly place them onto plastic wrap-lined sheet pan – or on a plate with more plastic wrap as needed to cover.
How to make sushi rice
PERFECT SUSHI RICE RECIPE
INGREDIENTS
DIRECTIONS
Step One: Cook the rice
This will take about three cups of sushi rice and two tablespoons of salt. The water should be boiling before you add in the rice. You can use a pot on your stove or an instant pot electric rice cooker if that is easier for you.
- Add water to a pot and bring it to a boil on high heat.
- Once the water is boiling, add in uncooked rice until the top of the pot is level with an inch from the top of the pan.
- Cover and let rice cook for 12 minutes or up to 20 minutes if you prefer your sushi rice softer than most people would like theirs (rice will continue cooking after removed from heat).
- Remove lid but keep stirring for five minutes on low heat so that excess moisture evaporates without getting too much browned from direct contact with hot metal.
- Spread rice out onto sushi oke or hangiri (a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or glass dish will work as well) before cooling down quickly by putting into cold running water while continually folding back over itself to release rice steam and cool more quickly. This is the perfect sushi rice with the perfect texture.
This process will make about four cups of cooked sushi rice, so you’ll need to quadruple it if you want more than that for a party or dinner for friends and family (a good rule of thumb is one cup per person).
Step Two: Mix vinegar with sugar
- Add enough rice vinegar to make four teaspoons worth (or just eyeball it).
- Then stir in equal amounts of sugar according to how much cooked, cooled white rice there is; this will also depend on how sweet you want your finished dish. If possible, mix together while still warm to make your sushi vinegar.
Step Three: Add the vinegar mixture to your cooked white rice
- Add sushi vinegar to cooked rice. The liquid should cover all of it so that you can stir and coat everything with a thin, even layer.
Step Four: Wait for your vinegar-rice dish to cool completely before adding anything else on top
- You want it cool enough where if you were tasting by hand, there would be no warmth coming from what is underneath your tongue as you chew.
- If not using right away, store cooled sushi rice covered tightly in glass container up to three days.