Nori Maki

Date: Mon, 08 Nov 93 11:49:29 CST
From: cgibas@wraightc3.life.uiuc.edu (Cynthia J. Gibas)

this is what we had for dinner last night, a recipe for nori-maki
which is from an out-of-print book called 'Japanese Cooking: A Simple Art'.
I got this in a used book store for a fairly exorbitant price, but it was
worth it. One of the most detailed and beautiful japanese cookbooks I've
ever seen. Anyway, I just eliminate the fish-flakes from the recipes now and
everything is perfectly low-fat...

Rice:

3 1/3 c. short-grain white rice
4 c. water
1 3" square of kombu (kelp)

Dressing:

dissolve (must completely dissolve) 5 T sugar in 6 T. unseasoned rice vinegar.
(Marukan (?) has green trimmed label for unseasoned). Add about 4 t. sea salt.
(I do not like it quite so salty. Taste the dressing and see what you think).

bring rice to a boil. Boil for 2 minutes. Cover, reduce heat and simmer
until all water is absorbed. Wrap pot lid in a towel and cover again. Turn
off heat and let stand for 15 minutes. Pour rice into a large bowl. My large
Rubbermaid bowl is a perfect sushi-rice making instrument, and I don't
question that, I just use it. The book recommends a wooden bowl. Stir the
rice, and slowly drizzle the dressing over it while you stir. As you do this,
either have someone fan the rice with a piece of newspaper or something, or
aim a small fan at it, at low speed. Try to stir gently and not break the
grains of rice. After about 10 min, the rice will be sticky and somewhat
cooler.

Filling and stuff:

You'll need about 8 sheets of nori seaweed.

Anything veggie *can* be a filling. I recommend combinations of any of the
following:

cucumber cut into long strips
lightly cooked carrots, cut into long strips
rehydrated and stewed (in water plus 2 T. rice wine) kampyo or gourd strips
rehydrated and stewed (in the leftover gourd water) shiitake mushrooms
alfalfa sprouts
red pepper strips
pickled plums
blanched asparagus spears
white radish cut into long strips

for those who can deal with a little vegetable fat, some 'restricted'
ingredients can be used

sesame seeds
tempeh (stewed in the leftover mushroom/gourd water
avocado, cut into strips

Place a piece of nori on a sushi mat (looks like lots of little bamboo rods
tied together; stiff in one direction and flexible in the other). You should
be rolling the nori along its long axis. Cover about 2/3 of the sheet of
nori with a 1 cm. layer of rice, leaving about 1/2 inch bare at the bottom
and 1 1/2 inch at the top. Place desired fillings in a line across the rice,
approximately in the middle. Fold nori over so that the rice rolls around
the fillings; tuck short edge of bare nori into the inside of the roll and
wrap long edge around. Wrap the sushi mat around the roll and use it to
firmly pack the rice together. Gentle pressure should be used, so that the
nori doesn't crack; the end product should be round and firm enough to be
easily sliced with a sharp knife. This requires some practice, yes.

Leftover nori rolls make a great lunch.