Mosaic Sushi

Mosaic Sushi

I have been enjoying myself making mosaic sushi. I even carved carrots to roses and leaves. Here is the recipe for making the sushi rice and also how to make the colors.  To color the rice I steamed carrots, broccoli, tomatoes and even mushrooms. Than mixing them one and one to a smooth paste. After I made the sushi rice I divided the sushi rice in different bowls and added the colors to the rice. For this I only had carrot sticks, fishsticks marinaded in soy sauce and colored rice.

To make the mosaic just use your creativity and imagination.

Ingredients needed in addition to the ingredients for the rice are carrots, nori-sheets and your choice of fish or other fillings you like. You could use salmon, tuna, shrimps or anything you like. I just used what I had this evening which was some homemade fishcakes from cod that I cut in sticks.

Preparing  Sushi  Rice  

Instructions:

Step 1: Wash the rice

Start by measuring out  the  rice. You want to cook about 80 grams of uncooked sushi rice per sushi roll.

Place  the  rice in a washing bowl then wash thoroughly with cold water using your  hands to rub the rice together making it release any excess starch, keep washing the  rice till the  water runs clear, this should take 5-7 washes.

Step 2: Cooking Sushi Rice
Place  the  rice in a sieve  to let the  water from the  washing drain out,  then place the  rice in a rice cooker or a pan with a lid.

Add 150 % water to your 100 % rice, so for 100 grams of rice you add 150 ml of water. If you have a rice cooker, close the  rice cooker then start it, once the  rice cooker stops cooking leave  the  rice in the  cooker with the  lid closed for another 10 min, at no point during the cooking should you remove the rice cookers lid.

If you cook in a pan like me, put the lid on and let it cook until the water is absorbed. Don´t burn. Add some little extra water if necessary. Keep the lid on and as you remove the pan from the stove to cool.

Step 3: Seasoning the Sushi Rice

Place  your  cooked sushi rice in a large  bowl. Traditionally a large  wooden bowl known as a  “Hangiri” or “Oke” is used, the  wood of the  Hangiri  helps absorbe excess rice vinegar always giving you perfectly seasoned sushi rice. If you don’t have a hangiri you can use  a large  plastic container. Make shore its very large  and shallow preferably with a flat bottom. 

Now you want to add “Sushi rice vinegar” this will season your  rice, making it taste delicious. You can either make your  own, using the  recipe below or you can buy ready made Sushi  rice vinegar. 

You want to add 15 ml  per  100 g cooked sushi rice, for this just assume that the  uncooked rice has doubled in weight, don’t go trying  to weigh  the  hot  rice. It`s best to add the  sushi rice vinegar as fast as possible so that the  mixture can be absorbed by the  hot  rice. It is essential to use  a spatula when pouring the mixture to evenly  cover  all the  rice so that you don’t  have  patches of strong taste and other spots with non at all.

Sushi Rice Vinegar Recipe Mix

– 9 Tbsp  Rice Vinegar

– 3 Tbsp  Sugar

– 1 Tbsp  Mirin (sweet sake)

– Tbsp  Salt

Once  mixed heat the  mixture to the  point just before boiling,  then let it rest. After adding the mixture you want to start separating the  individual rice grains while gently mixing them around so they  all get a chance to absurd the  sushi rice vinegar.

Once  the  sushi rice is seasoned you want to cool it down to body  temperature, just remember to turn the  rice over  to cool it down uniformly.

Step 5: Storing

Its best to use  the  rice straight away  but  in any case you will want to move the  rice to a large bowl and then cover  with a damp towel,  this is done to prevent the  top  layer  of rice drying  out.

How long  can you  store the sushi rice? in my experience sushi rice is like pasta you really don’t want to eat  old pasta, none the  less  you can still make sushi roll with it up to 8 hours after making it, as long as you stored in a warm environment like for example a rice cooker on the keep warm setting.