Wrap fresh crab, cucumber, and seasoned rice with nori, sushi-grade fish, and avocado for these colorful rolls.
Active Time:1 hr
Total Time:1 hr 45 mins
Servings:4 servings
Yield:4 rolls
These bright, colorful maki rolls are a great way to show off tender sushi-grade fish. Be sure to use Kewpie mayonnaise for the sauce; it’s made with egg yolks and vinegar, which make it extra rich and creamy. Here, we mix Kewpie with togarashi, mirin, and salt and then toss fresh crab meat with it for an extra pop of flavor that shows off the sweetness of the crab.
Drizzling mirin — a slightly sweet, tangy Japanese rice wine — over the rice as it cools helps break up the rice so it doesn’t clump and speeds along the cooling process. It also imparts extra punchy flavor into the rice as it soaks up a bit of the mirin.
It’s important to keep the maki tight as you roll it, so it holds its shape. Keep the bamboo mat and the plastic wrap you use for rolling the maki dry at all times, otherwise your nori will become soggy and sticky, which makes it hard to handle. As well, make sure your hands are damp but not dripping wet. Roll each maki in increments, tucking, pulling, and pressing every quarter turn of the way, to make sure the rice sticks to itself and the roll stays tight. Serve these rolls with wasabi, pickled ginger, and soy sauce.
Ingredients
1 1/2 cups uncooked white sushi rice
2 cups water
2 tablespoons Kewpie mayonnaise
1/2 teaspoon shichimi togarashi
1/2 teaspoon mirin
1/16 teaspoon kosher salt
2/3 cup fresh lump crabmeat (about 4 1/4 ounces), drained and picked over
1/4 cup seasoned rice vinegar, divided
2 (10-ounce) skinless fresh sushi-grade fish fillets (such as tuna, salmon, and yellowtail)
2 small (about 4 ounces each) avocados, divided
4 (8- x 8-inch) toasted nori sheets
1/2 tablespoon black sesame seeds
1/2 tablespoon white sesame seeds
1 small (3-ounce) Persian cucumber, cut into 1/8- x 1/2-inch matchsticks (about 3/4 cup)
1/4 cup pickled ginger, drained
4 teaspoons wasabi paste
Soy sauce
Directions
Place rice in a large bowl; add enough cold water to cover rice by 1 inch. Let soak for 15 minutes. Drain rice in a fine mesh strainer. Rinse rice under cold water, agitating grains with your hand to release starch, until water runs clear, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer rice to a medium saucepan, and add 2 cups water. Bring to a boil over high. Reduce heat to low; cover and cook until rice absorbs water, about 15 minutes. Remove from heat; let rice stand, covered, for 10 minutes. (You will have 4 cups cooked rice).
While rice cooks, stir together mayonnaise, togarashi, mirin, and salt in a small bowl. Add crabmeat, and toss to coat. Set aside.
Transfer cooked rice to a baking dish (such as a 13- x 9-inch baking pan) or a large bowl; drizzle with 1 tablespoon of the vinegar. Using a rice paddle, fold rice from outer edges into the center, and gently fluff. Be careful not to smash the rice; simply break apart the clumps. Repeat drizzling, folding, and fluffing process with remaining 3 tablespoons vinegar. Cover with a damp towel, and let cool to room temperature, about 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, slice fish fillets across the grain into 1/8-inch-thick slices. Slice 1 avocado into 1/4-inch-thick slices for the inside of the roll; slice remaining avocado into 1/8-inch-thick slices to drape across top of the roll. Place in refrigerator until ready to use.
Cover or wrap a 9 1/2-inch bamboo sushi mat with plastic wrap, and place on a clean work surface. Fill a small bowl with warm water, and place next to work area. Place 1 nori sheet on bamboo mat, aligning the lines on the nori with the threads of the mat running crosswise. Scoop about 1 cup prepared rice onto nori sheet. Dampen hands with warm water; gently press rice into an even layer over nori, completely covering edges of nori. Sprinkle evenly with one-fourth of the black and white sesame seeds (about 3/8 teaspoon each). Carefully flip nori sheet over so that the rice is touching the plastic wrap and nori sheet is facing up. Arrange 6 to 8 cucumber pieces lengthwise along bottom third of the nori sheet. Top with about 2 tablespoons crabmeat mixture and 2 or 3 of the 1/4-inch-thick avocado slices. Using the bamboo mat and plastic wrap, lift and roll the bottom of sushi-nori sheet up and over filling, tucking the bottom of nori around filling and gently pulling and pressing on the bamboo mat. Continue to roll/tuck/press in quarter-turn increments until filling is tightly enclosed by the sushi-nori sheet. Firmly hold, pull, and gently tighten the bamboo-wrapped sushi roll to seal. Remove bamboo and plastic wrap from sushi roll. Wipe down plastic-wrapped mat with a paper towel, or replace plastic wrap (it will make nori soggy and hard to work with if it gets too damp). Repeat process 3 times to make 4 sushi rolls total.
Arrange fish slices and reserved 1/8-inch-thick avocado slices evenly among the tops of sushi rolls, arranging pieces diagonally overlapping slightly, and alternating pieces.
Wet a clean kitchen towel with hot water. Wipe your sharpest knife with a wet towel, and cut each sushi roll into 6 to 8 slices, wiping knife between each cut to ensure a clean cut. Serve sushi rolls with pickled ginger, wasabi, and soy sauce.
