Sushi: Surprisingly Easy

Made sushi last night successfully for the first time. I thought it was going to be terribly complicated and difficult. It was a bit sticky and a bit messy, but well worth it.

I’d tried making sushi once before but was unable to roll the roll- which meant I put the book back on the shelf and forgot about it. This time around I went slowly and followed the instructions for the rice very carefully. That was the trick. The rice has to be at a very precise texture so it all sticks together. Cutting the rolls began badly. The knife must be incredibly sharp or everything falls apart. Fortunately I remembered my cuchillo jamonero, a spanish knife designed to cut ham very finely, it worked perfectly.

I love the idea of vegetarian sushi. It opens up a whole world of interesting options and combinations. As it was my first time, I kept it simple. The roll was cucumber, avocado and mushroom, the oshi-zushi was mango, avocado and cashew nuts. I’ll have to sit down and think about how to refine the flavours for the future, but in all it was a promising start.

I’m not turning completely vegetarian, but after watching a documentary called Food Inc. a few weeks ago I decided it was time to seriously reconsider what we eat. Not that we had a bad diet, if we have fast food it’s once a year at the most- but I did occasionally buy a processed dish or two. Maybe a frozen quiche or ready-made tomato sauce, and I didn’t pay too close attention to meat origin. That Is Over. Never again will I buy a tray of ground beef at the supermarket or chicken that’s not marked free range. In fact, I’m making an effort to only buy what’s produced right here in our region.