homemade vegetable sushi

okay, let's get real here.  it seems like everyone i know loves sushi.  so many of my friends have this deep love for sushi . . . the kind of love where they crave it and can't live without it.  i have always felt like i was missing something when it came to sushi.  the idea of eating raw seafood never appealed to me at all, not only because of the texture, but because when i was in elementary school one of my friends actually got a parasite from a sushi restaurant.  talk about gross.  she was out of school for two whole months!

needless to say, sushi never sounded appetizing to me.  sure, i know that you can order sushi with just vegetables in it, but somehow it just never seemed like something i wanted to spend my money on.  lately, i have been seeing a ton of recipes online for "homemade" sushi.  after spending a good deal of time reading through several sushi recipes, i was amazed at how easy it actually is to make your own sushi.

so, i ventured out and purchased all of the supplies that i needed, and i figured that it couldn't hurt to give it a try.  after all, if i didn't like it, it wasn't like i spent a ton of money on one single sushi roll in a restaurant.

to make your own homemade sushi, start off by gathering your sushi supplies . . .

i found all of the sushi supplies at my local grocery store, and honestly, i was shocked at how inexpensive they were.  i bought a huge bag of calrose rice for $5.  not bad, considering there are 50 servings in the bag and we can use the rice for other things like stir fry.  the pack of nori (roasted seaweed) was only $1.99, and i was happy to see that there was absolutely no fat, cholesterol, or sodium in it.  the bamboo rolling mat was only $1.29, and of course, it is reusable.

cover your bamboo rolling mat with plastic wrap.  (i read this suggestion online, and in the end i was happy i did it because it made cleaning up super simple.)  lay your bamboo rolling mat on a flat surface with the bamboo facing horizontally. 

choose which vegetables you would like to put inside your sushi roll, and slice them into strips.  for the inside of my sushi roll, i cut strips of avocado, red bell pepper, and cucumber.  

cook the rice according to the directions on the bag.  for one sushi roll, i used one serving (1/4 cup) of rice.  after the rice is cooked, mix a few drops of rice vinegar into the rice and let the rice cool.

place one sheet of nori on the bamboo rolling mat.  (almost immediately after i did this step, i had a furry little helper inspecting  it.  he went wild smelling the seaweed . . . it was absolutely hysterical.)

with wet hands, gently press the rice on the nori.  (if your hands are not wet, you will be absolutely covered in rice, i guarantee it.)  leave a small section uncovered at the top of the nori so that the roll will stick together.

placed the vegetables across the middle of the rice.  (i stuffed mine pretty full with vegetables.)

begin rolling the bottom edge of the nori with your hands.  then, use the bamboo rolling mat to firmly squeeze the roll together.  after it is secure, continue rolling it with the bamboo rolling mat, until it is completely rolled.

there you have your sushi roll.  (i was amazed at how well it held together!)

using a sharp knife, cut the roll into even pieces.

. . .and voila!  homemade sushi.

i chose to dip mine in low-sodium soy sauce.  i actually liked my vegetable sushi roll, and after eating it, i was surprised at how full i was!

now that i successfully survived my first attempt at sushi, i want to try making it again with other vegetables.  maybe i will even try cooked fish or chicken.  i liked dipping my sushi in the soy sauce, but i also want to try some wasabi and fresh ginger on the side too.

my next adventure will be to make an inside-out sushi roll (where the rice is on the outside of the roll) . . . i'll let you know how it goes!

enjoy!

love, laurie