Sushi for Dinner

Gluten free- dairy free- low sugar- egg free- nut free- vegetarian option
I love a meal that's super easy and that everyone in the family loves. Home made Sushi Rolls are one of those in our house. We fill ours full of vegetables, maybe a little omelette or tuna...or if I want to go to more effort I'll cook up some Teriyaki Chicken. Other than cooking some rice, all it takes is a bit of chopping. We put everything in the centre of the table and make them ourselves. The kids love a meal that they get to choose what to put in it, and I don't mind, because it's all vegetables, so it's all good! I used to be a bit scared of Sushi because it seemed so hard to get it to roll properly and stay tight and look good. But when you're making your own for dinner, none of that matters! We cut the nori sheets (seaweed paper) in half and make a nice long roll- no need for cutting once they're rolled.

There's no set ingredients list for this - it's a matter of personal preference for what to put in them, and the quantity is according to how many people you want to serve.  For our family of four, I usually cook 4 cups of rice. This makes 3 or 4 rolls each (a total of 2 nori sheets per person) and also gives us enough left-over rice to make some rolls for school lunches the next day. Winner! Here's what we use:

Ingredients

• Nori Sheets
  

• Sushi Rice

• Bottled Sushi Seasoning

• Tamari (gluten free soy sauce)
  

Any of the following julienne vegetables:

• carrot

• snow peas

• cucumber

• red capsicum

• spring onions

• avocado

For extra flavour:

• Pickled ginger (found in the asian food section of the supermarket or look for it in an organic food store for one without weird colourings)
  

• Wasabi

If you want to add protein:

• Omelette (try making one large omelette with one egg per person being served). Cut into long, skinny slices
  

• Strips of teriyaki chicken
  

• Tinned tuna, mixed with mayonnaise to your desired consistency
  

•  Cashews (not at all traditional, but an easy, tasty, crunchy vegetarian option)
  

Method

• It is important to use specifically labelled 'Sushi Rice'. I cook mine in an electric rice cooker.  An alternative would be do use Quinoa.
  

• While the rice is cooking, chop up all your vegetables julienne-style (long and skinny) and make your omelette or chicken or tuna if using.
  

• Once rice is cooked, stir in desired amount of Sushi Seasoning. I always use less than prescribed quantity on the bottle- it does contain sugar and I find the amount they suggest is too much.

• Put rice in a very large, shallow bowl and stir constantly for a couple of minutes. If you can, fan the rice while you stir it, and this will bring it to the right consistency more quickly. The aim is to get the rice a bit dry and sticky.
  

• Cut the nori sheets in half.  Spread some rice evenly and thinly over the sheet, leaving a gap of a couple of centimetres at one end. Smear a little soy sauce/ tamari over the exposed end of the nori sheet (this will help it stick to itself when rolled).
  

• Lay out some veges and other fillings across the width of the sheet, about half way down. Smear a little wasabi across one end if desired.

• Lift the rice-covered end over the top of the vegetables and roll tight, sealing the edge covered in soy sauce over the roll.

• Dip in a little more soy sauce/ tamari and enjoy!