How To: Making Your Very Own Delicious Sushi Rolls

Making your own sushi rolls can be a lot of fun, especially when you're entertaining friends and family. It's great for parties and as an ice-breaking activity. It's a fantastic way for couples and families to spend time together.

If you love sushi, but hate sushi prices at restaurants, then making your own can give you great quality time and taste for a fraction of the cost. Once you get the hang of it, making sushi does not take any longer than preparing any other meal.

Here are Six Essential Items for Making Sushi Rolls

Before you get started, there are some items that you absolutely must have. Your first sushi making experience shouldn't be difficult or frustrating. Make sure you have these essential items to ensure a positive experience and encourage you to keep making sushi. It took me five or six times before I felt comfortable that I was making decent sushi rolls, but that is because I didn't start with the proper equipment.

Very Sharp Knives

My first three times making sushi, my rolls collapsed in on themselves when I cut them. The rolls completely fell apart and I ended up just throwing everything in a bowl and eating a "sushi salad." By the fourth time, I realized it was because my knives were dull. A sushi roll ("maki" in Japanese) requires a quick clean cut to get it into six or eight pieces. Get your knives as sharp as you can possibly make them.

Sushi Rolling Mat

In order to make tight sushi rolls, you must have a mat to roll them in. The first time I tried to roll sushi, I did so without the rolling mat and was not able to get them tight enough. The loose rolls easily fell apart. I recommend a bamboo sushi rolling mat ("maki-su" in Japanese). They are inexpensive and you can buy them at a supermarket in the Oriental Foods aisle. You don't have to buy an entire sushi kit to get the rolling mat.

Sushi Rice

Japanese sushi rice is white and short-grained. It sticks together very easily after it is cooked. Sticky rice is essential in keeping sushi together, whether it is a roll or rice ball ("nigiri" in Japanese). I mistakenly thought that sushi rice was just a gimmick and used Indian long-grained rice the first time I made sushi. The result was disastrous and nothing I made kept together. Each and every sushi roll disintegrated in my hand when I picked it up.

Rice Vinegar

Vinegar must be added to the rice to give it the desired flavor and consistency. Plus it keeps the rice from sticking to your hands too much when you are forming it. Rice vinegar must be used as opposed to regular distilled white vinegar. Other types of vinegar are too strong and will make the sushi taste very strange. Rice vinegar is mild and complements the taste.

Seaweed Paper

Paper made from seaweed ("nori" in Japanese) is what contains the sushi roll. It can be bought in most supermarkets. Without it, you will have nothing to roll your sushi in.

Food

Your sushi roll must have something in it besides rice, and this is where the creative part comes in. Many people mistakenly think sushi must contain raw fish, when in fact, it can contain anything your heart desires. You can make vegetarian sushi rolls, beef, cooked fish, raw fish, etc.

Vegetables that can be cut into long strips, such as carrots or cucumbers, work best. Any type of cooked fish is acceptable as long as it can be cut into small enough pieces to fit in a roll. If you are going to use raw fish, you should ask the fish monger at the supermarket for sushi-quality or sashimi-grade fish ("sashimi" is raw fish sushi without the rice or nori.) You do not want to eat raw fish that is poor quality or has been on display for several days.

Tuna and salmon are both good raw fish to use for your first time. They are easy to acquire, easy to use and have a great taste. Try to use the fish as soon as possible after bringing it home. Leaving the fish in your refrigerator for one day significantly reduces the quality. After three days you should not use it at all.

We've listed six essential items for making sushi rolls, although if you make nigiri, you will not need the knives, rolling mat or seaweed paper. Sushi rolls are perhaps the most popular type of sushi. I came up with this list after several failed attempts at making sushi rolls due to a lack of some of the above items.

There are many optional items for making sushi, such as a rice cooker, wasabi, ginger, sesame seeds and saran wrap. The above essential six items are the minimum required for getting you started on the right track to making good sushi rolls that will impress your friends and satisfy your desire for sushi without the high price.