Tag: nori

I’m back with another Freedom Friday post. If you’re joining me for the first time, I tend to use Fridays as the day I can let loose, chat about nothing really and still try to make sense of the whole thing. Get it? Yeah, me neither. You can read all my Freedom Friday posts simply by clicking on the link on the Features panel.

Okay, I feel like food. Well, I feel like talking about food. Strange, coming from a guy whose main preoccupation is zombies, aliens, and female superheroes. The caveat to writing all my blog posts is I get hungry occasionally and need to eat. What does a mind focused on the undead eat? Ah, good question. I thought I’d share a recipe with you.

No, it’s not man brains served on a platter. What am I, Hannibal Lecter? Besides, that’s kind of gross.

For anyone who knows me, I have an affinity for sushi. If you haven’t tried sushi, get into a sushi bar pronto and live a little! It’s an experience you will soon never forget. And just because it’s called a sushi bar doesn’t mean they serve alcohol. It means, it’s an all-you-can-eat restaurant of sorts, with plenty of time for chitchat. Whenever I go there with the family, it’s no less than three hours of absolute delight. Lots of food, and lots of chatter.

Anyway, getting back to my sushi recipe. I’ll first give you the ingredients then I’ll provide the directions—hows and whys, and all that stuff.

Ingredients:

• Nori (raw seaweed)
• Sticky rice (uh-hu, it’s really called sticky rice)
• 1-2 Avocado (this will serve four)
• 1 Lemon
• Smoked salmon (sliced, preferably in sealed package)

Directions:

• Cook the rice as directed on the package. The typical cooking time is twenty minutes with a standing time of five minutes. Cook as much as you need. If you’re cooking for four then one avocado will do. I tend to cook for eight because…well, my family likes sushi.
• As the rice cooks, take the time for prep. You’ll need a Bamboo sushi mat. So make sure it’s clean. I wrap my mat with plastic wrap (hey, that rhymes). You’re going to need the sushi mat to roll your maki. Maki is the name for a particular type of sushi. You can learn the various other kinds of sushi names by reading the menu from a sushi bar first. This is how I learned how to make my sushi. Silly, I know. But it worked for me.
• Once you’ve cooked your rice, you can start the rolling process. First, take a sheet of nori, lay it on the sushi mat, and spread the rice evenly on the sheet. What you want is a nice bed for the filling.
• Next, lay the smoked salmon slices on the rice. This is so good. No cheating. Don’t eat any of the slices while you’re making it—it’ll spoil your supper.
• When you’re done, scoop some avocado and spread it on the salmon. Make sure it’s even. What you don’t want is to get a piece without the filling. Believe me, a piece with only nori and rice is good, but a piece with the filling included is better.
• After you filled the entire sheet, you roll the sheet into a roll (there’s a tongue twister).
• The last part is cutting the roll into pieces, laying them on the presentation plate. Spray a little lemon, so as the avocado doesn’t get brown, and serve.

And there it is. My salmon sushi I make from scratch, right at home. Food fit for a zombie slayer!

To see how it’s done, check out this video on YouTube.

By the way, with every sushi meal you need some wasabi, Japanese pickled ginger and soy sauce. I should have mentioned that earlier. This is how it’s done: Take a small plate, pour some soy sauce, add some wasabi, stir and dip the sushi in the mixture. While enjoying the bite, slip in some ginger.

Heaven.

Have you ever made sushi? What do you like about it? Do you like eating it at a sushi bar or at a dedicated restaurant? If so, why? I’d love to hear your comments!