Sushi; Tucson Roll

Cameron’s Tucson Roll Sushi

First, you must find inner peace by meditation. Once you have achieved inner peace, you may begin.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 c. sushi rice or medium grain calrose rice
1/4 c. seasoned rice vinegar
1/2 can of cooked chicken, shredded
2 tsp. tapatio, cholula, or other hot sauce
1 tsp. of taco seasoning (optional)
1/2 of raw jalapeño, cut into strips
1/4 of raw green bell pepper, cut into strips
Wasabi paste
Soy Sauce
1 sheet of nori (seaweed wrap)

Extra items to have on hand:
Sushi rolling mat
Electric or handheld paper fan
Non-metallic bowl and spoon (bamboo spoon and rubber spatula was used in this recipe)
Bowl of water

Procedure:
1. Rinse the rice. This is symbolic of cleansing your soul. Rinse until the water is mostly clear.
2. Cook rice in rice cooker (or a pot if you don't have a rice cooker) as you would normal rice.
3. While your rice is cooking, mix taco seasoning, tapatio, and chicken together in a bowl, and cut vegetables (if not already done).
4. Once the rice is cooked, put it into a non-metallic bowl. If you have a flattish one, that is best. Spread evenly along bottom of bowl (so it is not in clumps).
5. Pour the rice vinegar over a wooden (not metal) spoon, distributing it evenly over the rice. This helps ensure that the rice is evenly coated.

6. Using a cutting and folding motion, rather than a scooping and stirring motion, mix the vinegar in with the rice. It is best to have a fan (electric or someone with a handheld paper fan) blowing on the rice at this time. This drives off the water and helps the rice to absorb the vinegar. Do this until the rice is shiny and sticky.
7. Lay half a sheet of nori on dry bamboo mat.
8. Coat your hands in water, so that the rice doesn't stick to them, and take about a palmful of rice and spread it over the nori, leaving about half an inch of space at the top.
9. Arrange chicken and peppers length-wise across the middle of the rice.

10. Dip your finger in water, and sprinkle the water over the blank edge of the nori.
11. Lift one end of the mat, curling it over the rice/filling. You may need to curl your fingers over the edges of the mat to hold the filling in place as you roll. Press the roll into a square-ish shape. Keep rolling the sushi until the roll closes over the dampened nori (I went to youtube to see how to roll it).

12. Using a SHARP wet knife, cut the sushi roll in half, and then traditionally you are supposed to cut it into thirds after that, but I only cut it into manageable pieces.
13. Dip into soy sauce, smear some wasabi on it, and enjoy!

You can use a variety of ingredients for you filling. This was my first try, so these were the ingredients I used. For sushi, I bought solid white albacore canned tuna, smoked kippers, imitation crab meat, peppers, jalapenos, avocado, carrots, some put cucumber in it, etc. Find what you like (thinking of color and presentation as well) and throw it in.
As far as raw fish goes, the FDA says that if you freeze raw fish, it will kill all parasites, however, it does not kill all microorganisms. So, I would like to use raw fish sometime. Tuna fish tastes really good raw, but it's really expensive, so I've used canned meats for my learning.


(Marquette's side notes: I thought this was yummy...except for the seaweed...but, I want you to know that I did try it. To my desert tastebuds, the seaweed tastes like I picked up a rock out of the ocean and licked it. But...the insides were really good...and had the seaweed not tasted like something that grew in murky water filled with dead fish and rotting plants, then I would have liked the whole thing. But in all seriousness, this was good. You'll like it.)