Food + Dining

Roll With It

In many ways, making sushi at home is a final frontier of dining. Got the pioneering spirit? Let some of our favorite sushi experts navigate you through this tricky--and sticky!--business and inspire you to entertain with raw elegance.

Text by Pat Tanner • Recipes by Fiona Smith & Emi Kazuko • Photography by Diana Miller & Peter Cassidy

It’s difficult today to believe that there was a time in America when few people ate raw fish. Oysters and clams on the half-shell, maybe. But fin fish? Not so much. This attitude changed a few decades ago with the opening of sushi restaurants by Japanese masters on both coasts. In no time, American tastes begot innovations like the California roll and the Philadelphia roll. Sushi restaurants sprang up like shiitakes, even in

small towns, and these days every supermarket worthy of the name offers a variety of house-made rolls.

One frontier remains: making sushi, sushi rolls, and their rice-absent cousins, sashimi, at home. Why we home cooks are hesitant to tackle these is a mystery. In fact, rolls make ideal party fare: They’re like colorful jewels, employing a few fresh, healthful, pristine ingredients that awaken the palate. By broadening the options with untraditional ingredients, we can express our individuality while pleasing guests and family. Perhaps what holds us back are stories of sushi masters who spent years learning to perfect sushi rice or to cut vegetables just so. Yet making beautiful, innovative rolls is eminently doable once we’re armed with solid advice and some simplified techniques.

A great place to start is with a copy of Sushi: Easy Recipes for Making Sushi at Home (Ryland Peters & Small, 2006), which features detailed instructions and photographs. For more advice, I’ve contacted some of my favorite sushi sources: Michael Schulson, the genius behind Izakaya, the

modern Japanese restaurant at the Borgata in Atlantic City; Scott Anderson, whose contemporary American restaurant, elements in Princeton, pays homage to the Japanese aesthetic in its architecture and plate presentations; and the folks at my favorite fish store, Nassau Street Seafood.

“The time has come when sushi is going to be made at home the same way we now make pizza,” Schulson says. “My son, who’s 3, has his own mat and everything for making sushi.” The key is starting with flavors that you like. For example, since Schulson’s son loves panko-crusted chicken nuggets, he nestles these inside his rolls. Schulson prefers seasonal fruits and vegetables. “Freshness trumps everything,” he says. “Engage the people behind the counter at the fish market,” he advises. “Ask, ‘What’s fresh today?’ or ‘What do you have in the back that just came in?’ They’ll be impressed that you’re making sushi at home and will want to give you the best.”

Consider beef as an alternative to seafood, says Schulson, who creates Kobe beef carpaccio rolls with Asian pears, white soy, and the citrusy zing of yuzu. Or try beef tartare, which is finely minced but still raw. Those who prefer their beef (or tuna) slightly cooked, can opt for tataki-style rolls.

Aesthetics is important to sushi enjoyment, which is why Nassau Street Seafood carries a veritable rainbow of colorful fish roes (aka caviar). At elements, Anderson prefers smoked steelhead trout roe as a topper. Using simple but handsome plates, trays, and platters is also part of the tradition, as are elegant garnishes. “I’m big on edible leaves and flowers,” Anderson reports. “We have shiso plants around the restaurant, and we use nasturtium flowers and leaves — both parts are edible. Just make sure your plate looks nice and clean.” In fact, colorful baby lettuce leaves, especially the curly varieties, make perfect wraps in place of the more common nori seaweed.

With ingredient options limited only by our imaginations and with a variety of fun and interesting forms to choose from, impressing our guests — and our families — with sushi rolls is as easy as (pizza) pie.

Techniques: Advice from the Experts

When purchasing sushi- and sashimi-grade fish, all sources advise that you ask to smell the fish. “The smell should be sweet, not fishy, and the flesh should not feel sticky to the touch,” says Scott Anderson of elements. The day of the week that you buy the fish makes a difference, says Michael Schulson of Izakaya. “Everyone — restaurants and fish counters alike — gets basically the same fish,” he explains. On the East Coast, fish arrives at the Fulton Fish Market on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Depending on delivery and the amount of time it takes to process the fish at the sale location, that shipment might not be available until the following day. “So buy on a Wednesday or Friday, and you’ll be guaranteed the freshest fish,” Schulson says. “If you go on Tuesdays or Thursdays, you just may get fish leftover from the previous delivery.”

In addition, Colin Rooney, manager at Nassau Street Seafood taught me years ago to call early in the day to have them put aside the choicest piece, to pick it up from the shop as late as possible, and to bring a cooler with icepacks to carry it home — even a short distance.

About that other tricky ingredient, nori, Schulson says, “Most people think nori is nori. Not so! It’s all about how the seaweed is dried and how much time they take to do it.” Buy the best, and buy just one pack at a time, he advises, because once you open it, it’s only good for about a day.

When forming rolls, Schulson advises: “The key is to wrap your bamboo mat in plastic. Be sure to poke the plastic with holes so there’s no air between the two surfaces. That way the rice touches the plastic and doesn’t stick, like it will to bamboo. Also, wet your hands before you touch the rice, just as you do for forming meatballs.” —P.T.

Recipes

» Battleship Rolls
» Fresh Oyster Roll with Chile Cucumber
» Lettuce Rolls
» Marinated Beef Rolls
» Slow-Cooked Squid
» Smoked Fish Hand Roll