Sports & Health

ON your plate: Make your next dinner party a DIY maki roll night  

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A delicious, healthy, and affordable sushi feast  

When my housemate, who isn’t all that into cooking, said she makes sushi pretty often because it’s easier than cooking, I looked at her in disbelief.

Maki rolls are beautiful, they look like little works of art, they’re the food equivalent of a friggin’ kaleidoscope, and they are most definitely not easy to make, I thought. Turns out, I thought wrong. In fact, they might even be easier to roll than a burrito (a food masterpiece in its own right). In addition to maki rolls being fairly easy to assemble, making them at home is actually a bit healthier than going for all-you-can-eat sushi (and definitely cheaper).
That’s because, if you’re anything like me, going out for sushi means ordering the rolls with as much raw fish, fried stuff, and spicy mayo as possible just to really get my money’s worth. When you’re making sushi at home, you can skip the sushi grade raw fish and focus more on healthier veggie rolls.

In Guelph, getting all the ingredients you need is actually more time-consuming than making the sushi. Once you make a few first-time purchases, you’ll be all ready to go. Here’s a handy list of where you can find things around Guelph for a reasonable price so you aren’t scouring the city like I had to (as fun as that was).

 

FIRST-TIME PURCHASES 

  • Bamboo placement for rolling (Dollarama or Zehrs)
  • Cling Wrap (any grocery store)
  • Pickled sushi ginger (No Frills — canned vegetable aisle)
  • Nori/seaweed sheets (No Frills — Asian noodle aisle)
  • Wasabi (Zehrs — sushi counter)
  • Panko flakes (most grocery stores)
  • Sesame seeds (most grocery stores)
  • Short grain white rice (Bulk Barn) — but for a healthier version go for brown rice
  • Rice vinegar (Food Basics or No Frills)
  • Low sodium soy sauce (Food Basics or No Frills)
  • Spicy mayo or sriracha to mix into mayo (most grocery stores)
(Photo by Mirali Almaula/The Ontarion)

 

FRESH INGREDIENT IDEAS 

  • Ripe firm mango, julienned (i.e. cut into matchstick-size strips)
  • Cucumber, remove the seedy part, then julienne
  • Avocado, sliced; try with some red chilli powder and salt for a healthier spicy version
  • Asparagus, cooked
  • Smoked salmon
  • Cream cheese brick, cut into slices (not exactly healthy, but treats are great!)
  • Fish such as tuna or salmon, but make sure that it is sushi grade and therefore safe to eat raw
  • Frozen tempura shrimp that is long and straight; bake them up in the oven as instructed

SUSHI RICE INGREDIENTS 

  • 1 cup short grain white rice
  • 2 cups water
  • ⅓ cup rice vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • ½ teaspoon salt
    For a healthier version, use brown rice and decrease or omit the sugar.

SUSHI RICE INSTRUCTIONS

  1. Place rice and water in a pot and bring to a boil.
  2. Turn stove to medium-low heat so rice is simmering, and place a lid on the pot.
  3. Stir every five minutes for a total cook time of 20 minutes for white rice or 40 minutes for brown rice.
  4. Always check to see if the rice is cooked through by tasting it before removing it from the heat.
  5. Combine rice vinegar, salt, and sugar in a small saucepan.
  6. Cook until sugar is dissolved.
  7. Pour mixture over rice and stir gently to combine.

MAKI ROLL INSTRUCTIONS

  1. On the bamboo mat, place a piece of Cling Wrap. You don’t need to use the mat to roll the sushi, but it’s there if you find it helpful.
  2. Place a seaweed sheet (nori) on the mat; with the shorter side nearest to you and the rough side of the seaweed up.
    (Photo by Mirali Almaula/The Ontarion)
  3. Spread a thin even layer of rice on the nori, about one or two grains thick. Leave about a centimetre of seaweed rice-free on the end farthest from you.
    (Photo by Mirali Almaula/The Ontarion)
  4. Place ingredients in the centre of the seaweed, horizontally.
  5. Roll the nori over the ingredients from the top towards you. You can wet the edge of the nori farthest from you to get it to stick better.
  6. Once you have all your rolls made, grab a cutting board and a sharp knife, and cut into 6 or 8 even pieces.
  7. To get a clean cut, get a sharp knife, dip the tip in water and hold the tip upwards so the blade is just a little wet. When slicing, don’t press the knife down too hard, but make a sawing motion and let the weight of the knife do the work.
    8. (Photo by Mirali Almaula/The Ontarion)
  8. Serve with soy sauce, pickled ginger, and wasabi.
  9. Impress your friends, eat lots, and enjoy!
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Feature photo by Mirali Almaula/The Ontarion

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