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Vegan Sushi

Prep Time20 minutes
Active Time2 hours
Assembly Time20 minutes
Total Time2 hours 40 minutes
Course: Appetizer
Cuisine: Japanese
Keyword: Beet, Bell pepper, Cucumber, Nori, Rice, Sesame seeds, Soy Sauce
Yield: 3 sushi rolls

Equipment

  • 1 bamboo mat

Materials

Sushi rice

  • 2 cups Japanese short grain rice
  • 2 cups water
  • 1/4 cup rice vinegar
  • 4 tsp sugar
  • 1 tsp fine salt

Vegan "Fish" w/ Japanese Yam Cake

  • 1 pkg of Konyakyu, sliced into long strips
  • 1 tsp beet powder
  • 1 cup water
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp soy sauce

Sushi ingredients

  • 4 sheets of nori
  • Possibly fillings: bell pepper, cucumber, mango, vegan cream cheese, or carrots
  • sesame seeds

Spicy Mayonnaise

  • 1/4 cup Vegan mayonnaise
  • 1 tsp siracha

Instructions

Sushi rice

  • Wash the rice until most of the starch washes off. You can do that by putting it in a bowl and filling with water. Scrub the rice with your hands and drain the water. Repeat three or four times or until water is clearer.
    Or put rice in a food strainer and put under running water until the water runs clear.
  • To cook, put rice in pot with water and let rest for thirty minutes. Then on medium heat bring to a boil. Lower the heat. Once water is almost gone, turn off heat and cover until cooked through.
  • Or to cook in an instant pot, put water and rice and cook on high pressure for ten minutes. Release pressure.
  • While rice is cooking, in a small pot, add the rice vinegar, sugar, and salt and bring to a simmer. Stir until everything is dissolved.
  • While rice is still warm, transfer to a mixing bowl and pour the rice vinegar mixture in top. Carefully mix together while using a folding motion. You don't want to smush the rice.
  • Cover with a damp towel and let cool in the fridge. To speed up the process, you can also lay the rice on a sheet tray and put it in the fridge to cool more evenly.

Vegan "Fish"

  • Wash the Japanese Yam cake in cold and slice into long strips.
  • In a small bowl, mix the beet powder with the water. Whisk well to make sure there is no clumps. Add the soy sauce and salt.
  • Taste to adjust seasoning and also add more beet powder until the color is right.
  • Add your konnyaku (Japanese yam cake) strips and let marinade as you prepare the other ingredients

Assembly of the sushi

  • Prepare any ingredients you want as additional fillings before hand and have it ready to use.
  • Cover your sushi mat with plastic wrap. Place your nori sheet (shiny face down) on the mat. Lay a thin layer of rice on top. Leave one side (the side facing you) empty of rice. I also like to add some sesame seeds now too.
  • Lay a row of your ingredients 3/4 of the way up. Using your thumbs, lift the bamboo mat up and over your choice of fillings. Curve your fingers over on top of the mat and gently squeeze the "log" to keep everything together. This stops it from being too loose.
  • Lift the mat off and continue rolling towards you until you are left with the strip of nori. With wet fingers, wet the nori and roll the sushi log down to seal it close.
  • Repeat until you run out of rice.
  • To cut, oil a sharp knife and cut the sushi in manageable slices. Serve with pickled ginger, wasabi, and soy sauce. Or with a spicy mayo sauce (my favorite).

Spicy mayo sauce

  • In a bowl, mix together the mayo (or vegan mayo) with siracha. Taste to adjust spiciness.
  • Pipe or spoon the sauce on top of the sushi and enjoy.