Albacore and Bluefin Tuna with garlic chips, torched
I had the honor of co-hosting the November Daring Cooks Challenge with the one and only Audax or
Audax Artifex! Those of you who are a part of The Daring Kitchen are well aware of the skill, expertise and tremendous source of information that Audax lends to each and every challenge. For those of you outside The Daring Kitchen, Audax is the first person to complete every Daring Cooks and Daring Bakers challenge, usually within 24 hours of the initial post, while the rest of us usually take a week or three. He is also the biggest resource the Daring Kitchen has, lending endless ideas, research and information on how to do everything and really investigating the science behind each task. My part was to attempt to make a very technical challenge something simple enough to read and process!
Inside out Caterpillar Roll
Delicious fresh Uni
We chose sushi as this months challenge, daring all members to tackle a meal that is usually expensive and perceived as too intricate to replicate at home. There are vegetarians, non-fish eaters, those who've never tried sushi, those who hate sushi...all being dared to come up with
something resembling our three sushi selections based around the recipe for real sushi rice: nigiri, caterpillar (or dragon) roll and a decorative roll. My decorative roll photos were eaten along with the sushi, but I have provided you with extra photos of the other rolls ;)
Messy Caterpillar (Dragon) Roll
We make a lot of sushi at home, although we usually skip rolls and just go straight for super fresh sashimi and extra sake ;) This was, however, a really good reason to explore the realm of rolls and rice. Although the challenge seems like it has many steps, once you have the rice made (in our fail proof recipe) the rest is pretty easy! I hope you all give this a shot at home - it's perfect for parties and a great way to expose people to how fun cooking with a group can be.
Kanpai! (Cheers)
Salmon Nigiri and Scallop Nigiri
Bluefin tuna and Yellowtail Nigiri
Pickled Beet Nigiri and Sweet scallop
PART 1 : SUSHI RICE (makes about 7 cups of cooked sushi rice)
Preparation time: 1¾ hours consisting of :-
Rinsing and draining rice: 35 minutes
Soaking rice: 30 minutes (includes 5 minutes making the vinegar dressing)
Cooking and steaming time: 25 minutes
Finishing the rice: 15 minutes
INGREDIENTS:
- 2½ cups uncooked short grain rice
- 2½ cups water
- For superior results use equal volumes of rice and water
Optional Ingredients
- 3 inch (75mm or 15 grams) square dashi konbu (or kombu) (dried kelp seaweed) wipe with a damp cloth to remove white powder & cut a few slits in the sides of the kelp to help release its flavours
- 2½ teaspoons (12.5 mls) of sake (Japanese rice wine)
Sushi vinegar dressing
- 5 Tablespoons (75 mls) rice vinegar
- 5 Teaspoons (25 mls or 21 grams) sugar
- 1¼ Teaspoons (6.25 mls or 4.5 grams) salt
DIRECTIONS:
Rinsing and draining the rice
- Swirl rice gently in a bowl of water, drain, repeat 3-4 times until water is nearly clear. Don't crush the rice in your hands or against the side of the bowl since dry rice is very brittle.
- Gently place rice into a strainer and drain well for 30 minutes.
Soaking the rice
- Gently place the rice into a heavy medium pot with a tight fitting lid (if you have a loose fitting lid use a piece of aluminium foil to make the seal tight).
- Add 2½ cups of water and the dashi konbu.
- Set the rice aside to soak for 30 minutes, during this time prepare the sushi rice dressing.
Preparing the Rice Vinegar Dressing
- Combine the rice vinegar, sugar and salt in a small bowl.
- Heat on low setting.
- Stir until the mixture goes clear and the sugar and salt have dissolved.
- Set aside at room temperature until the rice is cooked.
Cooking the rice
- After 30 minutes of soaking add sake (if using) to the rice.
- Bring rinsed and soaked rice to the boil.
- Reduce heat to the lowest setting and simmer, covered, until all the water is absorbed, 12-15 minutes. Do not remove the lid during this process. Turn off heat.
- Let stand with the lid on, 10-15 minutes. Do not peek inside the pot or remove the lid. During this time the rice is steaming which completes the cooking process.
Finishing the rice
- Moisten lightly a flat thin wooden spatula or spoon and a large shallow flat-bottomed non-metallic (plastic, glass or wood) bowl. Do not use metallic objects since the vinegar will react with it and produce sour and bitter sushi rice.
- Remove the dashi konbu (kelp) from the cooked rice.
- Use the spatula to loosen gently the rice and invert the rice pot over the bowl, gently causing the cooked rice to fall into the bowl in one central heap. Do this gently so as not to cause the rice grains to become damaged.
- Dressing the rice with vinegar
- Slowly pour the cooled sushi vinegar over the spatula onto the hot rice.
- Using the spatula gently spread the rice into a thin, even layer using a 45° cutting action to break up any lumps and to separate the rice. Don't stir or mash rice.
- After the rice is spread out, start turning it over gently, in small portions, using a cutting action, allowing steam to escape, for about a minute.
- Fanning & Tossing the rice
- Continue turning over the rice, but now start fanning (using a piece of stiff cardboard) the rice vigorously as you do so. Don't flip the rice into the air but continue to gently slice, lift and turn the rice occasionally, for 10 minutes. Cooling the rice using a fan gives good flavour, texture and a high-gloss sheen to the rice. The vinegar dressing will be absorbed by the hot rice. Using a small electric fan on the lowest speed setting is highly recommended.
- Stop fanning when there's no more visible steam, and all the vinegar dressing has been adsorbed and the rice is shiny. Your sushi rice is ready to be used.
- Cover with a damp, lint free cloth to prevent the rice from drying out while preparing your sushi meal. Do not store sushi rice in the refrigerator leave on the counter covered at room temperature. Sushi rice is best used when it is at room temperature.
PART 2 : Dragon Rolls (also called Caterpillar Rolls)
Preparation time: 30 minutes, plus 1¾ hours to make the sushi rice
Cooking time: about 5 minutes (grilling the eel)
Yield: 2 inside-out (uramaki) sushi rolls
INGREDIENTS:
- 1 sheet 7”x8” (17.5cmx20cm) of toasted nori (dried seaweed sheets), cut into halves
- 1/2 Japanese cucumber
- 2 cups of prepared sushi rice
- Glazed Barbecued Eel (ungai) (about 3½ ounces or 100 grams)
- 1 Avocado
- Vinegared Water – ½ cup of water combined with a dash of rice vinegar
- Various small amounts of sauces to use as the flames of the dragon (or legs of a caterpillar)
Optional
- 2 tablespoons (25 grams or 1 oz) Fish Roe (Fish eggs)
DIRECTIONS:
1.Cut cucumber into strips ¼ inch (6mm) x 7” (175mm) long, then salt, rinse & dry the strips.
2.Grill (broil) the eel for about 2-5 minutes until bubbling. Cut into two lengthwise strips.
3.Halve, pit and peel the avocado. Cut the avocado halves into thin even 1/8 inch (3 mm) slices. Fan out the cut avocado into a 7 inch (175 mm) overlapping pattern.
4.Cover bamboo mat with plastic wrap. Place a sheet of nori
shiny side down, lengthwise, on the edge the mat.
5.Moisten
lightly your hands in the bowl of vinegared water.
6.Place one cup of rice on the nori and gently
rake your fingertips across grains to spread rice evenly. Do not mash or squash the rice onto the nori, the rice should appear loosely packed and be evenly distributed over the entire sheet,
you should be able to see the nori sheet in a few places.
7.Flip the rice-covered nori over (so the bare nori is now on top) and place on the edge of the mat closest to you.
8.Arrange one of the eel strips across the length of the nori, not quite centred on it but a little closer to you. Place half the cucumber sticks next to the eel.
9.Lift the edge of the mat closest to you with both hands, keeping your fingertips over the fillings, and roll the mat and its contents until the edge of the mat touches straight down on the nori, enclosing the fillings completely. Lift up the edge of the mat you're holding, and continue rolling the inside-out roll away from you until it's sealed. Tug at the mat to tighten the seal. If the rice doesn't quite close the roll add more rice in the gap and re-roll using the mat to completely cover the inside-out roll. Place the roll on a damp, clean smooth surface.
10.Spread about 1 tablespoon of the optional fish roe along the entire top of the rice-covered roll. Using the plastic covered mat
gently press the fish roe so it adheres to the rice.
11.Slide a knife under one fan of avocado and transfer it onto the top of an inside-out roll. Gently spread out the avocado layer to cover the entire roll. Lay the plastic wrapped mat over the avocado-covered roll. Squeeze very gently to shape the roll.
12. Lay a sheet of plastic wrap over the roll. Slice the roll into 6-8 equal, bite-sized pieces,
wiping your knife with a damp towel before each slice. Discard the plastic wrap. Repeat the above to make one more roll.
13.Arrange the cut pieces on a serving plate with the sauces so the finished dish appears as a dragon breathing fire and flames (or a caterpillar with many legs).
PART 3 : Spiral Sushi Roll
This is easiest 'decorative' sushi roll.
Preparation time: 15 minutes, plus 1¾ hours to make the sushi rice
Yield: One Roll, cut into 8 pieces
INGREDIENTS:
- 2½ cups prepared sushi rice
- 2 sheets of toasted nori, each sized 7”x8” (17.5cmx20cm)
- Six assorted fillings, each filling should be the size of a pencil (see note below)
DIRECTIONS:
1.Join 2 sheets of nori by moistening the adjacent edges and overlapping them about ½ inch (12mm).
2.Place this double
sheet shiny side down on a rolling mat, part of the nori will extend beyond the mat.
3.Using moist fingers place 2½ cups of rice on the nori and gently rake your fingertips across grains to spread rice evenly, leaving ¼ inch (6mm) nori showing on the both ends of the sheet. Do not mash or squash the rice onto the nori, the rice should appear loosely packed and be evenly distributed over the entire sheet,
you should be able to see the nori sheet in a few places.
4.Using your fingers form six grooves (in the same direction that you will be rolling the mat) at even intervals across the bed of rice. Make the first groove about 2 inches (50 mm) from the edge of the nori sheet. Form the grooves by pushing the rice away, do not mash or squash the rice, leave a loose one grain layer of rice in the bottom of the grooves. Level the areas between the grooves where you have pushed the rice.
5.Place your fillings in the grooves. Fill the grooves a little higher than the surrounding rice bed.
6.Then roll the sushi up from the edge closest to you, this will form a spiral pattern of nori, rice and fillings inside the roll.
7.Slice into 8 pieces with a very sharp wet knife,
wiping the blade with a damp cloth after each cut.
8.Place the pieces on a platter and garnish.
PART 4 : Nigiri Sushi
Nigiri sushi is the type of sushi most often made in sushi bars. In Japanese, nigiri means “squeeze”.
Preparation time: 30 minutes, plus 1¾ hours to make the sushi rice
Yield: 14-16 pieces of sushi
INGREDIENTS:
- 2 cups prepared sushi rice
- 8 pairs of assorted toppings, 200 gms/7 ozs total of fish, meat or vegetables (see note below)
- 1 tablespoon Wasabi (paste, reconstituted powder) or any other paste to adhere topping to rice
Optional
- Garnishes such as Ginger (pickled), chilli strips, vegetables flowers etc
- Thin strips of nori or vegetables (for tying topping on)
DIRECTIONS:
1.When handling sushi rice, make certain your hands are very clean. To keep the rice from sticking to our hands moisten your hands with vinegared water.
2.Form nigiri sushi by scooping up a small amount (about 2 tablespoons) of rice with your forefinger and second finger of your right hand and placing it in your cupped left palm.
3.Use the fingers and thumb of your right hand to form it into a long, narrow mound (about 2 inches x 1 inch wide or 50mm x 25mm) in your cupped palm.
4.Press enough to make the rice hold firmly together. Place the nigiri on a damp cutting board flat side down. Don't let sushi touch or they'll stick to each other. At this point, you can cover the sushi with plastic wrap, and they'll keep at room temperature (not the refrigerator) for several hours.
5.Smear a thin line of wasabi on top of the rice and place the topping piece on it. You may need to press the topping down lightly with your fingers and adjust the shape of the rice accordingly to form an attractive piece of nigiri sushi. If your topping is very loose like fish roe you can place a strip of nori (higher than the rice) around the nigiri and form 'battleship' sushi. The cavity that the nori forms holds the topping so it does not fall off.
6.Garnish as desired and use strips of nori (or vegetable) to tie the topping to the nigiri if needed.
7.It is customary to make nigiri sushi in pairs, so make two of each variety.
TO DOWNLOAD A PRINTABLE VERSION OF THE RECIPE CLICK HERE
The November 2009 Daring Cooks challenge was brought to you by Audax of Audax Artifex and Rose of The Bite Me Kitchen. They chose sushi as the challenge.
