IF YOU KNEW SUSHI LIKE I KNOW SUSHI

IT’S HEALTHY, TASTES GOOD AND IS RELATIVELY QUICK TO MAKE, SO BREAK OUT THE SEAWEED

Sushi rolls, those tasty Japanese treats, are a reasonably healthy and nourishing choice for lunch or an entree for dinner, depending, of course, on what fillings you choose. I’ve seen hideous versions in the US (and strangely California rolls were nowhere to be seen but cream cheese and fruit featured).

They are not difficult to make; I prefer to use a sushi mat to roll them up, but a friend does them “freestyle” without too much difficulty. The little bamboo mats are not expensive, and they (along with the ingredients) are available at most supermarkets.

Choose from a range of fillings, or make up your own. Please, no fruit (or that ghastly seafood extender, erroneously called “crabstick”).

And if you don’t like seaweed, you can roll the rice and fillings inside other food, such as smoked salmon

I use cooked prawns, cucumber, the green part of a green onion, batons of carrot, smoked salmon, avocado, raw young asparagus, tinned tuna or crab, drained and topped with a little Kewpie mayonnaise, or fine strips of omelette – but not all together, of course. Firm tofu is excellent for the vegans among us, or enoki mushrooms.

If you use a mat, the idea is to keep the end closest to you free; you roll that over the top, not around (otherwise the mat would be stuck under the seaweed sheet).

EASY SUSHI ROLLS Makes: 8 rolls INGREDIENTS

1 1⁄2 cups uncooked sushi rice

4 tbsp sushi seasoning

8 nori (seaweed) sheets

1 carrot, peeled and cut into batons

1 small cucumber, peeled and seeds removed, cut into batons

The green part of 4 green onions, finely sliced lengthways

1 ripe avocado

250g smoked salmon OR cooked king prawns OR leftover roast chicken

Wasabi, soy sauce and pickled ginger to serve

METHOD

Place rice in a saucepan and add boiling water to cover by 1cm. Cover and bring to the boil, then reduce heat to a simmer and steam for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and stir through sushi seasoning. Spread rice in a thin layer on a foil-covered baking sheet and refrigerate until cold.

Spread a nori sheet on a sushi mat, shiny side down. Spread the sheet with a thin layer of rice, leaving the last 4cm of the nori furthest from you uncovered.

Place your choice of fillings on the rice, leaving the first and last 1cm uncovered. Don’t pile the fillings on, lay them flat.

Beginning with the edge closest to you, roll the sushi up firmly, leaving the end of the bamboo mat free to roll over the top. Moisten the bare end of the nori with a little water and finish rolling. Place on a plate, join down, while you make the remainder of the rolls. Don’t be tempted to over-fill; they will be difficult to eat. Cut each roll in half with a sharp, wet knife, or slice into 10 pieces along the perforations in the nori. You can make the rolls an hour before serving.

Serve with soy sauce, wasabi and pickled ginger. Contact Maggie at maggies.column@bigpond.com