I’ve been writing a lot of posts lately on various sushi-related items, such as how to make temaki hand rolls and DIY spicy tuna. In this post I’ll go over the essential sushi-making tools and ingredients. If you have a sushi lover on your holiday gift list, consider putting together a few of these items in a gift basket!
Beets are in season right now, and all the produce markets are proudly displaying beets of all colors. Here’s a tip: when you’re washing and peeling the beets, and you trim off the green leafy tops, don’t toss them away!
Trying to save a little extra money over the holidays but still want your Peppermint Mocha fix from Starbucks? Well, this isn’t an exact recipe, but it comes close, and costs a lot less!
It has been an interesting year for me. I was laid off from my day job in March, and instead of letting a little thing like unemployment slow me down, I threw myself into the kitchen, teaching myself new skills. I learned how to can, I spent more time foraging for mushrooms with my local mycological society, and I immersed myself into Japanese cuisine. Here are my favorite posts from The Kitchn from this year.
Yesterday I covered the different types of sushi, and one of these was the temaki, or hand roll. This cone-shaped wrap of seaweed sheet (nori) is filled with vinegared rice and various ingredients. In this post I’ll explain how to make one.
The word “sushi” is often ambiguous for non-native Japanese. We think of it as being interchangeable with raw fish. Sushi is vinegared rice topped with other ingredients. Sashimi, which is slices of raw fish alone, is not sushi because it isn’t accompanied with rice. Originally, sushi was fermented fish with rice preserved in salt, and this was a staple dish in Japan for a thousand years until the Edo Period (1603 to 1868) when contemporary sushi was developed. The word “sushi” means “it’s sour,” which reflects back to sushi’s origins of being preserved in salt.
Since I am watching my finances these days like most people, I’ve been making a lot of food at home, including my own sushi. One of my favorites is spicy tuna, and with a little experimentation, I figured out how to make my own!
These mushrooms, whose name means “pine” (matsu) and “mushroom” (take) grow under pine trees in Japan, parts of China, and the North American West Coast. They’re also found in parts of Northern Europe. Sought-after and prized by the Japanese, these mushrooms can sell for up to $2000 per kilogram in Japan. Here in San Francisco, I found them going for $10 per pound. Their seasonal window is very short, usually from October to January.