Temaki Hand Rolls – California and Spicy Tuna

Daria Souvorova

1 hour + depending on your speed and how many you make
serves: 16-24

It is finally time for our Japanese-Hawaiian fusion dinner! Nico and I had an amazing trip to Hawaii and loved the fish and fruit flavors that we feasted on. We were also very impressed with the infusion of Japanese culture and cuisine in the cities we visited. This inspired us to research both Japanese and Hawaiian cuisine to create our own Japanese-Hawaiian fusion for Chez Nous Dinners.

When everyone thinks Japan, they think sushi! I wasn’t exempt from this presumption, but I figured since my maki and sashimi skills are not quite up to par, I would make some Temaki Hand rolls as part of our first course.

I made two varieties, Spicy Tuna, with the highest quality sashimi tuna I could find and a California Roll made with real lump crab. I follow Morimoto’s recipe for sushi rice which I find to have a more nuanced flavor than the traditional rice vinegar and sugar recipes I have found online.

We prepared the Temake ahead of time since they were part of the starter course for our dinner, but if you are having a smaller crowd for dinner and want to include Temake rolls as part of the main course, it is great to have the eaters assemble their own at the table!

I wanted to do it right, and I have been harboring a growing obsession with Japanese steel over the past few years. I decided to order a single-edged White Carbon Steel Sashimi Blade from Yoshikiro Cutlery, an amazing company that hand forges a variety of traditional Japanese blades, and amazingly create some left-handed Yanagi Sashimi blades. White steel requires a bit of extra maintenance, but it is so sharp! It simply glides through a piece of tuna without butchering the poor thing to death. I am so happy with my purchase!

Ingredients:

• sushi rice (for 32 hand rolls):
• 2×2 inch piece of kombu, gently wiped with moist cloth
• 6 tablespoons rice vinegar
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 1 1/2 tablespoon salt
• 2 2 1/4 cups sushi rice
• Spicy Tuna (16 rolls):
• 4 tablespoons mayo
• 2 teaspoons chili bean sauce or sriracha
• 1 teaspoon sesame oil
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon lime juice
• 1 pound sashimi grade tuna sliced into 16 or 32 3 inch long slices or matchsticks
• 8 pieces of nori seaweed, sliced in half
• 1/3 cup scallion greens, thinly sliced
• California Rolls (16 rolls):
• 1 avocado, sliced into 16 slices
• 1 English cucumber, peeled and sliced into 3 inch long matchsticks
• 1/2 pound real crab meat, cooked
• 4 ounces tobiko roe
• 8 pieces of nori seaweed, sliced in half

1. 1. For the sushi rice: Combine the first four ingredients in a small pot. Cook, stirring constantly until the sugar and salt dissolve. Do not boil.
      Cool, and discard the kombu.
   2. Rinse the rice in a fine mesh colander with cool water until the water runs out clear. Leave in colander to drain for at least 10 minutes before cooking it by the instructions on the package.
   3. Sprinkle vinegar mixture on the rice and allow it to cool a bit covered with a moist cloth.
   4. For the Spicy Tuna Temake: Combine the first five ingredients to make the spicy sauce. Adjust flavors to taste.
   5. Take the nori (shiny side down) and add a ball of rice (about 3 tablespoons) an inch away from one of the short sides. Dip your hand in water and make a thumb sized dent in the middle.
   6. Add a teaspoon of sauce, 1 or 2 slices of tuna and a but of scallion.
   7. Roll carefully to make a cone shape and seal the end of the nori with a bit of water.
   8. For the California Roll Temake: Take the nori (shiny side down) and add a ball of rice (about 3 tablespoons) an inch away from one of the short sides. Dip your hand in water and make a thumb sized dent in the middle.
   9. Add a tablespoon of crab, a teaspoon of tobiko, a piece of avocado, and a few matches of cucumber.
   10. Roll carefully to make a cone shape and seal the end of the nori with a bit of water.