Sushi is probably one of the best examples where the quality of ingredients is glaringly apparent. Unfortunately, it's also one of those things where, once you get the good shit, it's hard to go back. For that reason, I only eat sushi once every few months or so. Or I'll make it myself, but it's never as good, but that's because I'm not a trained sushi chef with 20 years under my belt. However, I do know a few things...
Breaking down sushi into its major components:
nori
rice
fish
...you can start to look at the quality aspect. There are different quality nori wrappers. This is one thing where buying the best you can afford will really pay off.
For nori, look for shin nori. This is the first seaweed harvest of the year and the highest quality. I buy it green and toast it myself.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pwd3vtxbR...804687055E
For rice, you want short grain obviously. Look for sushi rice in asian markets, usually it's calrose. Cooking rice is one of those things that takes a lifetime to master...each rice has a different ratio, but I always measure using my fingers. I'll let the rice soak for 15 minutes and wash it until the water runs clear. Put the rice in a pan, cover with cold water until the water covers by one and a half inches (or finger notches), cover, and simmer for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes I'll remove from heat and let it sit for another 15 minutes. Remove from pan, add to a bowl, and season the rice with rice vinegar, salt, and a little bit of sugar. Flake the rice with a wooden spoon to separate the grains.
For fish, look for sushi grade obviously. Before you slice it and put it in your maki you want to cure it. Each fish has a different cure, you can get really elaborate and do a kombu (seaweed) cure for fish like fluke, halibut, or flounder or a miso or vinegar cure for more oily fish. But typically I do a 5% salt cure by weight. An easy way to do this is take a large bowl of water, add just enough salt and whisk until the water is about half as salty as seawater (this is about 5%). Put your fish filet in this water and let sit for 15 minutes. This will firm up the flesh and give a nice patina of seasoning to the fish. This is a basic cure that will apply to most fish.
After that it's all assembly. Lay down a sheet of toasted nori. Spread out about half a handful of rice (wet your hands with water beforehand). You can sprinkle the rice with some toasted sesame seeds or a little shichimi togarashi (japanese pepper blend), some julienned cucumber, a few strips of sliced shiso leaf, and your strips of fish. Roll up tightly using a bamboo roller, slice, and eat. Try to find fresh wasabi root and grate it using a microplane or a sharkskin grater. Get the un-dyed pickled ginger...that pink shit is horrible.
This is just a basic on making maki. Nigiri is a whole other ballgame and at that point, better to just go to a high end restaurant and drop a hundred bucks for a badass experience.
Breaking down sushi into its major components:
nori
rice
fish
...you can start to look at the quality aspect. There are different quality nori wrappers. This is one thing where buying the best you can afford will really pay off.
For nori, look for shin nori. This is the first seaweed harvest of the year and the highest quality. I buy it green and toast it myself.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pwd3vtxbR...804687055E
For rice, you want short grain obviously. Look for sushi rice in asian markets, usually it's calrose. Cooking rice is one of those things that takes a lifetime to master...each rice has a different ratio, but I always measure using my fingers. I'll let the rice soak for 15 minutes and wash it until the water runs clear. Put the rice in a pan, cover with cold water until the water covers by one and a half inches (or finger notches), cover, and simmer for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes I'll remove from heat and let it sit for another 15 minutes. Remove from pan, add to a bowl, and season the rice with rice vinegar, salt, and a little bit of sugar. Flake the rice with a wooden spoon to separate the grains.
For fish, look for sushi grade obviously. Before you slice it and put it in your maki you want to cure it. Each fish has a different cure, you can get really elaborate and do a kombu (seaweed) cure for fish like fluke, halibut, or flounder or a miso or vinegar cure for more oily fish. But typically I do a 5% salt cure by weight. An easy way to do this is take a large bowl of water, add just enough salt and whisk until the water is about half as salty as seawater (this is about 5%). Put your fish filet in this water and let sit for 15 minutes. This will firm up the flesh and give a nice patina of seasoning to the fish. This is a basic cure that will apply to most fish.
After that it's all assembly. Lay down a sheet of toasted nori. Spread out about half a handful of rice (wet your hands with water beforehand). You can sprinkle the rice with some toasted sesame seeds or a little shichimi togarashi (japanese pepper blend), some julienned cucumber, a few strips of sliced shiso leaf, and your strips of fish. Roll up tightly using a bamboo roller, slice, and eat. Try to find fresh wasabi root and grate it using a microplane or a sharkskin grater. Get the un-dyed pickled ginger...that pink shit is horrible.
This is just a basic on making maki. Nigiri is a whole other ballgame and at that point, better to just go to a high end restaurant and drop a hundred bucks for a badass experience.