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Lately I was inspired to make a vegan version of sushi. Some vegan public places such as sushi restaurants and sushi take-aways have a significant low offer of vegan food options. Therefore it is nice to be able to make vegan sushi at home. It took me some practice until I could roll a firm sushi roll that can be sliced off into firm sushi pieces.
It is very important to press nori with a bamboo mat while rolling a sushi roll. Otherwise it might fall apart while cutting. It should be pressed all the way its length while rolling. Once rolled it should be cut on a preferably wooden board with an extremely sharp knife.
Some of ingredients that were inspiring part of those vegan sushi rolls were peanut butter and chopped peanuts. Peanut butter acts as a binder that keeps salad, tofu and fresh vegetables sticking together while they long to ” jump out ” of a roll on its edges.
Peanuts give a nice look to sushi rolls when they are rolled into lots of chopped peanuts and sprinkled with it. Peanut butter and peanuts make this dish very satisfying, just as well as tofu. Serving it with wasabi and soy sauce can be perfect choice for the main lunch course, snack or dinner.
Recipe
Ingredients
Ingredients for rice:
- 1 cup of sushi rice;
- 2 cups of water;
- 4-5 tbsp. of lemon juice (or rice vinegar).
- 1/4 of tsp. of salt;
- 1-2 tsp. of maple syrup.
For futomaki and inside-out sushi rolls:
- nori algae sheets;
- 30-40 gr of napolitana salad (or iceberg);
- some finely sliced carrots (thin strips), aprox. 30 gr;
- 4-6 tbsp. of peanut butter;
- 1 avocado, sliced;
- 1 thinly sliced cucumber (thin strips);
- 50 -100 gr of smoked tofu cut on strips.
To roll inside-out sushi in (and to sprinkle with):
- 50-60 gr of chopped toasted peanuts;
- 7-8 tbsp. of toasted sesame seeds;
- 6 tbsp. of black sesame seeds.
Preparation time
15-20 min.
Cooking time
25 min.
Servings
2-3
Instructions
Preparation of rice:
1. Wash out rice in 5-6 water batches. Put rice in a pot, cover with 2 cups of cold water and cook until boiling point. Cover with lid and continue to cook on a very low/minimum temperature for the next 25 min (until it’s completely cooked).
2. Let it cool down, then add the rest of ingredients and stir well.
To make inside-out rolls:
1. Slice a large nori sheet in half.
2. Put the first half on a bamboo mat (cover bamboo mat with nylon foil).
3. Cover nori with a thin layer of cooked rice by gently pressing rice onto nori, leaving 2 cm empty on the opposite long side of nori.
4. Sprinkle and gently press chopped peanuts onto rice, then gently flip nori to the other side.
5. Repeat the process with rice.
6. Put 1-2 tbsp. of peanut butter, smoked tofu, napolitana, avocado and sliced cucumbers, then roll sushi by gently pressing with bamboo mat. Stick an empty 2 cm edge with a wet finger to the sushi. Put sushi roll on a wooden board. Cut in 8 equal pieces (by dipping a sharp knife into cold water before cutting each slice). At the end, sprinkle each slice with some chopped peanuts.
7. Repeat the whole process with the second half of nori sheet by using black and toasted sesame seeds instead of chopped peanuts. Add some carrots to the filling too.
To make futomaki rolls (big rolls):
1. Put a large nori sheet onto a bamboo mat. Cover with a thick layer of cooked rice by pressing rice very gently. Leave an 2 cm empty space on the other (the opposite) long side of nori.
2. Sprinkle rice with some black and toasted sesame seeds. Add napolitana salad, carrots, smoked tofu, avocado and cucumber.
3. Roll in sushi by pressing it with bamboo mat, stick the edges with wet fingers. Put sushi roll on wooden board and cut into 10 equal slices. Use a sharp knife dipped into a cold water before cutting each piece.
Notes
Washing out rice will prevent it from turning into rice porridge while it’s cooking.
