Do beer drinkers eat sushi?

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McCall St. Brewer

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Actually, my real question is, have any of you ever made your own sushi? I wonder if it is at all worthwhile to do. By the time you buy all the ingredients, especially the sushi-quality seafood, I wonder if a person would just be better off just going out to a restaurant to get it.
 
If you are a foody or a chef and really love food then make your own. I have done it twice. It was hours and hours of painstaking prep work for vegetables and slicing of veges and seafood.

It was so worth it. By far the single most satisfying, home made meal I have ever had.!!!

I made some of my own creations. Mahi Mahi with rice and seaweed. a sliver of cucumber on top. and a drisle of chili oil on top. OMG so good.
 
Fine Sushi is like Fine....Well....I guess If I made it at home I could heat up a skillet, mix up some beer batter and fry that **** into something good.
:D

I suppose this is just like the beer thread....It's not about the cost...it's about the pleasure and pride.
 
Doubt you'd save much money. You might, but I can't see that being the motivation behind it.

You'd do it for the same reason you make beer; it's an interesting process, there's a lot of interesting history and tradition behind it, and it expands your depth of understanding of the product (beer/sushi) since you have a greater understanding of what goes into it.

I've made it a few times, not enough to be any good at it. If I do it again, it'll be just as an excuse to buy a pretty new knife. Right now, it's tough because I'm fairly lacking in having a good fishmonger/market; it was great for my cooking overall when I lived near a Whole Foods, but right now just getting my hands on sushi-grade seafood would be a bit of a challenge.
 
When it comes to sushi I am an absolute EAC. Give me the AAA best every time or no sushi at all.

It is unlikely that I would try to do it at home. Preparation is one thing, but getting the high quality fish is nearly impossible for the average joe. Your local supermarket doesn't sell it. Most fish markets don't carry it, or if they do, they only offer one or two varieties.

Besides, after a few sakes, I might slice off one of my fingertips with those sharp-assed knives.
 
My wife and I go to one of the local Asian markets every few months and buy stuff to make our own sushi rolls. Usually sashimi grade tuna, salmon, unagi, but last time we added some albacore too (just depends on what we see that looks interesting).

We definitely go out for sushi more than making it, but it's fun to do every now and then since you can make any kind of roll that you feel like and can think up.

Sushi is great, and I could likely eat it every other day (alternated with burritos). :rockin:
 
It's possible to save a fair amount of money making your own, provided you do it enough that the minor initial outlay is recouped (and that you would have bought that much sushi in the first place). "How easy is it," you ask? Well, my 5-year-old sister can make maki-sushi, and nigiri-sushi is even simpler. As for speed, I've never experienced "hours of painstaking prep". Prepping ingredients for a considerable amount of sushi shouldn't take more than half an hour-maybe an hour if you're doing it for the first time.

An important distinction to note: "sushi" refers to the rice; while raw seafood can be used as a (delicious!) component, it's not mandatory. The California roll is probably the most popular form of maki-sushi in the US, and it consists of avocado, cucumber, and crab meat (often imitation). Vegetarian rolls are also popular. Personally, I often use ham, beef, or lamb.
 
ive tried making it a few times, none of which were too successful. the two main problems i encounter are the rice sticking to everything and making a mess and the wasabi bought at stores sucking. ive tried both the paste in a tube and the powder you reconstitute but both are made from american horseradish instead of japanese wasabi. its a completely different flavor. where do you guys get good wasabi?
 
<EAC>
I think the only thing holding me back from doing my own sushi/sashimi is finding the quality fish. Granted, I've never really tried that hard to look, but still.

I'm up for any type of sushi/sashimi. I don't bother with the California rolls, because, well, I'm looking to eat fish. I'm always up for trying new fish I've never had. A little while ago I was in SoHO for my wife's friend's birthday and they found a place that seemed to be in the middle of nowhere. After we had our meal, we asked the waiter to bring out some chef selections (basically stuff the average bear wouldn't eat). So we tried (raw, thinly sliced) scallop, monkfish and a few other things. Normally I hit up Mahzu in Aberdeen (for the locals).
</EAC>
 
ive tried making it a few times, none of which were too successful. the two main problems i encounter are the rice sticking to everything and making a mess and the wasabi bought at stores sucking. ive tried both the paste in a tube and the powder you reconstitute but both are made from american horseradish instead of japanese wasabi. its a completely different flavor. where do you guys get good wasabi?

There is an online vendor out of Oregon (iirc) that will ship fresh Rhizomes. That being said 'Wasabi' in just about any Sushi restaurant (at least here in the States) is Horseradish powder with green coloring. Sushi is all about the rice, for Maki and Nigiri. The way they apply the rice to the Nori is to have the hands wet with water mixed with Sushi-Su (Sushi vinegar), they clap them together dispelling the excess water and in one swift motion cover the Nori.
 
I experiment with cooked items like Tamago, Unagi and some other fishes very lightly broiled or dipped in hot water (makes a really cool effect when cut). It's the best I can do without living on a seaport. You can get some fairly good frozen fish (actually whole Tuna sold in Japan on the markets is frozen solid, I saw it on tv once and was like...wth?) for Sushi. Of course nothing would beat pulling one out of the ocean! :D I get creative with a lot of items, of course traditionalists like those making Edo style would probably scream at me...but I have thoroughly enjoyed what I have made much more so than any local place.

Also there are things like seasoned Mackerel that is nice. I have used whole Mackerel, you can often get that one fresh enough.
 
Eat sushi? You bet. There are even a couple of places in Denver with good sushi, which is a trick considering that we're 1000 miles from the nearest ocean.

Make it? No thanks. However, we do eat sushi rice fairly regularly. IMO, it's better than regular long-grain for just about everything.
 
I've been attempting to make it a few times this summer...I haven't come close to making a perfect roll yet, but it is fun...and even ugly sushi taste great!!!

I got this kit for like $5.00 on sale at Barnes and Nobel's

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The DVD and book are great little primers on getting started...

Sushi goes great with a hoppy IPA...The hoppiness cuts through the wasabi nicely.
 
SWMBO and I make maki sushi about once a month. She's not the adventurous eater, sticking with tuna and California rolls. Me on the other hand? Bring it on!
 
I've made Make (rolls) plenty of times.

Get shortgrain sushi rice at an asian grocer instead of paying $10 for a 2 pound bag at the regular grocery store. If you don't live near a fresh fish market on a coast, I think the safest fish to buy is the tuna or salmon that comes in individually vac packed bags that are flash frozen right at the processor. I talked to the sushi chefs in a few places and a lot of them use these. I've never gotten even a little sick using these. If you're really worried, you could pan sear to reduce risk.

Don't forget that the rice needs to be seasoned with a rice wine vinegar and sweetened. You can buy premixed sushi seasoning vinager.

I like doing the rice-outside on all my rolls just like the Cali roll. You basically cut the nori sheets in half, dip your hands in water and carefully spread rice all over the sheet. Flip it over, fill with fish, avacado slices, thinly sliced carrots and cucumber, wasabi, etc and roll it tight. In order to do rice outside, you'll want to wrap your bamboo mat in some plastic wrap for easy release.

I recently found a recipe for a good tempura batter and have been making tempura shrimp rolls. I also messed around with making spicy tuna by putting the tuna, mayo, and chili pepper sauce into a food processor.

My mouth is watering now.
 
kitten and I tried making Sushi a few years ago when we lived in Atlanta because there were Oriental grocery stores to get good ingredients, it was pretty fun to make it, but honestly its not really worthwhile if you're doing it from a saving money perspective

Instead of taking $20 bucks and getting the ingredients to make 6 tuna rolls, I would rather spend $20 at the sushi restaurant and get tuna roll, elvis roll, dragon roll , + 3-4 varieties of sashimi
 
Well, tbh, I have found it very cheap to make your own Sushi. Even a top quality piece of fish, you don't need much so maybe a few bucks gives you enough for several Maki. The Nori can be bought for less than $0.10, and the rice is running less than $1/lb now (I use Kohuko Rose sp?). The Sushi-Su is merely Rice vinegar, Sugar and salt (I simmer mine with Kombu). Kombu is a few cents for seasoning the rice. Wasabi can be purchased in a bulk bag for a few bucks at Asian grocers.
 
I make California rolls every once in a while, it's actually really easy.

I make sushi every couple months, and have for years. All our local supermarkets are stocking Nori (seaweed wrappers) these days, and I'm in smalltown North Carolina. You don't have to have Toro or Maguro to have good sushi.

I regularly just make California rolls, and if I want a cheap sushi fix just to munch on, and I'm not feeling real EAC'ish, I'll even use Krab.

The trick to making good sushi at home is to really get the rice right. There are bottled all-in-one sushi rice dressings out there, but I find these to be really overpowering, particularly compared to most sushi places I've been stateside and in Japan. I usually just use a bit of Mirin to get the right light twang of vinegar, but never as much as many directions tell you to use. Like a proper pizza where it's all about the crust, not the toppings, sushi is all about the rice and the interaction of the other ingredients. If you just want fish eat sashimi.

Use the right rice. Short grain white.

Really wash the rice well. Don't just give it a cursory rinse. Agitate the uncooked rice in the pot with your hand and keep rinsing it regularly until the water in the pot no longer turns white while you stir.

Cook the rice.

Cool the rice. I mean get in there and stir it and fan it and get it cooled, kind of like cooling wort... If you season the rice warm it ain't going to taste right when cooled. Working the rice while cooling it also makes it a bit stickier, which is good, particularly if you're doing Nigiri style sushi.

For rolls, you don't have to have a bamboo rolling mat, but it helps. You can also just do hand rolls, which are cone shaped and don't require cutting. An absolute favorite of mine that I always order when I go out for sushi is a Salmon Skin Hand Roll. Good stuff!

If you're a wasabi fan go ahead and use the prepared stuff in a tube. The dry stuff in a can might last longer, but it doesn't have the punch of the tubed stuff.

If you like having the ginger in between pieces of sushi then buy some whole ginger root and peel it, then cut it yourself. The pink crap in a jar you might find some places is gross compared to fresh cut ginger.

Have fun with it. When salmon season would open on the CA central coast where I used to live I would chow down on homemade sushi. Now that I'm on the east coast I don't make it quite as often, but I have made some really great rolls using blue crab I caught myself.
 
+1 for the California rolls. It's hard to get sushi grade fish here, so thats pretty much all I make. SWMBO loves the fact I can just throw it together on the fly.
TiP: Dip your knife in a cup of water before you cut through the roll and you will have an easier time cutting it.

bamboo roller=cheap
seaweed=cheap
fake crab=cheap
avacado= seasonal
cucumber=cheap
impressing the ladies without spending a fortune=priceless
 
We've had a few sushi parties and they are great. Just have a rice cooker ready and make the sushi rice, then everyone brings an ingredient. (Make sure they know to get sushi grade cuts) Then we would all stand around and make rolls. Then sit down to a table COVERED with the ugliest damn rolls you've ever seen, but they all (mostly) tasted great.
Then we clean up and tear into some well deserved homebrews. Last time was a barleywine, triple, and grand cru tasting. Goes well with sushi.
 
SWMBO and I make maki sushi about once a month. She's not the adventurous eater, sticking with tuna and California rolls. Me on the other hand? Bring it on!

Gonna have to put that on the to-do list next time we meet up. :mug:

I'm just starting to venture out into sushi beyond California roll. ;) And I did try to make it at home...wasn't as pretty as in the restaurant but it filled the craving. Watched Alton Brown and decided to give it a try.



 
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Sushi isn't a food, it's a way of life.

Haven't tried making my own, but my business partner has. After her divorce, she swore she'd never make it again. Way too much work and expense, unless you focus on one or two types; then it gets boring.
 
Yeah I should add that it can be very cheap, I haven't delved into using raw fish but you wouldn't need all that much so I don't see why you couldn't do this as well. Trouble for me is that SWMBO doesn't like sushi so while I get more for myself I end up cooking two meals because she wont eat it (it's not just my sushi either we have been to some very nice sushi restaurants and she will try it but always thinks it's gross) so it's too much work most of the time.
 
Haven't made my own yet, but I could eat about a dozen Philadelphia rolls right now...
 
i LOVE sushi!!!

here's a picture of me and my wife eating fugu [blowfish] in Japan
IMG_2307.JPG


it's actually cheaper for us to make sushi at home than it is to get it at a restaurant
 
SWMBO and I love sushi....we can make it ourselves, but there is this killer place that's 10 mins walking, and then we can have all of the saki we want, and don't have to drive.

This thread is making me hungry, and we just had Thai a few hours ago
 
"How easy is it," you ask? Well, my 5-year-old sister can make maki-sushi, and nigiri-sushi is even simpler. As for speed, I've never experienced "hours of painstaking prep". Prepping ingredients for a considerable amount of sushi shouldn't take more than half an hour-maybe an hour if you're doing it for the first time.

I am a experienced cook and love the prep and love all the prep that goes into everything. I take ALOT of extra time to make each roll and design each cut. Yes I am actually out of my damn mind, And I love every minute of it.

I cooked for my roommates a few months ago and took the extra time to make tomato roses, so, yes, HOURS of prep is not uncommon for me to get something to the point of where I like it.
You eat with your eyes before your mouth!!!
 
We typically make sushi once a week (on Saturday). You REALLY get the hang of it. The first few times, it was painstaking (especially the rolling) but now all together it may take and hour and a half for 2 people with: 10 minutes of getting the rice ready, 20 minutes being the rice cooking (and cutting all the veggies), 50 minutes of assembling and rolling the sushi and another 10 minutes of cutting the sushi.

Another trick for you: We use smoked salmon for our sushis, that way we don't have to go get fresh fish or seafood on the same day.

For the recipe here is what I use: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/party-starters/sushi-rolls-recipe/index.html

For three people (I'm a big eater, the others not so much) we usually make between 3.5 and 4 cups of sushi rice. We sort of know now how hungry we are and can judge how much we need. Just make a bit more and you'll have a some leftover rice, not a big loss.

In the ingredients, you may also want to add sesame seeds.

Rolling is the hardest part, but you'll get the hand of it. A trick: on your first fold, you have to go get all your filling.
 
HOURS of prep is not uncommon for me to get something to the point of where I like it. You eat with your eyes before your mouth!!!

+1. BBQ requires hours of prep and it's well worth it. How about a brisket you have to start the night before? Like homebrew, there's just certain things that require some time but are well worth it in the end.

Yeah, for sure! Full Moon just up the street from me at Grandview Plaza is fantastic, and it's BYOB. :mug:

:rockin: How do you say "growler" in Japanese? :D
 
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