Here is the breakdown of how we did it. First, we made a work station on the kitchen table and provided some basic raw materials as a group: the rice, the nori wrappers and the rolling kit. Each chef was in charge of the rest of their ingredients. (The kids had a great time in the supermarket shopping for their ingredients.)
The rice: To begin with, I made a big pot of sushi rice, using this method/recipe. Because the rice was for everyone to use, and I didn't know what ingredients they would be using, I didn't season it completely, just sprinkled it with some rice vinegar. Warning: I did burn the bottom of the first batch by not turning the simmer down low enough, so watch that. It wasn't the end of the world, I was able to salvage most of the pot and then I made another batch, but I did waste a bunch of rice that we could have used. Lesson learned.
The wrapper: I was able to find a package of nori in the asian foods aisle of the regular supermarket. For some of the rolls, the chefs used tortillas as the wrapper instead.
The insides: Whatever your fillings, they will roll up more easily if you cut them into long, thin strips. As part of the prep, I used a mandolin to julienne a bunch of cucumber, since that's always a big hit with my kids. I also bought pre-shredded carrots.
The rolling: The rolling kit comes with instructions, but don't let your lack of a kit dissuade you. It's actually pretty simple, and you could definitely use a substitute for the mat. Whatever you use, cover it with a sheet of plastic wrap, so you don't get it all dirty. I like my rice on the outside, so I put down a rectangle of rice to begin with. (sorry I have no pictures of this!) You must have wet fingers or you will get the rice stuck all over you, so keep a bowl of cold water next to you while you pat the rice into shape. Then you can lay the seaweed on top. (Reverse the order for seaweed on the outside, putting the rice on top of the seaweed.) Put your fillings about an inch from the edge in a relatively thin line, and then roll up, using the mat to compress it. Just be careful not to roll the plastic inside the roll!
Once it's all rolled up into a log, squeeze it gently to make it all stick together.Slice the rolls into thick slices and lay them out on a platter. We made up names and labelled each kind.
These were the tortilla-wrapped rolls. Garden Pick had cucumber, carrot and cream cheese. Cheese and Pep had string cheese and strips of pepperoni. Not pictured is Kate's Awesome Roll with refried beans, shredded cheese and fried onion strips.
The nori and rice rolls were as follows:
BBQ Chicken- chicken fingers, caramelized onion, BBQ sauce, rolled in crushed fried onions and garnished with cilantro.
Burrito- refried beans, garnished with queso and diced chili peppers
Buffalo- chicken fingers, buffalo sauce and celery, garnished with blue cheese dressing
Shrimp Scampi- lemon shrimp and fried onions garnished with sour cream and sriracha.
Hawaiian Punch- coconut shrimp, pineapple and bacon.
The contest: Each chef described their roll as it was served. Once everyone tried them all, we voted by a show of hands. And just in case you feel like there's no way you can make sushi? The winning roll, Hawaiian Punch, was made by a 15 year old and a 7 year old.
My tasting plate
After the vote was over, we moved on to the dessert sushi. We didn't think it was fair to lump them in with the regular sushi, so we didn't vote on them. With a few more entries, though, we could have made a second category.
Krispy Fruitcake was Rice Krispy treat, Twizzlers and Fruit Rollup with some Swedish fish nigiri. PBJ Surprise was peanut butter and jelly wrapped in a tortilla garnished with Fluff and a chocolate chip.
We enjoyed this so much, we've already started brainstorming for next year's contest. (Burger Battle? Pancake Palooza?)
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