Gunkan Maki
Gunkan-Maki is a recipe featuring fresh ingredients from the seaweed category. Try this and other recipes from Spoonsparrow!
Ingredients
- 600 g sushi rice
- 1 small piece kombu kelp (about 4 x15 cm, one type of seaweed)
- 70 ml Japanese rice vinegar
- 1.5 tsp salt
- 1.5 tbsp sugar
- 2 roasted nori sheets
- 240 g prepared sushi rice
- 80 g keta caviar (or trout caviar as substitute)
- soy sauce
- Wasabi paste
- pickled ginger
Instructions
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1.
Wash the sushi rice in a sieve under running cold water until the water runs clear, then let it drain briefly.
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2.
Fill a flat, heavy pot with the rice and 700 ml water and add the kombu piece. Let the rice soak for at least 10 minutes.
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3.
Bring the mixture to a boil, occasionally stirring, and cook on high heat for 2 minutes.
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4.
Reduce the heat and cover; simmer on low heat according to package instructions for 10-20 minutes until the rice is just cooked.
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5.
Meanwhile, whisk together the rice vinegar, salt, and sugar in a small bowl with a fork until the sugar and salt are fully dissolved.
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6.
Remove the rice from the heat, lift off the lid, cover it with a kitchen towel, let it cool for 10 minutes while absorbing excess moisture.
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7.
Rinse a flat ceramic bowl with cold water and pour the hot rice into it.
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8.
Using a flat wooden spatula, quickly flip the rice. Drizzle the vinegar mixture over it.
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9.
To cool quickly to room temperature, spread the rice in a fan‑like pattern with the spatula, cutting through the grains in various directions; do not stir or crush the grains!
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10.
Never place the hot rice in the refrigerator to cool.
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11.
Cover the finished sushi rice with a damp kitchen towel until ready for further use.
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12.
Trim any frayed edges of the nori sheets. Cut each sheet lengthwise into strips about 3 cm wide and 15 cm long.
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13.
With wet hands, form eight oval rice balls from the prepared sushi rice. Wrap each ball in a strip of nori, smooth side outward, securing the edge with one or two rice grains. Gently press the rice into the seaweed and distribute caviar evenly on top. Serve the Gunkan Maki with Japanese tea.
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14.
Optionally, cover the rolls with 80 g fresh diced salmon fillet or 80 g fresh diced cod fillet, or offer all three variations together. In that case, triple the amount of rice and nori sheets.
