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Proper Sushi Rice  Saw some questions on sushi rice upthread a bit. I worked as a sous chef at Nobu for a couple of years and at a Michelin fancy pants establishment as a sushi “chef” (The usage of the term “chef” is a little different in traditional Edo style sushi bars than say a brigade style kitchen, I was basically a sushi “helper”, but most Americans would just refer to the job as “sushi chef” and not think twice about it.) for 3 years prior. I also make sushi at home all the time. Without going too deep into the rabbit hole that is sushi rice, here’s how I make sushi rice at home. Hope it’s helpful, and keep in mind that even amongst Japanese chefs technique can vary greatly. (Soak vs. not soak, dry, rice maker or double boiler with a net, vinegar, etc etc) Obviously good rice is important, but not as important as a lot of people make it out to be unless you’re really shooting for the moon. California grown koshihikari is about the best you’re gonna get retail, but honestly I just use Nishiki at home and I’m happy with it https://www.amazon.com/Nishiki-Prem...958417760&psc=1 I would say it’s FAR more important to choose a decent brand and STICK with it, than to use the best rice available. If you’re switching up brands every time you make sushi rice, you’re never gonna learn to recognize the nuances of your rice to achieve max consistency. I’ve worked in places where we made rice for service everyday the old school way with a double boiler and net, and also where we used rice makers. Don’t get cocky, a simple rice maker is all you need. I use this one at home https://www.amazon.com/Zojirushi-NH...58711&s=grocery There’s absolutely no need for a $500 zojirushi with all the bells and whistles, and besides if you ever invite an actual Japanese person over for dinner they will just roll their eyes and quietly judge you for it anyways. Also, get a net. It prevents the rice on the bottom from burning, makes cleanup a breeze, and also allows you to just dump it into your hangiri. SOOO…. a hangiri. It’s a (typically) cedar one of these https://www.amazon.com/BambooMN-Hangiri-Sushi-Mixing-Piece/dp/B0742JVZZ5/ref=sr_1_2?keywords=hangiri&qid=1560358885&s=home-garden&sr=1-2 Pick one up, they’re only ~$30. It serves two purposes, because it’s porous it absorbs a lot of the steam as your rice cools (as opposed to a metal bowl or whatever, which will just push the steam right back into your rice, loving with the texture and making it “gummy” for lack of a better word.) It also imparts a nice hint of “woody” or “cedar flavor” that I find balances out the kombu in your sushi vinegar. OK sushi vinegar. This varies WIDELY. Since red akazu vinegar is kind of a bitch to get here in the US, I usually just use rice vinegar. At Nobu we’d use a mix of sherry and rice vinegar for some of the higher end nigiri to mimic red vinegar, then just increase the amount of salt to compensate for the sweetness in the sherry. A good basic ratio is 7 parts vinegar, 4 parts sugar, 2 parts salt. American sushi restaurants make their rice way sweeter than traditional Edo spots, but something like this is what you’re probably tasting when you slam down rolls at your local spot. I prefer more of a 7: 3: 3ish ratio, but honestly I just go by taste when I make it. Edo sushi rice is traditionally a lot saltier (also because you’re not making rolls at all, just nigiri) and you want that salty “pucker” effect when you taste it, it enhances the fish. Again, not trying to go off on a huge tangent most people won’t care about. I dissolve all of it in the vinegar cold, then once the salt and sugar are dissolved into the vinegar I plop a piece of kombu in there for that enhanced msg goodness and wait for my rice to finish. “Season” your hangiri ahead of time (wipe it with a sushi vinegar towel, rice sticks to dry poo poo like napalm). So, in a bowl or strainer or whatever rinse your rice. Cold water, gentle swoosh around, strain. Repeat 4-5 times (this is one of those areas that can vary greatly and everyone swears their way is the “only” way. gently caress ‘em, rinse it 4-5 times until the water runs mostly clear. A little starch leftover isn’t a bad thing and actually contributes to the “tackiness” of the finished sushi rice that you’ll want as you’re not cooking it into mush). Don’t beat the poo poo out of it while rinsing, you don’t want to crack grains which leads to improper cooking and overcooked sushi rice. Throw your rice in the rice maker, add your water, flip ‘er on. I use a 1:1.15 ratio of rice to water, or just knuckle it. I don’t soak my rice for various reasons, but that’s a 4000 word tangent. But the short answer for cooking at home is, you probably don’t know how old your rice is, and won’t be able to properly adjust the amount of water you add to the rice maker based on what your rice absorbs while soaking. When the rice maker goes off let it sit for another 10 minutes or so to finish cooking and absorb any residual steam. Dump it into the hangiri from your net. Season your rice with your sushi vinegar over your rice paddle. I’m sure there’s youtube videos of this that are easy to find. In a real sushi bar, this is actually referred to as “cutting the rice”. Another 4000 word tangent about proper technique here and the theory behind it, but basically just evenly distribute the vinegar over your rice. Fan it out evenly in your hangiri. Wait for it to stop steaming. Flip, “cut”, repeat until barely above room temp and no more steam. Google a ratio of rice to vinegar, I honestly would have no idea what that looks like. I’ve been doing for this daily so long and I have a huge batch of premade sushi vinegar both at work and home, and just go by eyeballing and taste. Place rice in a bowl with a damp towel over, and booyah! I’d say for a home sized batch in a small hangiri like that you’re probably looking at ~30-35 minutes of flipping and cooling. Don’t overthink it. EDIT: Also, jesus christ, never refrigerate your rice or any such for sushi. Totally fucks with the starch and texture. Just leave it at room temp. I leave my leftover sushi rice out overnight when I make it for dinner, and use it for hawaiin style rice 'n eggs the next morning without fail. Yeah I know ServSafe blah blah tokyo reject fucked around with this message at 18:41 on Jun 12, 2019 |
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Jun 12, 2019 18:23
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tokyo reject posted:Proper Sushi Rice I feel weird telling anyone I’ve worked as a sushi chef since I was never the “chief” of anything. I had a hard time coming up with shorthand for, “I don’t consider myself a sushi chef but I made rice, broke down fish, made rolls and nigiri, etc.” Sushi roller guy, that’s what I was. FishBowlRobot fucked around with this message at 19:09 on Jun 12, 2019 |
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Jun 12, 2019 19:06
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Yea, we say "rolled sushi" to indicate that you weren't running a sushi line.
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Jun 12, 2019 19:58
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Babylon Astronaut posted:Yea, we say "rolled sushi" to indicate that you weren't running a sushi line. Yeah, I've never had any position of seniority behind a sushi line. At Nobu I was a sous in the hot kitchen, but I'd still rock out rolls and nigiri during service when they were in the weeds. We had kind of the equivalent of a "service bar" like bartenders have, where we'd just pump out the crowd pleaser rolls and nigiri combos, rolls for bentos, etc. while the primary sushi line catered to the sushi bar and picked up the more delicate stuff. I don't think a lot of casual diners realize how diverse sushi is (and the jobs are) depending on the type of establishment. For the past year or so I've been working in what I'd consider maybe a step above a "poo poo show" tourist-y spot, because I have a day schedule and the lunch tips are insane being as it's mostly business/tech types. Our owner pulls sashimi and we basically crank out the rest. We use decent product, but we're certainly not doing traditional sushi, aging our fish, etc etc or anything. tokyo reject fucked around with this message at 15:29 on Jun 13, 2019 |
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Jun 12, 2019 20:44
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Thanks for the post, some ideas in there I'll add to what I've been doing. I also have been unable to find red vinegar, I picked up some of this and it's great: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0017LJ0CU/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o07_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 I've been using it for almost everything where the vinegar flavor is prominent instead of just an acidic component of the larger mix.
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Jun 12, 2019 22:39
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Grand Fromage posted:Thanks for the post, some ideas in there I'll add to what I've been doing. Oooooh yeah, that stuff is fire. We used to do a wagyu nigiri at that first spot I worked at where we'd take veal jus and reduce it down until it was just under au sec, then steep in a few pieces of kombu, strain, and adjust the acidity with that brown rice vinegar, and then bring it down a little bit more to au sec/the same consistency standard nikiri sauce for glazing nigiri. Almost exactly like you'd adjust a traditional French reduction sauce for acid etc etc before service. Pass it through a chinois and keep it in a bain with a brush. To order we'd slice off a piece from the wagyu saku, put it on a sizzle plate and torch it from 7-8" above so you didn't actually cook it, but just warmed it up enough to warm it up/emulsify the fat. Then you'd form the piece of nigiri, and brush it with the veal/kombu/brown rice vinegar glaze. With a microplane, we'd take foie that had been cured in brine in cryovac bags, cold smoked and frozen, and micro the smoked foie "snow" over the top of the wagyu. That brown rice vinegar glaze cut the fattiness of the foie and wagyu  Also, it looks like this guy is selling Akasu vinegar again https://www.thejapanesepantry.com I hadn't checked his website for like 6 months until your brown rice vinegar made me think of it, since this is where my current bottle of brown rice vin at home came from. The Akasu https://www.thejapanesepantry.com/products/akasu (odd, I really did think this was always spelled with a "z", huh lol) I'd also suggest the double brewed soy from this place, it's pretty ridiculous https://www.thejapanesepantry.com/products/doubled-brewed-soy-sauce And these salted black sesame seeds are unreal https://www.thejapanesepantry.com/products/roasted-salty-black-sesame-seeds I haven't tried anything else from there, but one of the Japanese guys I work with turned me onto them. I've also recently been turned onto "gimbap" for staff meals. I guess it's kind of a Korean derivative/variation on sushi, but they glaze their sushi rice with sesame oil instead of sushi vinegar which has been blowing my mind for home cooking. It's still great for forming nigiri, and it's awesome because I can refrigerate it and use it for stuff like curry or a don bowl the next day whereas I've always found vinegared sushi rice kinda tasted weird in curry and the texture gets super funky after it's been refrigerated. But since with the sesame you're glazing it with essentially fat instead of vinegar that's absorbed into the rice, it doesn't clump together and is surprisingly awesome the next day. If I'm being super lazy I'll just straight up throw one of the cheap curry/roux cubes in a pot with some water, adjust with white soy and sugar, and dump it over the leftover sesame rice for dinner in <10 min. tokyo reject fucked around with this message at 16:14 on Jun 13, 2019 |
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Jun 13, 2019 15:21
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tokyo reject posted:Also, get a net Tell me more about this "net"
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Jun 13, 2019 15:30
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Sextro posted:Tell me more about this "net" https://www.amazon.com/Cooking-Comm...8-1-spons&psc=1 They're great, you just put it in the rice maker before you dump your rice and water in. Then I fold the edges over the rice/water so they're inside the rice maker with everything else. Otherwise depending on your rice maker, the dry edge where your lid meets the base of the rice maker may get hot enough to actually discolor/burn the net since it's not getting wet from all the steam inside your rice maker. Then when you're done, just soak it in some clean water and scrub the left over cooked rice off it and hang dry it so it doesn't get moldy/funky. I know in Indian cooking they actually have some name for that crispy rice at the bottom and serve it as a stand alone dish, but it's annoying when that's not what you're going for.
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Jun 13, 2019 15:46
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tokyo reject posted:I've also recently been turned onto "gimbap" for staff meals. I guess it's kind of a Korean derivative/variation on sushi, but they glaze their sushi rice with sesame oil instead of sushi vinegar which has been blowing my mind for home cooking. Gimbap is good stuff. I've never seen the rice glazed with sesame oil in Korea though, I'm having trouble picturing how that's done. After the roll is complete the oil's brushed on top and often some sesame seeds are adhered to it with said oil. I usually use sushi rice instead of the plain white Korea uses when I make it at home, so I guess technically I always am making weird futomaki instead of gimbap but whatever.
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Jun 13, 2019 19:33
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Grand Fromage posted:I guess technically I always am making weird futomaki instead of gimbap but whatever. I just call them both Liancourt Rolls.
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Jun 13, 2019 19:44
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Grand Fromage posted:Gimbap is good stuff. I've never seen the rice glazed with sesame oil in Korea though, I'm having trouble picturing how that's done. After the roll is complete the oil's brushed on top and often some sesame seeds are adhered to it with said oil. Actually, after reading more about gimbap as I recently started to make it, I also read about seasoning the rice with sesame oil and salt, in addition to brushing the outside of the roll with sesame oil and a sprinkle of sesame seeds. For example: https://www.koreanbapsang.com/gimbapkimbap-korean-dried-seaweed-rolls/#wprm-recipe-container-6729 So I tried it and can definitely recommend it!
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Jun 13, 2019 21:30
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Huh. Can't say I ever had gimbap rice that had a noticeable sesame oil flavor in it, but Korea does have some regional food variation so that could be it. I only lived in the southeast. There's also more of a "yeah throw in whatever who gives a poo poo" vibe in Korean food than Japanese, generally.
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Jun 13, 2019 21:39
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Grand Fromage posted:Gimbap is good stuff. I've never seen the rice glazed with sesame oil in Korea though, I'm having trouble picturing how that's done. After the roll is complete the oil's brushed on top and often some sesame seeds are adhered to it with said oil. Hmmm, yeah this was the first time I'd ever seen/heard of it. He basically took a bunch of leftover shoyu chicken someone else had made the day before and put it into rolls with some carrots and mustard greens. He used the same koshihikari we use for sushi and then seasoned it with sesame oil (maybe salt too? I'll ask tomorrow when I'm back at work) and then seasoned it in our old beater hangiri that's falling apart from dish pit abuse so as not to get the ones we use for service coated in sesame oil. The rice itself definitely had a strong sesame flavor to it, which now after reading paraquat's post makes me think he probably seasoned it with salt too. I've just been using the cheap sesame oil from my neighborhood asian market to coat it at home. I also definitely dig the "yeah throw in whatever who gives a poo poo" vibe in cooking more adhering to rigid rules, especially cooking at home when I'm on a relatively tight budget and gotta feed the whole fam. paraquat posted:Actually, after reading more about gimbap as I recently started to make it, I also read about seasoning the rice with sesame oil and salt, in addition to brushing the outside of the roll with sesame oil and a sprinkle of sesame seeds. Have you been able to find a good book on gimbap? I looked on Amazon and did some googling, but most of the stuff I found seems super shallow or more like a kinda half-done Kindle Unlimited self-published book. It also kinda warmed my heart that I think it was on some youtube video I watched where they mentioned it is traditionally served pre-cut in tinfoil, that's my kinda cooking.
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Jun 13, 2019 22:50
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I can't imagine anyone writing a book on gimbap, there's nothing to say really. Wrap (Korean things) in rice and I have never looked for a book on Koreanized sushi since I think it generally sucks compared to the real thing.
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Jun 13, 2019 23:11
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Grand Fromage posted:I have never looked for a book on Koreanized sushi since I think it generally sucks compared to the real thing. That's kinda how I feel about Americanized sushi. Don't get me wrong if I've put down a few beers I'll eat the poo poo out of some eel and cream cheese rolls, but every time I make one, or a "Volcano Roll" or anything with tempura flakes/spicy mayo I still kinda cringe (and try to convince myself I'm not just being snobby or elitist.) It's just nothing related to what sushi really is or was intended to be. It's why places get away with serving such garbage fish, because you can't even taste the fish with all the other poo poo we throw inside/on top.
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Jun 13, 2019 23:28
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It's not quite the same way of changing. Like Korean sashimi I absolutely hate because Koreans love crunchychewy texture, think of jellyfish. So frequently they will kill the fish and then slice it when it's at full rigor mortis, giving you these super chewy as gently caress slices of fish and ugh. Plus they're really into using flatfish that have basically no flavor. Sometimes the bones are left in for crunch and because, in the words of the Korean chef I asked about this, it's "too much trouble" to remove bones from fish. When Koreans are making chobap, which is Japanese style sushi, it's usually not too weird. Not like what China does to it which is more offensive than anything I've ever seen in the US.
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Jun 13, 2019 23:34
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Anyway I made katsu curry today.
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Jun 14, 2019 00:09
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Grand Fromage posted:Anyway I made katsu curry today. this is so pretty I want to cry
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Jun 14, 2019 02:14
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Quick veggie roll for dinner last night with some leftover rice from work 
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Jun 15, 2019 14:07
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Every time I cook soba, it turns into gluey poo poo. How do I do this right?
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Jun 15, 2019 15:39
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I boil until it's still pretty al dente, two or three minutes, then thoroughly wash it under cold running water. If I'm using it in a soup I don't wash it quite as much since the soup will loosen up any stickiness, if it's for zaru soba you gotta wash the hell out of it.
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Jun 15, 2019 18:12
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Ah. I forgot rinsing. Haven't cooked a carb in like six years.
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Jun 15, 2019 18:25
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Y'all have inspired me, so I made this I can't claim any degree of authenticity though. The base is a vegetable macedoine with barley and kombu rather than noodles or rice; but I did pickle the broccoli.
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Jun 20, 2019 22:47
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Sushi night to try out the new bottle of akasu. Chirashi and malformed maki. Got tuna, maguro zuke, shime saba, swordfish, and my best colored tamagoyaki yet.  Pretty good stuff, though I like my rice a little more heavily vinegary so I think I'll mix it with something stronger next time. Then some random garden poo poo with sesame dressing. Mizuna, green beans, snow peas, mibuna, wasabina, and a nasturtium flower. 
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Jun 22, 2019 01:15
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Very nice tamagoyaki, tamago is one of my favorites and I don't know why since I am not a big egg person.
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Jun 22, 2019 02:10
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Grand Fromage posted:Sushi night to try out the new bottle of akasu. Chirashi and malformed maki. Got tuna, maguro zuke, shime saba, swordfish, and my best colored tamagoyaki yet. I would gently caress with this.
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Jun 22, 2019 02:42
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That tamagoyaki is 
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Jun 22, 2019 03:08
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Trying my hand at okonomiyaki tonight, wish me luck, goons. Couldn't find dashi stock or powder at my local area supermarket, though, so I bought it online for next time.
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Jun 22, 2019 17:26
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You doing Osaka or Hiroshima? I did extensive research into these last time I was in Japan and came down hard on the Hiroshima side.
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Jun 22, 2019 20:54
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Grand Fromage posted:You doing Osaka or Hiroshima? I did extensive research into these last time I was in Japan and came down hard on the Hiroshima side. 
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Jun 22, 2019 21:18
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The justhungry recipe I snagged is Osaka style! We have so much nagaimo and cabbage, and the dashi powder I ordered gets here like Tuesday that I'm gonna give it a few tries in the upcoming week. What's the major difference between the two? I'm coming the first one right now, making the tenkasu was fun though, haha.
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Jun 22, 2019 23:03
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Johnny Truant posted:nagaimo Accurate. Hiroshima style has fried noodles and is layered instead of all mixed up into a goop. Ends up crisper. And more cabbage.
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Jun 22, 2019 23:18
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Grand Fromage posted:Accurate. Oohhh okay, that sounds cool! I tried both styles while I was in Osaka, my friend must've ordered both types. Do I need thaw the nagaimo whenever I make it in the future? I'm guessing yes. Also, recommended okonomiyaki sauce recs? I'm using eel sauce right now, still
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Jun 22, 2019 23:23
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Okonomiyaki sauce is like yakisoba sauce I think. For yakisoba I mix five parts bulldog sauce, one part ketchup/oyster sauce/soy sauce/vinegar. Usually get some mayo on there too. I haven't actually made okonomiyaki I've just put a lot of it in my face.
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Jun 22, 2019 23:31
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Grand Fromage posted:Okonomiyaki sauce is like yakisoba sauce I think. For yakisoba I mix five parts bulldog sauce, one part ketchup/oyster sauce/soy sauce/vinegar. Usually get some mayo on there too. I haven't actually made okonomiyaki I've just put a lot of it in my face. Nice! Is bulldog sauce in a metal, ribbed tin? I think I saw it while scouring my local Asian supermarket for dashi. Okonomiyaki pics coming soon, but I'm actually incredibly happy with this recipe, even without dashi and pork! Def gonna remake it with both of those soon.
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Jun 22, 2019 23:35
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I've only ever seen it in these bottles.
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Jun 22, 2019 23:38
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Grand Fromage posted:I've only ever seen it in these bottles. I really want to try it
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Jun 22, 2019 23:50
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Grand Fromage posted:I've only ever seen it in these bottles. Not what I was thinking of but that's a great bottle. Babby's first okonomiyaki! 
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Jun 22, 2019 23:51
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Johnny Truant posted:Not what I was thinking of but that's a great bottle. Wait... if you have katsuoboshi how weren't you able to make dashi?
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Jun 23, 2019 03:35
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captkirk posted:Wait... if you have katsuoboshi how weren't you able to make dashi? No konbu 
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Jun 23, 2019 03:56
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