Rice Paper Sushi Rolls

My family likes to make sushi at home. Granted, it’s probably not very authentic, but it still tastes great! We usually make it with surimi, cucumber, and avocado, sometimes we swap surimi for smoked salmon. So, how did this recipe come about? Well, a few weeks ago I was grocery shopping and bought some rice paper, mostly because I’ve seen it being used a ton of ways on Instagram and wanted to give it a try. When my family was making sushi together later that weekend, I looked at the rice paper and came up with a neat idea – why not wrap sushi in it? A bit like a sushi burrito but more self-contained, and it adds a cool chew to the outside of the sushi roll. It’s been a huge hit with my family!

Ingredients

Take your typical sushi recipe, add rice paper, that’s pretty much this recipe. It makes a great lunch or snack!

• Sushi rice
• Rice vinegar
• Granulated sugar
• Water
• Nori seaweed sheets
• Surimi or smoked salmon (or both!)
• Avocado
• Cucumber
• Vietnamese rice paper

Making Rice Paper Sushi Rolls

You’ll need to start by making sushi rice. It’s pretty simple actually – you just cook the rice, then mix it with the sugar/water/vinegar mixture. The actual sushi roll process is a little messier, but the rice paper actually simplifies it quite a bit! You start by briefly soaking and then placing down a rice paper sheet, then a nori seaweed sheet on top of it. Put a scoop of rice on top of the nori, and spread it out with your fingers to cover the seaweed. It helps to have a bowl of water to dip your fingers into every so often – the water helps prevent rice from sticking to your fingers. Then, lay out your toppings in the middle of the rice bed, making sure not to overstuff! Roll up the seaweed first, then once you have the sushi roll, wrap it in the rice paper like a burrito. That’s it! You can slice it into sushi rolls or just eat it like a burrito – up to you.

Tips

• Don’t oversoak the rice paper, getting it wet on both sides is usually enough! It’ll soften up over time and once you’re done with the sushi roll the rice paper will be ready to wrap it.
• Have some extra ingredients on hand, to account for snacking while making them ;)
• Feel free to customize the fillings as you want! If you can get sushi-grade fish, that is a great option.
• The rolls are best eaten fresh, as sushi doesn’t keep well overnight.

Rice Paper Sushi Rolls

A creative take on sushi!

Prep Time: 60 min	Cook Time: 20 min
Total Time: 80 min	Serves: 20

Ingredients

• 1 cup short-grain sushi rice
• 1 1/4 cup cold water
• 2 tbsp rice vinegar
• 1 tbsp sugar (more depending on how sour the rice vinegar is)
• 20 sheets of nori seaweed
• 20 sticks of imitation crab meat, or 1 pkg of smoked salmon
• 3 avocadoes, sliced into wedges
• 8 small cucumbers, sliced into spears
• 20 sheets of Vietnamese rice paper

Instructions

1. An hour or so before making the rolls, rinse your sushi rice and cook it with the water in a rice cooker, Instant Pot, or your preferred method.
2. When the rice is done, mix the sugar and vinegar until the sugar has dissolved. As the rice cools, drizzle in the vinegar-sugar mixture and stir well to coat.
3. Once the rice has cooled enough to handle, set up your station. You’ll need all of the ingredients, as well as a bowl of cold water for rinsing fingers, a plate of cold water for soaking the rice paper, and a plate to put the finished rolls on.
4. To make a roll: Dip a piece of rice paper in the cold water to wet it on both sides. Place it on a plate or mat. Place a sheet of nori seaweed on top.
5. Scoop some sushi rice onto the nori (amount depends on your preference, just keep in mind that thicker layers means the roll is harder to roll!) and spread it out with your fingers. Use the bowl of cold water to clean your fingers off afterward.
6. Evenly layer the cucumbers, avocado, and other fillings into the middle of the rice bed.
7. Roll the seaweed over the fillings, being careful to keep the roll tight.
8. Roll your finished sushi roll in the rice paper.
9. Serve and enjoy!

Notes

This recipe is pescetarian, dairy-free, and gluten-free. To make it vegetarian or vegan, you can use all vegetables as fillings!