CALIFORNIA ROLL
Recipe Courtesy of Uncorked Kitchen
INGREDIENTS
- 1 avocado, halved lengthwise, pitted, peeled, and cut lengthwise into 1/8-inch slices
- 3 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- ¼ English cucumber, peeled, seeded, julienned to length of roll
- 6 – 8″ × 7″ sheets nori (seaweed)
- 3 c prepared sushi rice
- 1 tbsp wasabi powder, combined with 1 tbsp cold water
- 4 oz kanikama (imitation) crabmeat sticks
INSTRUCTIONS
In a small bowl, toss the avocado gently with the lemon juice. Dry roast each sheet of nori over direct heat, holding it at opposite corners with tongs and waving it back and forth over the burner for 30 seconds, or until it turns green.
Lay a dry bamboo sushi mat on a work surface so that the slats run horizontally. Put a piece of the nori on the mat with a long side facing you. With dampened hands, spread ½ cup sushi rice onto it, leaving a 1-inch border along the top edge and ½-inch on bottom. The rice will be on the inside of the roll.
Spread a small bit of the wasabi paste horizontally across the center of the rice — a little goes a long way for this spicy addition — and top with a cucumber strip. Arrange three avocado slices overlapping slightly in a horizontal line over the wasabi paste and cucumber, then top with one-sixth of the crabmeat.
Grasp the edges of the nori and the mat from the side facing you, lift the nori and the mat slightly, and roll the nori evenly and tightly away from you, pressing down slightly with each quarter turn. Seal the roll with a drop of water on the far edge of the nori, press the seam closed, and transfer the roll to a cutting board.
Make five more rolls in the same manner. With a very sharp knife dipped in water, trim the ends of the rolls and cut each roll crosswise into six 1-inch sections, making eight pieces.