Monday, March 14, 2011

Culinary Exploration: March

Month: March

Food: California roll

History: In the 1960s,LA became the entry point for sushi chefs from Japan seeking to make their fortune in the US.   Ichiro Mashita a sushi chef began substituting avocado for tuna and after further experimentation, the California roll was born in the early 1970s.   Traditionally sushi rolls are wrapped with nori(seaweed) on the outside, but Mashita also eventually made the roll "inside-out", i.e. uramaki, because Americans did not like seeing and chewing the nori on the outside of the roll. After becoming a favorite in southern California it eventually became popular all across the United States by the 1980s.

Description: Today’s exploration is a little different because we have both tried California rolls in a restaurant, but have never tried to make them.  Jeremy chose to make them with the following ingredients; sushi rice, nori, avocado, cream cheese, cucumber, shrimp, celery and imitation crab.  After cooking the shrimp and rice, he sliced everything else really thin so it would roll easily. Once assembled he put them back in the fridge to chill.

Taste Test: Anyone who knows Jeremy knows he loves spicy food and is a big fan of sushi.  So, of course he bought a tube of real wasabi and ate it with his California rolls.  The California rolls were good, I tried one with avocado and crab and avocado and shrimp.  I did try dipping one in the wasabi/soy sauce mixture, but it was too much heat for me and while I swallowed that bite, I chose to eat the rest without the sauce.  Jeremy loved them and wants to try making them again so he can work on his rolling technique.  He’s even looking into where he can buy sushi grade fish locally.  I’m not a huge fan of sushi, I have eaten it, but there are just so many other foods I would pick before it.  Tyler did try it, but only ended up getting the rice in his mouth and liked that.

Before

Essential to the California roll construction is a bamboo rolling mat and sushi rice.  We also bought nori, sesame seeds, pickled ginger, and wasabi.

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After

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Tyler enjoying a bite.

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