If you have just ordered sushi as your meal, you would not even realize that 80% of what you just devoured is made from rice. See, when creating sushi, rice is the ingredient that you would really need. It is important that you do know how to make the right rice to be able to create the perfect sushi. Did you know that in the best establishments focused on sushi making, they hire one chef whose job is to simply cook rice? Well, now you know.
What you would need is a Japanese rice cooker for the rice. If in case you don’t have one, you can use a heavy pot that has a lid. Before you start pouring everything in, keep in mind that to cook the perfect rice, you have to make sure that your ingredients are measured well. Make sure that you choose the right type of rice for there are quite a number of those in the market. Experts suggest that you should use any of the following: Kokuho Rose, Tamanishiki, Yume, Tamaki Gold, and Nozomi.
After doing that, you might as well prepare the ingredients for rolled sushi. You would need to have 600 ml of water. This would allow you to create 4 pieces of futomaki (large rolls) or 10 hosomaki (small rolls).
After that, you can start washing the rice. If the water is already clear after washing the rice several times, then it is ready. Let the washed rice strain for around 30 minutes after which you can transfer it to your pot. If you are using an electric rice cooker, you just put in the rice and the water and then let the cooker do its job. If you are using a pot, make sure that you put on the lid of the pot tightly. Let the rice simmer at the lowest heat possible and let it steam for around 18 minutes. After that, you can remove the pot from the heat and then let it stand for yet 15 minutes more but do not remove the lid just yet.
While the rice is cooling, start your tezu. You would need to prepare your tezu, which is the solution made up of vinegar and water. To do this, you need to mix 250 ml of water, 5 ml of salt, and 30 ml of rice vinegar. You can use Marukan and Mitsukan for the best results. Heat your mixture until everything dissolves and make sure that you stir frequently. When everything is dissolved, remove it from the heat and let it cool.
Get a mixing bowl and wet it with your tezu. Japanese use a traditional bowl which is flat at the bottom. It is made of wood and it is great in mixing because it absorbs any moisture that is in excess. When you have your bowl already wet with tezu, you can put in the rice there. Add around a quarter of your tezu. Fold the ingredients in but do it slowly so that the grains are not smashed. Do this until everything has been mixed in.
After that, allow the rice to cool. You can use an electric fan for around five to six minutes to cool the rice. You would now have slightly chewy rice that is sticky. Now this is the kind of rice that you would need for sushi and it ready to be rolled.