Vegan Maki Sushi

This is my entry for JFI Rice, hosted by the lovely Sharmi of Neivedyam

Sushi is made from short grain Japonica rice. This rice is very sticky when cooked. Sushi means vinegar rice. Maki sushi is rice rolled up in a sheet of nori (seaweed), with filling; normaly fish, but vegetables like cucumber, avacado and pepper work just as well.


Ingredients
A. RICE
1 cup Sushi Rice
1 1/4 cup Water
2 tbl spn Rice Vinegar
1 tspn Sugar
1/2 tspn Salt
(yields - 3-4 large rolls or 8-10 small rolls
B: TheRoll
4 sheets nori (seaweed)
Filling 1:
2 pieces of cucumber - same length at the the nori sheet
8 pieces of red and yellow peppers
1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds
Wasabi sauce
Filling 2:
2 pieces Yard long beans cut to size and steamsed for 5 minutes
strips of pickled ginger
Japanese plum sauce
sesame oil

You can use avacado too, I didn't as I made them the night before and I did not want it to go brown.

C: For serving
pickled ginger
soya sauce
wasabi sauce

D: Equipment
Bamboo sushi rolling mat
Really sharp serrated knife


Method
1. Wash rice and rinse well. Boil in water with a little salt for 10 minutes.
2. Leave for 15-20 minutes, keep the pan covered.
3. Place the cooked rice in a large pyrex / glass bowl.
4. Mix the vinebar, sugar and salt and slowly mix it into the rice, a little bit at a time, taking care not to break the rice grains.
Let the rice cool to room temperature
5. Meantime prepare the vegertables into 1/2 inch strips
6. Lay the nori sheet; shiny side down, on the bamboo mat
7. Place a large handful (with wet hands) of rice, and flatten, leaving a 1 inch space at the top and bottom ,
8. Make an indentation a third of the way, and smear either wasabi or plum sauce in the indentation, place the filling there and roll with the help of the mat. Stick the end with water.
The trick is to have everything ready, and then assemble. It is not that difficult, but not too easy either, after the first one it gets easier.
Cool the rolls in the fridge until required.
9. Slice rolls into 1/2 to 3/4 thick and serve with soya sauce, and wasabi paste for dipping. Each person mixes their own dipping sauce in small dipping containers. Pickled ginger is served to clean the palate between different rolls.