Do you love sushi, but maybe not the price of a night out for a sushi dinner? Make ugly sushi with me in the comfort of your own kitchen. Yes, it may look ugly, but the taste is grade A! It’s not easy to make sushi the first time, so I will help prepare you for your sushi journey with my own experience.
We, Ventura Locals, has access to county’s best sushi grade fish. I found mine at Ocean Pride of Ventura. This fish market has been open since 1999, only carry’s fresh fish, and was even named in The Ventura Reporter’s “Best of Ventura”. It’s a little hidden among the industrial buildings next to the Ventura Car Mall. Just let owner, Tom Moore, know you’re making sushi tonight, and he’ll help you with what you need. Check out their website for peek at their menu.
To be honest, knowing that I had access to fresh fish cut at a sushi grade, I wanted to take on the fun task of making sushi at home. I called up my sister and drafted her for sushi fun.
Step One: Prepare yourself
I watched a couple of YouTube videos that took me step-by-step through making sushi rolls with various ingredients. This step is important; you don’t want to explore the art of making sushi blind. Plus, it ensures you have all the items you need, and it gives you ideas you may not have had.
Step Two: Equipment
Feel like the professionals with a bamboo mat to roll your sushi. I didn’t find this at Ocean Pride, so I took myself to Seafood City Supermarket for any other equipment I needed. There, I found a cute sushi set that had a bamboo mat, a wooden bowl, and a wooden rice scoop.
Step Three: Ingredients
Have fun here! Find the ingredients you’d normally like when going out for sushi, even the sauces. Here’s a list of the core ingredients:
- Sushi rice.
- Rice Wine Powder or Vinegar.
- Bamboo mat.
- Plastic wrap.
- nori (seaweed sheets)
- soy sauce.
- Toasted sesame seeds.
Don’t forget your fish! I bought a pound of King Salmon and a pound of Ahi Tuna from Ocean Pride. This did cost me a pretty penny, just shy of $90. But I bought enough for four people, and I think $90 was cheaper than taking four people to a sushi restaurant.
Step Four: Get cooking!
Preparing your sushi rice should be the first thing you do once you start putting together your rolls. You want some time for it to cool off, and this is the most challenging part. I didn’t believe this until I started making sushi rice for the first time; it’s more important than the fish itself! It’s best to refer to the instructions on the sushi rice package or YouTube. I used Nishiki rice.
*Warning: Be careful with the amount of rice vinegar you put in the rice. The vinegar’s flavor can overpower the flavor of your fish. I sadly failed to notice the instructions on the back of my rice package and did just that.
Once your rice is finished, you can start rollin’!
Final Step: Enjoy!
Dinner time! Now you can enjoy your creation. Even though my first time making sushi didn’t come out as I would have liked, my rolls may looked ugly, but they tasted almost restaurant status. My company and I had fun, and I cannot wait to do it again.
Would you make sushi at home? Comment below telling us if you will or any past experiences.
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