6 replies to this topic

[mgaretz]

At the county fair yesterday, on a whim, I bought a sushi "maker". I have a mat/roll but I have never tried it.

Anyway, the booklet that came with the gadget suggested putting the vinegar, salt and sugar into the rice cooker with the water and rice. But looking at my books and the web, no one else recommends this (and some say not to do it). Has anyone tried it?

One other question (observation): If we must use short grain rice because it's sticky, why does everyone recommend rinsing the starch off the rice so thoroughly? (I have found for making long grain rice like basmati in my rice cooker, I can't tell the difference if I rinse it or not, so I never do any more.)

Thoughts?

[TheTInCook]

Because all the loose starch and the processing aids for polishing rice make for gunky rice. You can see it by all the scum the rice throws off in foam and boil overs while it cooks. I also think rinsing makes the rice taste better. Also, soaking rice (rinsing is part of it) generally makes a better textured rice.

Never tried adding the seasonings to the raw rice.

[TheNoodleIncident]

Complete guess here, but I would assume that if you added the vinegar/salt/sugar first, it would wind up cooking INTO the rice, whereas when you add it after cooking it creates more of a sticky coating on the outside?

[_john]

I'm curious to know what a "sushi maker" is. The only sushi maker I know is a 32 year old Japanese guy.

You need to get short grain rice. It is usually labeled as calrose or sushi rice. Cook it in your rice cooker using the instructions that came with the rice cooker. Do not add the vinegar, sugar and salt before cooking. I don't know what recipe the sushi maker came with but this is the basic ratio for making "sushi vinegar", which is a mixture of the seasonings used in sushi rice: rice vinegar 1.8ℓ：sugar 1.2kg：salt300g. You can scale this ratio to make as little or as much as you want. You can boil the sushi vinegar to dissolve the sugar and salt but it is easier to just let it sit over night. Once you have the cooled sushi vinegar and the hot rice you need to combine the two. How much sushi vinegar should you add? I add about 32ml to 250g of cooked rice. You can just sprinkle it over the hot rice and taste it until it has enough flavor for you. Mix the rice and sushi vinegar using a cutting motion and let it sit to cool.

When you wash rice you are washing away some starch but that is not the purpose of rinsing. You are rinsing to wash away rice bran powder and other impurities from the polishing process.

[dcarch]

Washing rice is also to wash away talc. Talc in rice is banned in many countries.

dcarch

[ojisan]

Anyway, the booklet that came with the gadget suggested putting the vinegar, salt and sugar into the rice cooker with the water and rice. But looking at my books and the web, no one else recommends this (and some say not to do it). Has anyone tried it?

Think of it like making spaghetti - you cook the pasta and the sauce separately, then combine them at the end.

[threestars]

Agree with dcarch. Make sure you wash the rice properly, maybe 2-3 times of washing will do.