Monday, February 11. 2008
How to make sushi rice. Final Sushi Entry
You know how shoes inspire optimism? A man walks into a meeting and if he has nice shoes, you immediately believe he can change your life. He could kick puppies and stomp on bumblebees, but dang if he’s a good man for it.
Rice is a pair of Ferragamos. A meal served with good rice is a meal you can trust. It means that someone cared enough to pay attention to it.
There are lots and lots of different types of rice. Listing them would bore and confuse you. Each variety has a different needs. Some like to be brushed around in warm water. Some like to be gently bathed in cold water.
Sushi rice is a short grain sticky rice. It’s a fat, fragile grain that likes to cuddle and can be over-stimulated easily.
To cook sushi rice you need to first get a good slouch going. This is not a grain that wants you to stand over it imperiously and or be glowered down at it. Hunch your shoulders over and bend your neck out and down. You will need to face the pot directly. If you are looking over your nose or past your eyebrows you’ve gone too far.
Get some sushi rice and put it in a pot. If you want measurements, find another recipe. We here at How to Eat (that) worldwide go with our gut when it comes to rice. You need to listen to the rice. It will say to you, ‘hey, more water’ or, ‘stop touching me’ or ‘I glisten under your touch with delight’.
Get a pot that has a lid and put some sushi rice into it. The rice will expand to three times it’s original size so rice should stand a half an inch in a 5 and a half quart pot. Rinse the rice with 3 inches of cold water. Cold water makes the gluten on the rice move slowly but breaks the extraneous dust off. Rake your fingers through the grains. You’ll hear the grains shuffle. Shuffle the rice three or four times. STOP.
Pour out the water and start again. The water should look clearer in the pot. Don’t touch the rice, just swish the pot around and watch the water cloud mildly.
Make sure you have the posture. If you don’t have the posture you won’t move the pot around with the gentleness the sushi rice requires.
Drain the rice.
There are those who say you must wash the rice until it runs clear. This only serves to rid the rice of most of its nutrients. Wash the rice only a few rinses. Do not over wash the rice.
The shells of the grains must stay in tact. If you break the grains the rice grains will cling to each other. You want them to bond with other things.
Add warm water. Take three fingers and gently rake them through the rice three or four times. Drain the water.
Add new water, place the pot on the counter and check your posture. Slouch.
Shake the pot so the rice levels out. Place your index finger in the pot and set the tip of your finger on the top of the rice. If the water comes up to the line of your first knuckle, you’ve got enough water. If not add more.
The water should be double of what your rice is plus a hair more.
Place rice on the stove and set to medium low (about a four on electric). Place lid on rice. If water bubbles over, set the temperature to low. Cooking time should be about fifteen minutes. Check the rice by placing a wooden paddle into the pot. If the rice feels like a dense pillow, you’re done. It should move slowly and there should be a sticky sound to it. If it loosely gets out of the way of the paddle, you have five more minutes to cook.
After you turn the heat off, take the pot off the stove and let the rice sit covered for another five minutes.
Meanwhile find a Japanese fan or a magazine. Grab your seasoned rice vinegar. After you’ve let the rice cool for a few minutes, take the lid off of the rice and fan it. Then pour in a quarter cup of vinegar. Fan while you gently fold the rice and vinegar together.
Check your posture. If you don’t look like an old Japanese woman, correct your posture. Fan often and with confidence.
Taste the rice. If it isn’t seasoned enough to your taste or if the rice isn’t clumping together, add more vinegar.
What to do with the rice? Check back in.
Read More How-tos HERE
Rice is a pair of Ferragamos. A meal served with good rice is a meal you can trust. It means that someone cared enough to pay attention to it.
There are lots and lots of different types of rice. Listing them would bore and confuse you. Each variety has a different needs. Some like to be brushed around in warm water. Some like to be gently bathed in cold water.
Sushi rice is a short grain sticky rice. It’s a fat, fragile grain that likes to cuddle and can be over-stimulated easily.
To cook sushi rice you need to first get a good slouch going. This is not a grain that wants you to stand over it imperiously and or be glowered down at it. Hunch your shoulders over and bend your neck out and down. You will need to face the pot directly. If you are looking over your nose or past your eyebrows you’ve gone too far.
Get some sushi rice and put it in a pot. If you want measurements, find another recipe. We here at How to Eat (that) worldwide go with our gut when it comes to rice. You need to listen to the rice. It will say to you, ‘hey, more water’ or, ‘stop touching me’ or ‘I glisten under your touch with delight’.
Get a pot that has a lid and put some sushi rice into it. The rice will expand to three times it’s original size so rice should stand a half an inch in a 5 and a half quart pot. Rinse the rice with 3 inches of cold water. Cold water makes the gluten on the rice move slowly but breaks the extraneous dust off. Rake your fingers through the grains. You’ll hear the grains shuffle. Shuffle the rice three or four times. STOP.
Pour out the water and start again. The water should look clearer in the pot. Don’t touch the rice, just swish the pot around and watch the water cloud mildly.
Make sure you have the posture. If you don’t have the posture you won’t move the pot around with the gentleness the sushi rice requires.
Drain the rice.
There are those who say you must wash the rice until it runs clear. This only serves to rid the rice of most of its nutrients. Wash the rice only a few rinses. Do not over wash the rice.
The shells of the grains must stay in tact. If you break the grains the rice grains will cling to each other. You want them to bond with other things.
Add warm water. Take three fingers and gently rake them through the rice three or four times. Drain the water.
Add new water, place the pot on the counter and check your posture. Slouch.
Shake the pot so the rice levels out. Place your index finger in the pot and set the tip of your finger on the top of the rice. If the water comes up to the line of your first knuckle, you’ve got enough water. If not add more.
The water should be double of what your rice is plus a hair more.
Place rice on the stove and set to medium low (about a four on electric). Place lid on rice. If water bubbles over, set the temperature to low. Cooking time should be about fifteen minutes. Check the rice by placing a wooden paddle into the pot. If the rice feels like a dense pillow, you’re done. It should move slowly and there should be a sticky sound to it. If it loosely gets out of the way of the paddle, you have five more minutes to cook.
After you turn the heat off, take the pot off the stove and let the rice sit covered for another five minutes.
Meanwhile find a Japanese fan or a magazine. Grab your seasoned rice vinegar. After you’ve let the rice cool for a few minutes, take the lid off of the rice and fan it. Then pour in a quarter cup of vinegar. Fan while you gently fold the rice and vinegar together.
Check your posture. If you don’t look like an old Japanese woman, correct your posture. Fan often and with confidence.
Taste the rice. If it isn’t seasoned enough to your taste or if the rice isn’t clumping together, add more vinegar.
What to do with the rice? Check back in.
Read More How-tos HERE
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