lentil and sweet potato sushi

when people find out that i don’t eat meat, i’ve often been asked “even fish?” and my response is always “especially fish.”

with overfishing one of the biggest threats to the environment, mercury levels through the roof, not to mention that crunch of tiny bone you occasionally get in your tuna fish sandwich, i don’t see any reasons why i should eat fish at all.

though, i must say i miss sushi. if done right each bite is a unique taste and texture sensation, but going to a sushi restaurant for a bland avocado or cucumber roll isn’t my style. so of course, i had to take matters into my own hands and learn to make the stuff myself.

turns out it’s pretty easy.

lentil and sweet potato sushi

sliced beet
sliced carrot
1/2 c dried lentils
2 cups water
2 cloves garlic
a few slices of white onion
2 tbsp liquid aminos
1/2 a small sweet potato
1 c white sushi rice
1 tbsp maple syrup (or agave)
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar (plus some for your hands)
5 sheets of nori seaweed

steam the rice in 2 cups of water until light, sticky and fluffy. this works best with white sushi rice but i’ve also had success with brown rice and quinoa. spoon the cooked rice into a large bowl and mix in the vinegar and syrup (no matter what type of rice, vinegar or syrup you use the ration is always 1 cup:1 tbsp:1 tbsp).

depending on which ingredients you’d like to put in the middle, it’s a good idea to start prepping those while the rice is cooking. i chose lentils and sweet potatoes, but i’ve had a lot of fun in the past with seasoned tofu, veggies and marinaded coconut meat (fresh from a young thai coconut) so experiment with your own ingredients.

if you are using lentils you only need about 1/2 cups dried to boil in 2 cups water. boil the water, add lentils, reduce heat to a low boil, cover and let sit for about 20 minutes. once a significant portion of the water has cooked off add the onion and garlic. make sure there is still a little bit of water in the pan (if not add a more). then slice the sweet potato into thin stips and throw on top of the lentils to steam. for taste pour the liquid aminos on top of the lentils and sweet potatoes, cover and let simmer on low heat for about 15 minutes.

during this time you can slice the other veggies and get the place where you are going to roll your sushi all set up. you don’t need many veggies, less than half a carrot and half a beet will do, but make sure to slice them into very thin strips so they are easy to chomp on.

wherever you want to roll out the sushi should be a clean, dry, open space. a large cutting board works well so once it has been rolled you can cut it right there in the same spot. i put down 2 pieces of paper towel, and replace them if necessary, to make sure the seaweed is always dry. if you have enough room it’s best to situate all ingredients directly around this station so you don’t have to go far while assembling. it’s also a good idea if you are next to a sink and to throw a dish towel over your shoulder so you can have clean dry hands as needed.

speaking of hands, the last thing you will need at your rolling station is a small bowl with 1 part vinegar 1 part water for wetting your hands in. it will help protect (not perfectly) the rice from completely coating your hands and you will also use the mixture to seal the roll shut.

once the rice has cooled, the stuffing ingredients are ready to go, and your station is all set up, you are ready to roll–no pun intended.

with clean and dry hands lay a sheet of the nori on the paper towel. now cover your hands with the vinegar/water mix and scoop a hand full of rice. you will get the hang of how much you will need as you go, i usually take a heaping hand full and cover the lower half of the sheet (no more than 1/2 inch think).

you don’t want to overload the seaweed with rice, press out a thin rectangle that reaches from side to side but not completely to the bottom and only about half way to the top of the sheet. now add in your ingredients along the middle of the rice and that’s it.

to roll it up make sure your hands are clean and dry, otherwise the outside of your roll will be covered in bits of rice and may even rip the seaweed as it sticks to your hands. start from the bottom and roll towards the top. make sure you don’t leave any slack in the seaweed so it’s tight, but don’t pull so hard you rip it. once all the ingredients are rolled up tightly inside you will be left with a thin strip of seaweed at the top of the roll that needs to be adhered to the rest of the roll. this is were the vinegar/water comes in handy again as it will act like glue for the seaweed. wet your fingers and run along this strip, seal and you have done it!

you could serve the roll like this, though it’s a little hard to bite into. if you won’t be serving it for a while or made it to eat another day it is a good idea to keep them fresh by holding off on cutting until they are going to be served.

but when you are ready, cutting should be done with a large sharp knife. preferably with a sharp smooth edge or only tiny serrations, since a dull or large serrated knife will hack though the delicate nori wrap. it’s up to you what size your sushi should be. i prefer about 1 inch pieces. from right to left i gently cut the roll with a few strokes of the knife that move in the same direction. pop them on a plate, and dress with wasabi or pickled ginger if you have it. they are good with a little more liquid aminos dribbled over.

yields 5 rolls