Vegan Sushi served with Rasam :-)

There’s no doubt that veg sushi is aesthetically pleasing to the eye but somehow I felt that it lacked in the taste department.  For a while I played around with combination in my head and Kaa Boom!!! What a marriage…Highly recommended 

Preparation:  15 minutes Cooking time:  25-30 minutes for rice.  Makes 6 rolls

Ingredients 

• 2 cups (500ml) sushi rice
• 4 cups water
• 2 tbsp (30ml) rice vinegar
• 4 Nori sheets (seaweed)
• 1 small carrot julienned
• 1 small red pepper julienned
• 1 extra small red cabbage julienned
• 1 avocado julienned
• ¼ cucumber julienned
• Sesame seeds for garnish
• 1 grass mat for rolling sushi
• Cling wrap for rolling sushi
• Let’s get this sushi rolling 🙂

This is how:-)

• Cover the grass mats with cling wrap.
• Boil rice as per instruction of pack.   While rice is boiling, wash and julienne all vegetable.
• Add rice vinegar to cooked rice and allow to cool
• Place nori sheets shiny side down on grass mat.
• Pat rice onto nori sheet about 1cm thick. Start and end 2 cm away from top and bottom edges.    Wet hands to prevent rice from sticking.
• Layer a small amount of vegetable side by side.
• Roll up like a Swiss roll.
• Roll onto sesame seeds
• Use a sharp knife and slice into 8 pieces.
• Another option: Pat rice onto nori sheet – ensure you cover the entire sheet with rice.   Then flip it over on the grass mat and layer the vegetable – gently roll it up. 

Serve with soy dip, pickled ginger and wasabi or rasam

Rasam

Main ingredients:

• ¼ cup tamarind soaked in 1 cup water for 5 minutes (black or brown tamarind)
• 3 -4 cups water
• 1 tbsp oil (add more if you like)
• ½ small onion finely sliced (optional)
• 3-4 small cloves garlic
• 1 small tomato finely chopped
• 1 tsp salt.
• ¼  cup coriander leaves with the stems

Ingredients for Rasam Powder. 

Dry Roast and Pound together coarsely

• ½ tsp black pepper corns
• 1 tsp whole coriander seeds
• ½ tsp whole cumin seeds
• 1 pinch fenugreek seeds
• 3-4 dry red chillies
• ½ tbsp thoor dhal

Temper

• 1 tbsp vegetable ghee (optional)
• ½ tbsp oil
• ¼ tsp mustard seeds
• 10 – 12 curry leaves
• ½ tsp yellow asafoetida
• 1-2 red chillies roughly crushed

Method for rasam

Let’s Cook 🙂  

1. Soak the tamarind in 1 cup water for 10 minutes. Remove seeds and pulp – keep aside.
2. Dry Roast and pound all rasam powder ingredients.
3. Heat oil in a pot. Toss in onions and fry until golden brown. Add garlic and fry for 30 seconds.
4. Throw in tomatoes and cook for a few seconds. Add salt as required.
5. Add rasam powder, give it a good stir.
6. Add tamarind extract and balance of water. Bring to a boil and then let it simmer to 20-25 minutes. Turn off heat.
7. To temper – In a separate pan, heat oil and ghee, toss in mustard seeds and curry leaves. Seeds should pop and leaves should splatter.  Add asafoetida and chillies.  Pour into rasam.
8. Add in fresh coriander leaves
   • Serve with hot rice, or vegetarian sushi