Sushi Rice

The foundation of all sushi: short-grain Japanese rice cooked to the precise degree of firmness, then folded with rice vinegar, sugar and salt while still hot and fanned until each grain shines with a glossy coating and the rice reaches exactly the right temperature to shape

Origin: Edo (Tokyo), Japan

From the journey of Rice.

Shari (舎利), the seasoned rice used in sushi, is considered the most important element of sushi by serious Japanese chefs, who argue that the best sushi fish in the world cannot save badly made rice. The word shari comes from Buddhist Sanskrit (śarīra, meaning 'relics of the Buddha'): a reference to the individual white grains of seasoned rice, which were compared to sacred relics. The role of sushi rice is often misunderstood: it is not merely a vehicle for fish, but an equal partner with its own flavour, texture and temperature. Professional sushi chefs spend years studying rice alone: the ratio of water to rice, the age and variety of the rice, the strength and sweetness of the sushi vinegar (awase-zu), the folding technique (which must not crush grains), and the precise serving temperature (body temperature; 37°C; is considered ideal for nigiri, allowing the rice's flavour to bloom and preventing the fish from becoming cold). Mastering sushi rice is the first gate through which any serious Japanese cook must pass.

Ingredients

Rice

400 g Japanese short-grain rice (sushi rice, Koshihikari or Calrose are the best available varieties outside Japan)

Cooking water

480 ml cold water (the classic Japanese ratio is 1:1.2 rice to water by volume)
5 cm dried kombu kelp (one piece), for steeping the cooking water

Sushi vinegar (awase-zu)

60 ml Japanese rice vinegar (not seasoned rice vinegar, which already contains sugar)

Sushi vinegar

2 tbsp caster sugar
1.5 tsp fine sea salt

Method

Wash the rice: place rice in a large bowl, cover with cold water, and agitate gently with your hand. The water will turn white with surface starch. Drain. Repeat 4–5 times until the water runs nearly clear. Drain thoroughly in a fine-mesh sieve for 30 minutes.
Place the washed, drained rice and cold water in a heavy-bottomed pot. Add the kombu to the water. Leave to steep for 30 minutes. Remove the kombu before cooking.
Bring the water to a boil over medium-high heat. Immediately reduce to the lowest possible simmer. Cover with a tight-fitting lid. Cook for exactly 12 minutes. Turn off the heat. Leave the lid on and rest for 10 minutes. Do not lift the lid at any point during cooking or resting.
While the rice rests, prepare the awase-zu (sushi vinegar): combine the rice vinegar, sugar and salt in a small saucepan. Warm gently over low heat, stirring, just until the sugar and salt dissolve. Do not boil. Remove from heat and cool slightly.
Turn the cooked rice out into a large, wide, flat-bottomed bowl (a wooden 'hangiri' sushi bowl is traditional: the wood absorbs excess moisture; a large salad bowl works well). Pour the warm awase-zu evenly over the surface of the rice.
Using a rice paddle (shamoji) or flat wooden spatula, fold the vinegar into the rice using a gentle, slicing motion; cut through the rice rather than stirring it. Rotate the bowl and continue folding while simultaneously fanning the rice (with a hand fan, a folded newspaper, or an electric fan) to cool it rapidly.
Continue folding and fanning until the rice is at body temperature (36–37°C) and each grain is separate, glossy and coated in the sushi vinegar. Cover with a damp cloth and use within 2 hours; do not refrigerate (cold destroys the texture of sushi rice).

Notes

The wooden hangiri (sushi rice tub) is the traditional vessel for seasoning sushi rice: the unvarnished cedar absorbs excess moisture as you fold and fan, producing drier, glossier grains. If you do not have one, a large, wide wooden salad bowl is the best substitute. Never use a metal bowl for sushi rice: the metal reacts with the vinegar and imparts a metallic flavour. Sushi rice cannot be made in advance and refrigerated: cold temperatures harden the starch in the rice, destroying its characteristic texture. Use it within 2 hours of making, keeping it covered with a damp cloth at room temperature.

The Gastrographer

Name: Sushi Rice
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 1 h
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Japan
Ingredients: 400 g Japanese short-grain rice (sushi rice, Koshihikari or Calrose are the best available varieties outside Japan); 480 ml cold water (the classic Japanese ratio is 1:1.2 rice to water by volume); 5 cm dried kombu kelp (one piece), for steeping the cooking water; 60 ml Japanese rice vinegar (not seasoned rice vinegar, which already contains sugar); 2 tbsp caster sugar; 1.5 tsp fine sea salt

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Journey Point Map Key

Ingredient originTrade or transit route

Became a culinary stapleColonial / trade control