How To Make A Spider Sushi Roll

This is easily one of the best sushi roll recipes that I have ever tasted. Making sushi at home is one of my favorite activities. Cooked sushi is great for entertaining guests, or just a delicious meal at home. The preparation takes some time, but can be reduced especially if you purchase the crunchy tempura soft shell crab already prepared at someplace like Whole Foods. American style sushi, in particular this Spider sushi roll with tempura soft shell crab, cucumber, and steamed asparagus, and topped with eel sauce, provides extreme satisfaction for all of our senses. Making sushi can be super simple, so check out this six ingredient recipe below, and enjoy!

Needed Equipment:

• Sushi Mat
• Sharp Knife
• 1 Gallon Freezer Bag
• Squeeze Bottle (for Eel sauce)
• Toaster Oven (or a regular oven will do as well)

Ingredients:

• Sushi Rice (prepared, one large handful)
• Nori Sheet (one whole sheet)
• Cucumber (julienned)
• Tempura soft shell crab (already prepared from store, heated through at home)
• Asparagus (steamed)
• Eel Sauce

This roll is different from what we normally make because it is an “inside out roll”, meaning that the rice is on the inside, and the sushi is on the outside. Place the sushi mat inside of the gallon sized plastic freezer bag, this ensures that the sushi rice does not become embedded into the mat, and is easy to clean up when you are making sushi from home. Lay the Nori seaweed square on top of the plastic covered sushi roll mat. Wet your hands thoroughly. Add a handful of prepared sushi rice in the middle of the Nori and gently spread the rice out to the edges, leaving a lip of about 1/8^th of an inch of the seaweed uncovered. This lip will be needed later to create a seal and keep all of the goodies inside of our sushi. Now, normally at this point we would press down and then flip the Nori, but this time we are just going to press down gently on the rice, and then make sure that the rest of our ingredients are ready to add to this cooked sushi. No flipping in this recipe.

The heated through in the toaster oven, but not too hottempurasoft shell crab, can be cut in half at his point and added across the entirety of our Nori sheet. I love the crispy, saltiness that this part of the dish provides. Add a couple of slices of the julienned cucumber to give the sushi a nice fresh crunch. Add the two slices of steamed asparagus. I am very picky about my asparagus, and it needs to turn out just right for this sushi dish, so I steam it if my bamboo steamer and it seems to make the best sushi every time. I find that it is easier to have all of my ingredients prepared ahead of time prior to making sushi, instead of cooking as I go. Make sure that we are adding enough to fill the roll when making cooked sushi, but not overfill it, so if you need to towards the end add more or remove some of the filling. Wet the edges of the Nori seaweed (closest and furthest away from you) so that they will stick to each other. Roll the sushi mat over the roll, away from you, creating a nice seal from the wet Nori touching the other wet Nori. Roll it again to ensure that it is fully sealed.

Using a wet serrated knife, cut the roll in half once, then each of those pieces in half again, and again until there are eight equal pieces of this delicious cooked sushi roll. Decorative presentation is a must when making sushi, for guests, or even if it is just you! Sushi should always be presented beautifully and with intent. Place all of the sushi roll pieces onto a square or decorative plate in an ornate pattern, and drizzle with the sweet eel sauce for the perfect finish to the best sushi dish around.