Dried shiitake mushrooms are lovely, and work incredibly well in sushi—their chewy and dense texture actually works better than fresh shiitake, and they hold up well to deep-frying. Adding some rich and spicy sriracha-Vegenaise sauce makes everything melt together here fabulously, producing a heavenly bite of sushi that’s also very easy to make.
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SPICY SHIITAKE MUSHROOM ROLL
- Yield: 2 servings
Ingredients
- 1 cup sushi rice
- 2 cups water
- 1 TB rice vinegar
- 1 TB sugar
- 1/2 TB salt
- 5–7 large dried shiitake mushrooms, soaked in very hot water for 30 minutes to an hour
- 1 1/2 tsp Ener-G, whisked with 5 TB water
- 1 cup cornstarch (stored in the freezer a few hours before frying)
- vegetable oil
- 2 nori sheets
- 1–2 TB sriracha, mixed with 1-2 TB Vegenaise
- crushed red pepper, pickled ginger and soy sauce, to serve
Instructions
- Soak the rice in plenty of cold water for about 30 minutes. Rinse thoroughly under fresh cold water and place into a rice cooker with the 2 cups of water.
- Once the rice is ready, place the rice vinegar, sugar and salt into a large glass bowl and place in the microwave for 10-15 seconds. Transfer the cooked rice to the glass bowl and stir well. Set aside.
- In a small saucepan, heat several inches of oil over medium-high heat. Drain and destem the mushrooms and slice into strips. Once the oil is ready (test by dropping a pinch of cornstarch into the oil—if it bubbles up immediately, you are ready to fry), dip a few of the mushroom slices in the Ener-G mixture, then coat in some of the cornstarch. Fry for 1-2 minutes and place on a few paper towels to drain.
To assemble your sushi
- Place a nori sheet (shiny side down) on a sushi mat. Using a sushi paddle, spread an even layer of rice over the sheet. Using your fingers, distribute the rice evenly, using a small bowl of water nearby to keep the rice from sticking to your fingers.
- Place half of the mushrooms on the shortest end of the nori sheet. Drizzle with desired amount of sriracha-Vegenaise mixture and slowly and carefully roll it up, keeping it tight as possible. Using a very sharp knife, cut the roll in half and repeat until there are eight rolls.
- Serve with pickled ginger and soy sauce.
