How to Make Sushi Rice (for Sushi Recipes)
Learn how to make sushi rice perfectly so you can dish up your favorite sushi rolls at home! In this recipe, I'll share my secrets for how to cook the rice and season it well for delicious, mouth-watering results every time.
Ingredients
★ For 3–4 Servings (Makes 4 Medium Sushi Rolls)
- 1½ cups uncooked Japanese short-grain white rice (2 rice cooker cups; 360 ml; yields 4⅓ cups or 660 g of cooked rice)
- 1½ cups water (360 ml)
- 1 piece kombu (dried kelp) (5 g per piece; 2 x 2 inches, 5 x 5 cm; optional, for a nice aroma!)
- 4 Tbsp rice vinegar (unseasoned) (or use the same amount of bottled, pre-seasoned sushi vinegar and skip the sugar and salt)
- 2 Tbsp sugar (skip if using bottled sushi vinegar)
- 1 tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt (skip if using bottled sushi vinegar)
★ For 5–6 Servings (Makes 6 Medium Sushi Rolls)
- 2¼ cups uncooked Japanese short-grain white rice (3 rice cooker cups; 540 ml; yields 6⅔ cups or 990 g of cooked rice)
- 2¼ cups water (540 ml)
- 1 piece kombu (dried kelp) (5 g per piece; 2 x 2 inches, 5 x 5 cm; optional, for a nice aroma!)
- ⅓ cup rice vinegar (unseasoned) (or use the same amount of bottled, pre-seasoned sushi vinegar and skip the sugar and salt)
- 3 Tbsp sugar (skip if using bottled sushi vinegar)
- 1½ tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt (skip if using bottled sushi vinegar)
Instructions
Before You Start...
- DO NOT use scaling (x 2 or x 3) for this recipe. For guidance on how much rice to make for your sushi recipe, please see the Notes at the end of the recipe.
- How to Measure Rice: Overfill uncooked short-grain white rice in a ¾ cup measuring cup or a plastic rice cooker cup and level it off. Pour the rice in a large bowl. Repeat until you have the amount you need. Nami's Tip: You must use Japanese short-grain white rice or your sushi will fall apart.
- Now, gather all the ingredients.
To Wash the Rice
- Quick Rinse: Add just enough water to the bowl to submerge the rice, then pour it off immediately. Nami's Tip: Rice absorbs water quickly at first, so discard this water right away. This helps rinse off impurities and reduce absorption of the milky water.
- Wash: Gently agitate the wet grains in a circular motion with your fingers for 10–15 seconds. Nami's Tip: Using very little water allows the grains to rub against each other and reduces the absorption of impurities.
- Rinse: Add water to cover the grains and immediately discard the cloudy water. Repeat wash and rinse (steps 2 and 3) two more times.
- Drain Well: When the water is almost clear, drain the rice thoroughly in a fine-mesh sieve. Shake off any excess water.
To Soak and Cook the Rice
- Put the well-drained rice in the inner pot of a rice cooker. Then, add the measured amount of water. Nami's Tip: Use 1 part rice to 1 part water for sushi rice—less liquid than for regular steamed rice—to account for absorbing the sushi vinegar later. For easy measuring, you can use your rice cooker's Sushi Rice mode and add water to the line for the number of rice cups you're cooking (1 rice cup = ¾ cup). Or, use the White Rice mode and add water to just under that line.
- If you see any dirt particles on the kombu, gently wipe them off with a damp cloth and place the kombu on top of the rice. (This is the traditional method, but kombu is fairly clean these days). DO NOT wipe off the white powdery substance, as it contributes to the umami flavor. NEVER wash kombu!
- Soak the rice and kombu for 20–30 minutes, then start cooking. You can also cook the rice in a pot over the stove, Instant Pot, or donabe with the same amount of water I specified.
To Make the Homemade Sushi Vinegar (Optional)
- If you are not using bottled sushi vinegar (seasoned rice vinegar), here's how to make it at home: Combine the rice vinegar, sugar, and salt in a small saucepan.
- Heat it over medium-high heat until it's nearly simmering while whisking until the sugar is dissolved. Alternatively, you can heat the ingredients in a microwave-safe bowl for 1 minute or until the sugar dissolves. Set aside and cool.
To Season the Rice
- Moisten a wooden sushi oke (hangiri) with running water, drain, and dry it with a clean towel. You can also use a baking sheet moistened with water. Nami's Tip: This wooden tub helps absorb excess moisture, whereas a baking sheet does not.
- When the rice is done cooking, discard the used kombu (or repurpose it to make Kombu Tsukudani (simmered kombu)).
- Transfer the hot cooked rice to the sushi oke. Spread out the rice evenly with a rice paddle so it will cool faster.
- While the rice is hot, pour the cooled sushi vinegar over it.
- Gently “slice” the rice with the rice paddle at a 45-degree angle to incorporate the seasoned vinegar and separate the rice chunks. Do not stir or mix because that may break the grains and make it mushy. As you slice, vigorously fan the rice to cool it with a paddle fan or another fan.Nami's Tip: Fanning wicks away the excess moisture and makes the rice shine.
- Gently flip a scoop of rice after every few slices.
- Continue until the rice has cooled to the temperature of human skin. Your sushi rice is now ready to use in your favorite sushi recipes.
To Keep
- Cover the sushi rice with a damp towel (or paper towel) and keep it at room temperature for up to a few hours. To store it longer, see below.
To Store
- Freeze the leftovers in an airtight container for up to a month. To use, defrost it overnight in the fridge, then bring it to room temperature (not hot) in the microwave. Rice gets hard and dry in the refrigerator from the cold air, so I don't recommend storing it there. If you really want to refrigerate it, cover the container with a thick kitchen towel so the rice stays cool but doesn't become cold.
Notes
What's the measurement for 1 rice cooker cup?
- The plastic rice cooker cup that comes with the rice cooker is ¾ cup (180 ml). In Japan, this amount is called ichi go (一合).
- One rice cooker cup of uncooked short-grain Japanese rice is 150 grams.
How much rice do you need to make?
- 1 rice cooker cup (180 ml, ¾ cup, 150 g) of uncooked rice makes 2¼ cups (330 g) of cooked rice.
- 1 thick sushi roll
- 2 medium sushi rolls
- 4 thin sushi rolls
- 3 inside-out rolls
- 2 rice cooker cups (360 ml, 1½ cups, 300 g) of uncooked rice make 4⅓ cups (660 g) of cooked rice.
- 2 thick sushi rolls
- 4 medium sushi rolls
- 8 thin sushi rolls
- 6 inside-out sushi rolls
- 3 rice cooker cups (540 ml, 2¼ cups, 450 g) of uncooked rice make 6⅔ cups (990 g) of cooked rice.
- 4 thick sushi rolls
- 6 medium sushi rolls
- 12 thin sushi rolls
- 9 inside-out sushi rolls
- 4 rice cooker cups (720 ml, 3 cups, 600 g) of uncooked rice make 8¾ cups (1320 g) of cooked rice.
- 5 thick sushi rolls
- 8 medium sushi rolls
- 16 thin sushi rolls
- 12 inside-out sushi rolls
- 5 rice cooker cups (900 ml, 3¾ cups, 750 g) of uncooked rice make 11 cups (1650 g) of cooked rice.
- 6 thick sushi rolls
- 11 medium sushi rolls
- 20 thin sushi rolls
- 15 inside-out sushi rolls
How much prepared sushi rice do you need for one sushi roll?
- One thick sushi roll (Futomaki) requires 1⅔ cups (250 g) of prepared sushi rice.
- One medium sushi roll (Chumaki), like Vegetarian Sushi Roll, requires 1 cup (150 g) of sushi rice.
- One thin sushi roll (Hosomaki) requires ½ cup (80 g) of sushi rice.
- One inside-out sushi roll (Uramaki), like California Roll, requires ¾ cup (110 g) of sushi rice.
- One nigiri sushi requires 20 g of sushi rice.
Nutrition
Calories: 353kcal, Carbohydrates: 79g, Protein: 6g, Fat: 1g, Saturated Fat: 1g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 1g, Sodium: 344mg, Potassium: 75mg, Fiber: 3g, Sugar: 7g, Calcium: 20mg, Iron: 4mg
