Filled with creamy avocado, sweet crab meat and crunchy cucumber, California roll is by far the most popular sushi roll in the US. In this recipe, you’ll learn how to make the delicious sushi roll at home. I also include a video that demonstrates how you can perfect the sushi rolling technique below.
Prep Time1 hourhr
Total Time1 hourhr
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Japanese
Keyword: avocado roll, sushi
Servings: 8rolls
Calories: 320kcal
Author: Namiko Chen
Ingredients
6cupssushi rice (cooked and seasoned)(Since each California Roll requires ¾ cup (110 g) of sushi rice, you need to cook 3½ rice cooker cups, which will yield 1155 g (6 cups is 1080 g). Make sure to cover the prepared sushi rice with a damp cloth at all times to prevent it from drying.)
Gather all the ingredients. The 6 cups sushi rice (cooked and seasoned) should be at room temperature. Please follow my Sushi Rice recipe for step-by-step instructions on how to cook the rice and add the sushi seasonings. Each California Roll requires ¾ cup (110 g) of sushi rice, so you‘ll need 6 cups (1080 g) of sushi rice to make 8 rolls.
Cover the bamboo sushi mat with plastic wrap. Mix ¼ cup water with 2 tsp rice vinegar (unseasoned) to prepare the vinegar water (tezu) to dip your fingers to prevent them from sticking. Set aside.
To Prepare the Fillings
Crab meat: Combine 9 oz cooked crab meat with 6 Tbsp Japanese Kewpie mayonnaise and mix together.
Cucumber: Peel and remove the seeds of ½ English cucumber with a spoon. Cut into thin long strips, the same length as the nori sheet.
Avocado: Peel, pit, and cut 2 avocados into slices ¼ inch (0.5 cm) thick (see How To Cut Avocado). Squeeze the juice of ½ lemon over the avocado to prevent browning.
Nori: With the 8 sheets nori (dried laver seaweed), cut off one-third of each nori sheet (set aside) and use the remaining two-thirds sheets of nori. Tip: Save the strips of nori you cut off to make Ikura Sushi (optional; see below).
To Roll the Sushi
Lay a nori sheet, shiny side down, on the bamboo sushi mat. Wet your fingers in tezu and spread ¾ cup (110 g) of the rice evenly onto the nori sheet.
Sprinkle the rice with about ½ Tbsp of the 4 Tbsp toasted white sesame seeds or yuzu-flavored tobiko (flying fish roe).
Turn the nori sheet over so that the rice is facing down. Line the edge of the nori sheet at the bottom of the bamboo mat. Place the cucumber, crab meat, and avocado at the bottom of the nori sheet.
Grab the bottom edge of the mat while keeping the fillings in place with your fingers, roll it into a tight cylinder, tucking the fillings in firmly.
Lift the edge of the bamboo mat slightly and roll it forward while keeping gentle pressure on the mat. Cover the completed rolls with a damp cloth at all times to prevent them from drying. Continue making the rolls until the ingredients are finished.
You can use the leftover one-third strips of nori sheet to make Ikura Sushi. Cut the nori sheet into half lengthwise. Make small balls with sushi rice and wrap it with nori sheet. Place ikura (salmon roe) on top.
To Serve
With a very sharp knife, cut each roll in half and then cut each half into 3 pieces. Remember to clean the knife with a damp cloth after every few cuts.
To Store
It‘s best to enjoy sushi rolls on the same day. Rice gets hard and dry in the refrigerator. Therefore, if you really want to keep sushi rolls in the refrigerator, my recommendation is to cover them with plastic and then with a thick kitchen towel, so the rice will stay cool and safe, but not become cold.