Learn how to make hand rolls (called temaki sushi) with seasoned sushi rice, smoked salmon, avocado, cucumber, sprouts and mushrooms.
Itadaki masu.
A Japanese Saying- thank you to the people who made the food, to the sun for shining on the fields, to the farmers, and to all that brought the meal together.
Making hand rolls at home couldn’t be any easier! This temaki recipe comes from my friend Nami, who enjoys bringing her Japanese heritage to the table when entertaining family and friends by throwing a “temaki hand roll party.”
But first, What is Temaki?
Temaki means “hand roll” in Japanese. Hand rolls are coned-shaped sushi rolls filled with sushi rice, vegetables, and fish and dressed with wasabi and soy sauce. Hand rolls (temaki) are different from sushi rolls (maki)— in that temaki is rolled into a cone shape and not cut, much like an ice cream cone, whereas sushi is rolled into a tube and cut into slices.
Ingredients in Hand Rolls
- Sushi Rice: Make seasoned sushi rice with short-grain rice seasoned with rice wine vinegar, salt, and sugar. Look for Japanese rice.
- Veggies: thinly sliced red bell pepper, cucumbers, carrots, and avocado, sauteed mushrooms (enoki, cremini, shiitake, button).
- Sprouts: microgreens, daikon sprouts, or radish sprouts.
- Fish, seafood or tofu: smoked salmon, homemade lox, sashimi-grade fish like ahi tuna, yellowtail, hamachi, crab, shrimp, crispy shrimp tempura, roe, crispy salmon skin (or sub-baked tofu or smoked tofu). When consuming raw fish, always use sushi grade fish.
- Nori – Nori is what the handroll is rolled up in. Thin sheets of dried seaweed, that come in different grades. Look for “gold”, the highest grade, which will make hand rolling easier!
- Sides: Serve with shiso leaves, wasabi paste & soy sauce, or spicy mayo.
Hand Roll Instructions
Step one: Make the sushi rice. Many would argue, that the sushi rice is the most important part of the roll!
Rinse rice well, until water almost runs clear. Strain. Place in a medium pot with measured water. Bring to a boil, cover, and simmer on low for 12 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes.
While the rice is still warm, place in a shallow bowl (a wooden bowl is traditional) and sprinkle with the seasoned rice vinegar. Using a wooden rice paddle or spatula, “slice the rice”, rather than mix. Fan the rice to cool while slicing the rice to mix and fluff. Sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds and cover with a damp kitchen towel.
Step two: Prep the veggies and fish. If using mushrooms, saute them with a little oil and season with a little sesame oil.
Cut the remaining veggies into long thin strips or matchsticks – red bell pepper, avocado and cucumber, and fresh sprouts.
Today we are using smoked salmon, pulling it apart for easy assembly. Nami uses smoked salmon or lox instead of raw fish, to keep it “tame” and approachable for guests, and lays out all the prepped ingredients on the table in various bowls.
Step three: Make the hand rolls! Slice the sheet of nori in half, to make two rectangles.
Add the rice. Tip: Always remember to place the rough side of the nori seaweed face up, on the inside of the roll, which will better grip the rice. Using the back of a spoon or your fingers, spread sushi rice evenly over half of the nori, leaving a half-inch border.
Layer the fish and veggies at a diagonal, pointing from the lower middle edge up towards the top corner. It is customary to use chopsticks to layer the ingredients.
Tuck the top right corner with the rice over to the other side, rolling into a cone-shape.
Create a cone-shaped roll and seal with a little water. Place seam side down. And there you have it! A beautiful temaki hand roll that is not only delicious- but so healthy and light.
Serving Suggestions
- Spoon a mixture of soy sauce and wasabi paste overtop and dive in. Eat it like you would an ice cream cone, using your hands.
- Serve with our Asian Cucumber Salad
- Serve with our Miso Soup!
MAke AHead and storage
All the veggies and fish can be prepped ahead and refrigerated. The sushi rice can be made ahead- store in the fridge covered with a damp towel. Bring to room temp before serving.
Leftovers will keep 1-2 days in an airtight container in refrigerator- although they are best consumed within 24 hours as the hand rolls can get soggy. Sushi Rice can be frozen for up to 6 months in the freezer.
Imagine how much fun your guests will have making these!
We hope you enjoy making temaki hand rolls at your next gathering!
xoxo
Sylvia & Nami 💚
More recipes you may enjoy
- How to Make Lox (Salmon Lox Recipe)
- How to make a Sushi Burrito
- 20-Minute Miso Soup with Leeks, Mushrooms and Greens
- Spicy Miso Ramen
- Vegan Ramen with Miso Shiitake Broth
- Kyoto Style Sweet Potatoes with Miso, Ginger and Scallions
Hand Rolls Recipe
- Prep Time: 20 mins
- Cook Time: 45 mins
- Total Time: 1 hour 5 mins
- Yield: 6-8 1x
- Category: Main, fish,
- Method: stove-top
- Cuisine: Japanese
Description
Learn how to make hand rolls (called temaki sushi) with seasoned sushi rice, smoked salmon, avocado, cucumber, sprouts and mushrooms.
Ingredients
- 1 cup Calrose rice (dry)
- 1–2 Tablespoons seasoned rice wine vinegar
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds
- 8 ounces sliced mushrooms ( cremini, shiitakes, button)
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon soy sauce ( or use salt to taste)
- 1 red bell pepper- sliced into strips
- 1 English or 6 turkish cucumbers, cut into 4 inch strips
- 1–2 Avocados, cut into strips
- 2 cups fresh sprouts
- 16 ounces smoked salmon ( or lox) -Or sub baked tofu, cut into strips
- 1– 2 packages nori sheets, cut in half, to make long rectangles.
- wasabi paste
- soy sauce
Instructions
- Make the Sushi Rice: Rinse rice well, until water almost runs clear. Strain. Place in a medium pot with 3 1/4 Cups water and a pinch of salt. Bring to a boil, cover, and simmer on low for 20 minutes. keep lid on until close to serving time.
- While warm, place rice in a wood bowl ( this is traditional) and sprinkle with the seasoned rice vinegar. Using a wood rice paddle or spatula, “slice the rice”, rather than mix. Fan the rice to cool while slicing the rice to mix and fluff. Sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds and cover with a damp kitchen towel.
- Prep the Veggies: Saute mushrooms in olive oil over medium heat, until tender, about 5 minutes. Add sesame oil and cook 2 more minutes. Season with soy sauce or salt to taste. Place in a small serving bowl.
- Prep bell pepper, cucumber and avocado, cutting all into long, thin 4 inch strips. Place each in individual bowls.
- Place the sprouts in a bowl and smoked salmon on a small platter or plate (separating it)
- Cut Nori sheets in half, so you have two rectangles out of each sheet.
- To make a Sushi hand roll: Place nori sheet horizontally in front of you with the rough side facing up. Spread sushi rice (either using fingers or back of a spoon) on the left half of the sheet, leaving a 1/2 inch border, and 2-3 inches of no rice on the right side of the sheet. On the left side ( the side with rice) , align the strips of veggies, diagonally, with the ends pointing towards the upper left corner. Top this line of veggies, with smoked salmon, mushrooms and sprouts. When folding, start with the left bottom corner first, and fold up over the ingredients, then wrap the right side over and around to form a cone, about the size of an ice cream sugar cone. It will seal itself.
- Season with a little spoonful of soy sauce mixed with wasabi paste.
Notes
Assemble the cones right before eating. Do not make cones in advance. Keep rice a room temp. Do not refrigerate the rice- it will become crunchy and not taste as good.;)
makes 12-16 rolls.
Vegans could make our Tofu Bacon and slice thinly, or purchase smoked tofu.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 2 rolls – makes 14- 16 rolls
- Calories: 253
- Sugar: 2.7 g
- Sodium: 1162.1 mg
- Fat: 10.6 g
- Saturated Fat: 1.7 g
- Carbohydrates: 24.9 g
- Fiber: 4 g
- Protein: 14.3 g
- Cholesterol: 13.1 mg
I love this dish!!! I made it with your tofu bacon recipe. I became vegetarian 10 months ago and have been missing sushi. This is such a great way to have it with the delicious nori!! Yum!
What a great idea!
😋 yummy!!!
Thanks Tracy!
I like this recipe because it scores high in my best recipe collection!
*It makes a little salmon go a long way, stretching my budget
* It’s delicious and nutritious!
* It’s hands on so everyone can help with the food prep
* All the ingredients can be prepared ahead of time, so it’s a perfect work day dinner or for entertaining guests with little work and more time to enjoy my guests.
It’s a winner!
Thanks!
Linda L
Thanks Linda! I’m so happy you like this one! One of my favorites!
Very delicious!
Also very appealing look.
Perfectly beautiful! Love your apron Nami.
Looks easy, want to try!
I love your blog! Your recipes are so fresh and delicious! Can you tell me where you found the beautiful ceramic bowls featured in this post? I love them!
Thanks Natalie!! You will make my husbands day when I read him your comment. We took a pottery class over the winter… and those are his bowls!! I love them too.
i LOVE this idea! so creative, and much more innovative than a taco bar.
Thanks Dani! We still need to get together!!
I love how fresh and simple to prepare this is! It’s so nice that you can throw pretty much anything in it. I can definitely see it being fun to have at a party. Thanks for sharing!
Thank for visiting…. hope you are having a wonderful week!!
I love the idea of a Temaki party. Soundss delicious . Love the redesigned new look of the blog!
Thanks Kathy, its getting there….lots of little glitches but slowly working them out. Shay Bocks has done a wonderful job.
What fun. Reminds me of living and working in Hawaii. This would be lunch. You arranged it
beautifully. I liked your step by step photos.
Thanks Carol… yes a healthy lunch idea for sure!
This looks like so much fun! Perfect for eating with kids who can pick and choose what they want (rice and bell peppers!) Thanks for the inspiration.
It is totally perfect for kids!They seem to enjoy it!