Smoked Salmon, Cream Cheese and Cucumber Sushi

I started this post about 5 years ago, when I was living in College Station and really into making sushi at home. At the time, there were not many good sushi restaurants in the area, and I was homesick for any and all kinds of ethnic food. There is just so much Lane's fried chicken tenders and delicious crinkle-cut fries or Sodalack's chicken-fried steak or McAllister's one girl can eat.

So a few of my friends and I started rolling sushi at home. I'd done it once or twice before starting veterinary school, but hadn't busted out my bamboo mat very often. Because fresh fish was a bit hard to procure in College Station without being an angler or restauranteur myself, I stuck with smoked salmon. Also, as a beginner sushi-maker, cooked stuff is much less intimidating. And probably safer for everyone partaking. Hah. Sushi is pretty easy to make. As long as you can roll things (burrito, spring rolls, cigarettes, jelly rolls, etc.), you can probably roll sushi.

I have also helped host a few sushi-making parties and fun classes (like helping teach the Vet school council on diversity and professionalisms' social event. I have also had friends over to roll sushi or had sushi parties at friends' houses. It's a lot of fun and shouldn't be intimidating at all! Plus, sushi is delicious.

Smoked Salmon, Cream Cheese, and Cucumber Sushi

Makes approximately ******* servings
Ingredients:

• Nori seaweed sheets
• sushi rice
• cucumbers, ~2
• smoked salmon, ~3-6 oz package
• cream cheese, 8 oz block
• rice vinegar
• sugar
• soy sauce
• wasabi
• pickled ginger
• bamboo sushi rolling mat and plastic wrap for rolling

Directions:

1. Cook 2 cups of sushi rice according to directions.  Allow to cool slightly in a very large bowl, spreading rice out and 'fluffing' as needed to aid in cooling. 
2. While rice cools slightly, prepare cucumber, salmon and cream cheese.  Peel a few strips off the cucumber skin.  Cut in fourths length-wise and trim ends.  Trim off center seeds.  Cut into long, triangular shapes.  Cut smoked salmon in long, ~1/4" strips.  Divide cream cheese block into long rectangular shapes.  (See picture)
3. In a microwave safe bowl or measuring cup, combine 1/2 c. rice vinegar with 1/4 c. sugar and 1 tbsp. salt and microwave for about 30 seconds.  Stir until dissolved.  Pour solution over sushi rice and mix well.
4. Prepare sushi rolling mat in a flat, open area on your counter.  You can use a piece of plastic wrap over the mat as an option to aid in rolling sushi and easy cleaning between rolls.  
5. Place one sheet of nori on the bamboo mat.
6. Add sushi rice and spread rice to cover bottom ~2/3 of nori seaweed wrapper.
7. Layer fillings about 1" from the bottom of your sushi sheet.
8. Roll your sushi! See diagram

9. Take care to roll sushi tightly enough that rice slightly squishes down and the log stays in shape.  
10. Place roll seam side down and cut with a clean, sharp knife into approximately 12 pieces.
11. serve with soy sauce, pickled ginger, and wasabi.