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.

California Roll

INGREDIENTS

• 6 cups sushi rice (cooked and seasoned) (To make Sushi Rice from scratch, click here.  Cover the prepared sushi rice with a damp cloth at all times to prevent from drying).
• 9 oz cooked crab meat (255 g or 2 cans)
• 6 Tbsp Japanese mayonnaise
• ½ English cucumber (or Persian/Japanese cucumber)
• 2 avocados
• ½ lemon (for avocado)
• 8 sheets nori (seaweed)
• ¼ cup toasted white sesame seeds

Toppings:

• Ikura (salmon roe)
• Tobiko (flying fish roe)

Vinegar water for dipping hands (Tezu)

• ¼ cup water
• 2 tsp rice vinegar

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Gather all the ingredients. Sushi rice should be at room temperature.
   

To Prepare the Fillings

1. Crab meat: Combine the crab meat with Japanese mayonnaise and mix together.
2. Cucumber: Peel and remove seeds with a spoon. Cut into thin long strips, the same length as the nori sheet.
3. Avocado: Peel, pit, and cut into ¼" (0.5 cm) thick slices (See How To Cut Avocado). Squeeze the lemon juice over the avocado to prevent browning.
4. Nori: Cut off ⅓ of a nori sheet (save it) and use the ⅔ sheet of nori.
5. Cover the bamboo mat with plastic wrap and prepare vinegar water for dipping hands (Tezu).

To Roll Sushi

1. Lay a nori sheet, shiny side down, on the bamboo mat. Wet your fingers in tezu and spread 1 cup of the rice evenly onto nori sheet.
2. Sprinkle the rice with sesame seeds or tobiko.
3. Turn the nori sheet over so that the rice is facing down. LIne the edge of nori sheet at the bottom of the bamboo mat. Place the cucumber, crab meat, and avocado at the bottom of the nori sheet.
4. 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.
5. 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 from drying. Continue making the rolls until the ingredients are finished.
6. You can use the left over ⅓ 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 on top.

To Serve

1. 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.

https://www.justonecookbook.com/california-roll/