Food & Drink Smoked Salmon & Cream Cheese Roll Lay out your bamboo mat with an optional piece of plastic wrap on top (to keep the mat clean). (Normally, I don’t use the plastic wrap until after the roll is made.). Make sure that the nori sheet has its rough side facing upward. Lay the lettuce on the nori at the end closest to you. Place the smoked salmon on top of the lettuce. Add the bacon. Add three slices of cream cheese. Add a piece of cucumber. Place your thumbs underneath the bamboo mat and lift the edge that is closest to you up and over the filling in the centre. Curve the rest of your fingers over the bamboo mat and gently press along the length of the “log.” This motion presses the filling together and prevents the roll from being too loose. Pull the edge of the bamboo toward you to fold it underneath your hands, then continue to roll the sushi away from you until you’ve rolled past the far edge of the nori sheet. Wrap the roll in plastic wrap, twisting the ends to keep it tight. Refrigerate for about a half hour or longer. To serve, lay the roll on a cutting board. Using a sharp knife, cut about 1/8 inch off of the ends of the rolls to make the ends smooth. Then cut the roll into pieces, on a diagonal, about a half inch per slice, making five or six pieces per roll. Makes 4 rolls 4 sheets nori paper (1 sheet per roll) 1 head cleaned Boston lettuce (2 to 3 large leaves per roll) 8 smoked salmon fillets (2 fillets per roll) 8 slices (sugar-free) cooked bacon, 2 slices per roll 1 package cream cheese (3 slices per roll) ½ cucumber, cut lengthwise and quartered (1/4 quarter per roll) Sriracha sauce (for garnish, as desired) Mayonnaise (for garnish, as desired) Here are some roll combinations with wine pairings: Smoked Salmon Roll (recipe below): nori, Boston lettuce, smoked salmon, bacon, cream cheese and cucumber. The saltiness of the smoked salmon and bacon demands a crisp, dry white wine to match. Think Pinot Grigio, bone-dry Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc. California Roll: nori, imitation crab, avocado, cucumber and lettuce. Sprinkle with toasted black sesame seeds. Pair with a big, fat white wine, such as Chardonnay. The fattiness and richness of the crab meat and avocado will pair nicely with the wine’s creamy texture. Spicy Crab Roll: nori, imitation crab, cream cheese, avocado, lettuce and cucumber. Drizzle with sriracha sauce. The heat from the sriracha demands a wine with sweetness. If you drizzle just a little hot sauce, you can pair this roll with an off-dry Riesling or Gewurztraminer. Remember that the hotter the sauce, the more sweetness required in the wine. If you like more heat, choose a late-harvest Vidal or Riesling. Shrimp Roll: nori, cooked jumbo shrimp, cream cheese, avocado, lettuce and cucumber. This is another roll with some fattiness and richness from the cream cheese and avocado. Sprinkle with toasted black sesame seeds. Choose a big, fat white wine, such as Chardonnay. Tuna Salad Roll: nori, canned tuna, avocado mayonnaise (because it’s often sugar-free), avocado, lettuce, carrot and cucumber. Sprinkle with toasted black sunflower seeds.The delicate flavours of this roll, plus its fattiness from the avocado and mayonnaise, call for a rich white wine such as Chardonnay. Salmon Salad Roll: nori, canned salmon, avocado mayonnaise, avocado, lettuce, carrot and cucumber. This is another rich roll deserving of a big, fat white, such as Chardonnay. Chicken Roll: Boston lettuce (for the wrap), chicken chunks, bacon, avocado, carrot and cucumber. Serve with Thai peanut sauce instead of soy sauce. Due to the spicy sauce used alongside this roll, choose an off-dry Riesling or Gewurztraminer. CSANews | FALL 2021 | 53
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