Sushi For Dummies
by Judi Strada, Mineko Takane Moreno
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Book Reviews of Sushi For Dummies
Book Review: The best sushi making instructions
Summary: 5 Stars
After getting tired of spending $8 for two pieces of sushi at the local sushi bar, I decided to learn to make sushi at home.
I was not interested in spending the next 20 years learning to become a master sushi chef (or "itamae" in Japanese). I just wanted to have some good sushi without paying a fortune for what was basically nothing more than a couple tablespoons of rice and salmon roe.
I ordered and read several sushi books, including Sushi for Dummies. As a basic primer for learning how make sushi, this book can't be beat. Sushi is all about the rice, and hands down, the author has the clearest and easiest description of how to accomplish this task. It is like she is right there in your kitchen telling you exactly how to cook the rice (including soaking it beforehand, something other books neglected to mention) and what proportion of vinegar/sake to use.
The other instructions are equally superb. How to roll both traditional nori covered, and "inside out" sushi, and how to form cone sushi are all easy to understand and follow along.
Because I just wanted to learn how to make sushi, I skipped all the intro and history stuff. However, this information is included in case anyone else is interested.
Once you learn how make and roll sushi, it's time to look at some recipes. Admittedly, I have not yet tried any of the sushi recipes in this book, but intend to do so in the future. In the meantime, I did try some of the exotic recipes in D.K.'s Sansei Sushi from Hawaii, a book which I highly recommend.
Book Review: Well-written and informative
Summary: 4 Stars
I used this book to make sushi over the weekend and found it to be very instructive and simple to use (as well as humorous and pleasant to read). I followed the directions for making the rice on the stove top and it turned out perfect! The detailed maki-rolling instructions/diagrams were easy to follow, and my rolls ended up looking (and tasting) great! My friends were all impressed. I also learned a ton about the cultural aspects of sushi that I didn't know before, and I considered myself fairly knowledgable.
The only reason I give four stars instead of five is that I didn't feel there were enough recipes for different types of rolls, or nearly enough pictures. But the focus of this book is on technique and the process of making sushi (not necessarily recipes) and for that it was invaluable. I plan to purchase another book to use solely for recipes.
Side Note: The only other special equipment I purchased was the Joyce Chen Sushi Mat and Rice Paddle Set. You can make great sushi using the techniques in this book without buying a lot of extra kitchen gadgets. I turned my rice out onto a large plastic bowl and it worked great.
Book Review: Sushi... YUM
Summary: 5 Stars
This is my first "for Dummies" purchase and I am in love with this particular book - it's well written, and layed out for ease of re-referencing previous chapters.
The chapter on the rice is utterly amazing. The homemade vinegar recipe is very TASTY, and on my first try I made unbelievably awesome rice. I didn't have even half of the tools suggested. I ended up cooling it in a glass lasagna dish with a paper plate.
Unfortunately I am only one person and instead of gorging on my tasty rice that day-which is suggested, I ate some and froze the rest in 1cup servings. I've gone home for lunch a few times already and grabbed a rice ball, thrown it in the micro and made some very tasty vegetarian rolls. Even brought some into work to share. Only veggie so far as I haven't found a fish monger in my neighborhood, nor have I gotten up the courage to get sashimi grade delivered to my door. Soon though....this book is a great starting point for my tasty hobby.
Book Review: everything you need to know about sushi
Summary: 4 Stars
This is a great book that has pretty much everything you need to know about sushi. I got this because I wanted to learn how to make sushi. I read it cover to cover. In the beginning of the book they say that it's easy and anyone can do it, but once you get into the book it can seem a little complicated and overwhelming. So far I have made maki and hand rolls using pre-cooked rice. I didn't follow a specific recipe, but I followed their tips for the vinegar, rolling, etc. My hand rolls turned out to be a tasty mess but the maki was great! My next step will be to take on the process starting w/ raw rice. I also love that they tell you what to buy and how to take care of the equipment (although their price estimates for a lot of the equipment are rather high). My only real complaint is I wish they had mentioned brown rice sushi. (Is that an East coast thing?) Great book overall.Book Review: Look out! Here comes the Sushi expert...
Summary: 5 Stars
After purchasing the book and reading a few of the recipes, I decided to give some of them a try for dinner. The instructions were so easy that I pulled off a sushi dinner for my family that they thought I had practiced making for days. I have taken a sushi making course before, but having the book with me while making dinner proved to be a much needed aid and I am glad I made the small investment. I have also been enjoying the other areas of the book that talk about Sushi Bar manners/etiquette, terms and definitions, and sushi party planning. Most cookbooks I have purchased are just used for recipies and not for reading or cultural education. This dummies book is actually interesting to read from cover to cover and gives the reader more depth than other cookbooks.