How to Make Nigiri Sushi

Step 1

Rinse the sushi rice in a colander until the water runs clear. Pour 2 cups (400 g) of rice into a colander and bring it over to the sink. Rinse it with cool water until the water runs clear and doesn’t look cloudy anymore.Rinsing the rice makes it less sticky and less likely to burn at the bottom of the pot while it cooks.

Step 2

Pour the rice and water into a pot. In a large pot, pour your rinsed rice along with 3 cups (710 mL) of water. The water should just cover the rice—if it doesn’t, add a little more to ensure that your rice gets nice and fluffy.If you have a rice cooker, you can use that instead of your stovetop.

Step 3

Bring the water to a boil, then reduce it to a simmer. Turn your stovetop on high and wait until you see small bubbles rising to the top of your pot. Then, turn the heat down to medium-low until you can only see small bubbles (this means that it’s simmering, which is the ideal temperature for cooking rice).If you leave the water boiling for too long, you could burn your rice. Keep an eye on your pot so this doesn't happen!

Step 4

Cover the pot with a lid and let it cook for 20 minutes. The steam from the covered lid will make the rice cook much faster, so you need to trap in that heat. Set a timer for 20 minutes to let the rice absorb all of the water. If there’s any water left at the bottom of the pot, let the rice cook longer.A soggy pot means that your rice isn’t cooked all the way, so it might be a little crunchy.

Step 5

Take the rice off the heat and let it cool for about 5 minutes. Keeping the lid on the pot, turn the heat off and move your rice to another burner that’s off. Let it sit for about 5 minutes to let the rice absorb the rest of the water and the steam to finish cooking.This step is also vital in making sure that your rice isn’t too sticky, so don’t skip it!

Step 6

Combine rice vinegar, oil, sugar, and salt in a saucepan. Pour 1⁄2 c (120 mL) of rice vinegar, 1 US tbsp (15 mL) of vegetable oil, 1/4 cup (32 g) of white vinegar, and 1 tsp (4.2 g) of salt into a saucepan. Stir them up just slightly to start mixing them together.These ingredients will give your rice a little extra flavor and make the rice stick together so it’s easier to form.

Step 7

Cook the mixture over medium heat until the sugar dissolves. Usually, this will take about 5 minutes. Once you see the sugar dissolve into the liquid, turn the stove off and move the pot off the burner to start letting it cool.If you don’t want to deal with a pot on the stove, you can also heat your ingredients in the microwave for 30 seconds at a time until the sugar dissolves.

Step 8

Let the mixture cool, then stir it into the rice. Set the mixture aside for about 5 minutes so it has a chance to cool down. Pour the rice into a glass bowl, then dump your mixture in on top of it. Use a baking spatula to fold the mixture into the rice until there isn’t any liquid on top anymore.When you first combine your ingredient with the rice, it’ll probably look too wet. Just keep stirring—it will combine eventually.Once you’ve made your rice, you can set it aside and start preparing the main part of your sushi.