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I don’t have the chance to eat sushi a whole lot, but when I was in college we used to have sushi bars in all the dining halls and, oh boy, was it my favorite part of every meal. I definitely ate sushi every day, hahaha. Unfortunately, I no longer have that everyday sushi access, sigh, but the best thing about sushi is with a little practice and a few simple, fresh ingredients you can make your own sushi at home!

Today I’m bringing you one of my favorites, a Simple Spicy Tuna Sushi Roll. Although typically made with diced, sashimi-grade tuna I opted for something found more easily, canned tuna and guess what? It is so delicious! With just a hint of spice, the crisp of fresh veggies and the fluffy, tangy sushi rice you really can’t go wrong! Let’s get started with the recipe, shall we?

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Ingredients:

For Sushi Rice:

  • 2 cups uncooked sushi rice
  • 2 1/2 cups water (according to your rice directions)
  • 3 tablespoons rice vinegar
  • 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
  • 1 tablespoon salt

For Sushi Filling:

Directions:

Like any good sushi roll you start with the sushi rice! Definitely one of the most important parts so be sure to follow the instructions on your sushi rice packaging on how to cook. My package used a 1 to 1 1/4 cup ratio of uncooked rice to water. Since I was making 2 cups rice I added in 2.5 cups water. BUT FIRST! Rinse and drain your rice 2-3 times until the water is clear. Put it in a rice cooker and cook on “White Rice”. Honestly, rice cookers are great! They always just know what to do to make that perfect rice. Peak technology, people.

While the rice cooked I decided to prepare some of my filling ingredients because like I always say, “why not do things early so you aren’t doing them later?” And that’s a rhetorical question for you. At this point, you’re probably wondering why I don’t do motivational speaking — it’s a mystery. Back to prep! In a bowl place your drained, canned tuna. Add in the mayonnaise and Sriracha Hot Chili Sauce and give it a light mix with a fork. Cover with some plastic wrap and place in the fridge until ready to use.

To prepare your carrot, peel, cut in half then half once more. The pictures below should help visualize (I’m always here to help). Then slice them finely into thin, even matchsticks. Do the same with your cucumbers and now them vegetables are done! Except for the avocado but it just needs to be cut at the right time, don’t worry. Place these veggies in fridge until ready to use.

Very soon your rice cooker should be notifying you of some cooked sushi rice. Let it cool down slightly with the lid open (about 15-20 minutes) and then start to lightly fluff with a rice spatula. Add in the vinegar, sugar, and salt and fluff in all these ingredients until even mixed through.

At this point you can take all the ingredients out of the fridge and bring to assembly area. And now you can prepare avocado. To help prevent browning do this before assembling. Cut in half, remove pit, and scoop out each half by running a spoon along edge. Cut each half into about 9 slices.

Now it’s everyone’s favorite time, assembling time! We all know assembly time is the only thing between having a bunch of unassembled ingredients and having sushi and we want to get to sushi ASAP, so let’s get started. To assemble you will need a bamboo sushi mat wrapped in cling film OR I found out you can also use a thick kitchen towel wrapped in cling film. Is it better than a sushi mat? No, no it’s not. But, I did find it to be a pretty good substitute if you don’t have a sushi mat on hand and that’s what’s preventing you from making sushi!

Begin by placing your Sushi Nori Sheets, shiny side down. Dip your hands in water to prevent rice from sticking and grab about 1/4 – 1/3 cup sushi rice and place onto sheet. Start spreading evenly, dipping hand in water if needed, and adding any more rice, if needed. Flip the rice side down and then place your fillings. Start with a few teaspoons spicy tuna, a few slices of avocado, carrot, and cucumbers spread lengthwise. Don’t add too much because then it may be difficult to roll.

To roll it up make sure your filled sheet is right at the edge of sushi mat (or kitchen towel) closest to you. Start by rolling in enough to bring filling in, pull in to tighten roll, unwrap the sushi mat and then continue rolling sushi roll until a tight roll has formed. Give it one more tight, even roll for good measure then set aside. I like to make all my rolls before cutting.

Another way to roll is to keep the rice inside. For this method add rice the same way (on rough side) but instead of flipping add the filling on rice side and roll in the same way. When you are done rolling you can cut all your sushi rolls.

I find it’s best to cut the sushi rolls on a plastic or stone cutting board because then the rice won’t stick. Run a sharp kitchen knife under water and wipe with a damp paper towel to keep it wet (but not dripping). Then just give it a quick cut through. Each roll can be cut into 8 pieces (the end bits usually don’t look the best but they still taste great). And now we have a Simple Spicy Tuna Sushi Roll! I drizzled with some unagi sauce and some homemade spicy Mayo (2:1 Mayo:sriracha ratio) to serve.

Simple Spicy Tuna Sushi Roll

Sana Gilani
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 45 minutes
Assembly Time 30 minutes
Course Appetizer, Lunch, Main Course
Cuisine American, Japanese
Servings 6

Equipment

  • Rice Cooker
  • Bamboo Sushi Mat

Ingredients
  

For Sushi Rice:

  • 2 cups uncooked sushi rice
  • 2½ cups water (according to your rice directions)
  • 3 tablespoons rice vinegar
  • 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
  • 1 tablespoon salt

For Sushi Filling:

Instructions
 

  • In your rice cooker inner pot add in the sushi rice. Rinse and drain a few times until water comes out clean. Add in water for cooking (follow your sushi rice package instructions for recommended amount). Place in rice cooker and cook on “White Rice”. Allow to cook.
  • While rice cooks prepare your spicy tuna by adding drained tuna into a bowl with mayonnaise and sriracha, mix thoroughly and cover with plastic wrap and place in fridge until ready to use.
  • Prepare your vegetables, as well. Cut peeled carrot in half crosswise, then cut each half lengthwise in half. Evenly cut these quarters into thin matchsticks. Cut your cucumbers in the same way. Set these aside in fridge until ready to use.
  • Once rice is cooked allow to cool slightly (15-20 minutes) and then add in sushi rice ingredients and fluff with a rice spatula until ingredients are evenly mixed.
  • Prepare avocado right before assembly to prevent browning. Cut avocado in half, remove pit, and scoop out each half by running a spoon along edge of peel. Cut each half into about 9 slices slices.

Sushi Assembly:

  • Prepare a bamboo sushi mat* by wrapping in cling film to prevent rice sticking. Start by placing nori sheet shiny side down on mat. Using wet hands (to prevent sticking) place ¼-⅓ cup sushi rice on nori sheet. Spread evenly over nori sheet, wetting hands more if necessary, and adding more rice if needed.
  • Flip rice side over (if you want OR don’t to keep rice inside roll) add in filling starting with a few teaspoons spicy tuna near closest edge to you. Lay 3-4 slices avocados on top and then a few sticks carrots and cucumbers in front. Spread filling evenly, lengthwise on sheet.
  • Make sure fillings are close to each other. To start rolling bring nori sheet to the edge of sushi mat closest to you. Start with one roll to bring fillings tightly together, unwrap sushi mat, then continue rolling sushi with sushi mat until completely rolled. Press tightly and evenly to shape into even roll. Unwrap roll then wrap one more time to tightly bring roll together.
  • Assemble all the rolls then you can cut. To cut, run a sharp knife under water then wipe with damp paper towel to keep it wet (but not dripping).
  • On a plastic cutting board cut the sushi roll in half quickly, then cut each half into quarters to get a total of 8 pieces per roll.
  • Drizzle with unagi sauce and spicy Mayo (made with a 2:1 Mayo:sriracha ratio) and garnish with sesame seeds (optional). Serve immediately.
  • Enjoy!

Notes

  • *If you don’t have a sushi mat I found you can use a thick kitchen towel wrapped in plastic wrap to achieve a similar result! Fold towel in half and wrap in plastic wrap. Make sure to press evenly while rolling to give a consistent sushi roll. With a little practice it will work out great in a pinch!
Keyword Maki Roll, Spicy Tuna, Spicy Tuna Roll

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