How to make vegetable sushi nori

When I was a PhD student, I was fortunate to be awarded a scholarship for a study trip to Japan. 

There, I visited all the key University labs and Research Institutes working in my field of research.

Beforehand, I'd bought a Railcard and had planned to stay in Youth Hostels over the country. 

Due to the extraordinary hospitality of my academic contacts, however, I ended up staying with different Japanese families for the entire time, which was a real privilege.

I'll never forget one evening in the home of a Professor at the University of Okayama. His wife and three young children all sat round the kitchen table making sushi rolls, which we later ate for supper.

The children were so excited to meet an English person and thrilled to show me their food and customs. It was magic.

In Japan, making sushi is considered a vocation, an art form, and chefs, or itamae, train with almost military rigour for anything from 2 to 20 years to become proficient.

Traditionally, raw fish is used in sushi and cutting it up in the correct way appears to be akin to learning to perform brain surgery.

Even the preparation of rice is a precise procedure. Too much rice and it will be more than a mouthful; too little and it will be overpowered by the fish; too much pressure and it will be hard; too little and the pellet will fall apart.

Most of us don't aspire to the heights of becoming a senior sushi chef, so we can relax and enjoy creating simple vegetable sushi rolls, which are great for lunchboxes, snacks, picnics and parties. 

This recipe for sushi rolls uses the sea vegetable known in Japanese as nori (Porphyra spp).

Nori is the most popular of all sea vegetables as it's versatile and easy to prepare. It has a sweet and salty taste. 

Nori contains more protein than other sea vegetables, averaging a remarkable 40% by weight.  It contains about 1.5 times more vitamin C than oranges and as much vitamin A as carrots.  Nori is the only sea vegetable reported to contain the biologically active form of vitamin B12. The mineral content of nori is about 10% by weight, which is lower than other sea vegetables, but is still very high for a vegetable food.  

Sea vegetables have numerous health benefits and are valuable for boosting mineral intake in your diet.

Nori is sold either as flakes or as sheets, which are folded 7 or 10 to a pack.  

The flakes don't require soaking or cooking and can be sprinkled directly onto grains, or incorporated into purées, batters, sauces, dressings and dips to give an appealing herb-like flavour.  

Nori sheets are best lightly toasted before use.  This is done by rotating the sheet, shiny side up, over a low flame for a few seconds until its colour changes to a lighter green.  Pre-toasted nori sheets are also available in the shops.  Once toasted, nori can simply be torn into smaller pieces or cut with scissors into attractive shapes.  These pieces can be added as a garnish to cereal dishes, soups and salads or mixed with nuts and seeds to make a tasty snack.  Toasted sheets of nori can also be used to make sushi rolls and rice balls.

Ingredients

Makes 2 sushi rolls, at least 3 servings

• 2 sheets nori sea vegetable, toasted
• 1 cup short-grain brown rice
• 2 cups boiling water
• 1 tbsp brown rice vinegar
• 1 tbsp rice malt syrup
• 1 tsp peanut butter
• ½ tsp umeboshi plum paste (available online or in health food stores)
• 1 carrot (100g/4oz), finely sliced
• 1/3 raw cucumber (100g/4oz), finely sliced
• ¼ red pepper (30g), finely sliced
• 50g/2oz marinated tofu, finely sliced
• Few pieces of sushi ginger or 1 tsp mustard 

Method

Add 1 cup short-grain rice and 2 cups boiling water to a thick-based pan, cover with a lid and bring to a boil. 

Turn down to a very low heat and simmer for 40-45 minutes until water has evaporated and rice is soft. 

Mix brown rice vinegar and rice malt syrup together and stir into rice. 

Allow to cool. You need to use short-grain rice as this sticks together, unlike long grain or basmati rice.

You can buy nori sheets already toasted. 

If you have untoasted nori, simply hold the rough side of each sheet over a low flame for a few seconds until colour changes to a lighter green. 

Cut the carrot and cucumber into fine strips. I cut the vegetables thinly on the diagonal and then slice the pieces into narrow strips.

Having prepared all the fillings, lay one sheet of toasted nori, shiny side down, on a bamboo sushi mat, with the stripping of the map running horizontally.

Spread 1 cup  cooked rice evenly over the nori, leaving 1/3 inch (1cm) at the bottom, nearest you, and 1 ½ inches (4 cm) at the top, firmly pressing the rice into the nori

Gently spread nut butter, umeboshi paste, carrots, cucumber, pepper, tofu and sushi ginger horizontally in a strip across the rice.

If you add too much filling, you'll find it difficult to roll the sushi up.

Pick up the edge of the bamboo sushi mat and carefully roll it away from you around the ingredients, into a cylindrical roll. 

Using your finger or a pastry brush, spread a little water on the exposed top edge of the nori to help the roll stick together.

You should end up with a cylindrical roll as in the photograph below.

Using a sharp knife dipped into water, cut the sushi nori roll into slices and serve garnished with chopped vegetables and salad.

You can create many variations with different fillings and flavours, just like sandwiches.  

For example, you can include avocado with lime juice; spring onions (scallions); bean sprouts; roasted sweet potato or squash; sesame seeds; toasted walnuts; shiitake mushrooms sautéed in soy sauce; mustard; wasabi; regular mustard; steamed broccoli pieces or asparagus.

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Nutrition information

Celery, fennel, cucumber and radish pressed salad

Celery, fennel, cucumber and radish pressed salad
www.cookingforhealth.biz

The ancient Chinese believed that the seasons have a profound cyclical effect on us and we should aim to live in harmony with climatic changes.

The summer offers an abundant variety of plants and our diet should ideally reflect this.

Aim to use brightly coloured summer vegetables and fruits and combine them imaginatively.

On the hottest days, we need to balance the heat of the external environment with a cool atmosphere - eating outside under a gazebo or picnics by the river - and by serving more cooling, fresh foods, such as salads, sprouts (alfalfa, mung), cucumber, tofu and flower and leaf teas, such as mint, lime flower and chamomile.

This recipe uses a simple technique called pressing.  This involves salting the vegetables, applying pressure, draining off any excess liquid and then rinsing to remove the salt.  Salting and pressing has the effect of "cooking" the vegetables in the sense of making them more digestible, but preserves the active living enzymes.

The recipe also uses a product called ume plum seasoning, which is fermented from umeboshi plums.

The umeboshi, salt pickled plum, is one of Japan's most remarkable traditional foods, revered since ancient times both as an everyday food and a potent health tonic.  The oldest Japanese record of pickled plums is in a medical text written about one thousand years ago.

Umeboshi were used to prevent fatigue, purify water, rid the body of toxins, and cure specific diseases such as dysentery, typhoid, and food poisoning.  Slowly, extensive folklore developed about umeboshi's ability to prevent and cure certain diseases.

During the samurai era, the pickled plum was the soldier's most important field ration. It was used to flavour foods such as rice and vegetables, and its high acidity made it an excellent water and food purifier, as well as an effective antidote for battle fatigue.

Its taste has been described as the culinary equivalent of a cold shower.

Besides its dramatic flavour, the Japanese pickled plum has remarkable properties:

• Alkalizing effect.  Regular consumption of umeboshi ensures the maintenance of a mildly alkaline pH level in the blood.
• Antiseptic and antibiotic potency.  An antibiotic substance has been extracted from umeboshi plum which can destroy pathogens in the gastro-intestinal tract.
• Stimulates the function of the liver.  A substance called picric acid found in umeboshi plums helps the liver to clear out artificial chemicals from the body.
• Enhances peristaltic movement of the intestines.  A substance called catechic acid found in umeboshi plums speeds transit time through the gut, has an antiseptic effect and helps the digestion of proteins.
• Laxative effect.  Pectic acid in the peel of umeboshi plums relaxes the muscles of the gut.

Other medicinal uses of umeboshi plums include:

• Prevention of fatigue
• Prevention of ageing
• Stimulation of detoxification
• Stimulation of appetite
• Treatment of food poisoning
• Treatment of hangover
• Treatment of motion and morning sickness
• Treatment of common cold and influenza.

In Japan, a piece of umeboshi each day is regarded as one of the best tonics available.

A variety of umeboshi-based products such as whole plums, paste or vinegar are available on the market. All of them can be used as a salt substitute in cooking, adding variety and valuable healing properties to our daily food.

In the UK you can buy ume plum seasoning in supermarkets like Sainsbury's and Waitrose and also in health food stores.

Radish

Ingredients

4 stalks celery, washed and finely chopped
1/2 cucumber, washed, thinly sliced and chopped in quarters
12 radishes, washed and finely chopped
1/3 bulb fennel, washed and finely sliced
Few drops ume plum seasoning
Sea salt
1 tsp apple juice concentrate
1 tsp fresh lime juice

Fennel

Method

1. Mix cucumber and radish together, add a few drops of ume plum seasoning and leave for 30 minutes
2. Place celery and fennel in a bowl with a few pinches of sea salt and mix together, place another bowl on top containing a heavy item, such as a bag of flour and leave for 30 minutes
3. Rinse vegetables and drain well
4. Combine celery, fennel, cucumber and radish and season to taste with a few drops of apple juice concentrate and fresh lime juice
5. Serve garnished with alfalfa sprouts if available

Celery, fennel, cucumber and radish pressed salad
www.cookingforhealth.biz

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Pomegranate, lime and cucumber salsa

I found this recipe in a beautiful book called "Veggiestan" by Sally Butcher and it is such a hit with my family I decided to share it.

My husband, Paul Philpott, spent many years travelling in the 'stans whilst working for overseas and development agencies.  He is chronicling his adventures on his own blog - Impulse to Travel.  I was lucky enough to join him on some of his journeys and fell in love with the fresh produce and the food of this region.  As a herbivore myself, however, I must confess that I studiously avoided the boiled mutton and sheep's eyes for breakfast.

Pomegranates in the market in Osh, Kyrgyzstan (copyright: Paul Philpott)

Pomegranates have been cherished for their exquisite beauty, flavour, colour, and health benefits for centuries.

“Thy lips are like a thread of scarlet, and thy speech comely: thy temples are like a piece of pomegranate within thy locks.” (The Song of Solomon 4:3)

The name "pomegranate" derives from the Middle French "pomme garnete" - literally "seeded apple." It is also sometimes referred to as a Chinese apple. Many scholars believe that the forbidden - yet irresistible - fruit in which Eve indulged within the Garden of Eden was actually a pomegranate and not an apple.

Pomegranates are high in vitamin C and potassium, a great source of fibre, and low in calories. They contain three different types of polyphenols, a potent form of antioxidants. The three types - tannins, anthocyanins, and ellagic acid - are present in many fruits, but fresh pomegranate juice contains particularly high amounts of all three.

Compounds found only in pomegranates called punicalagins are shown to benefit the heart and blood vessels. Punicalagins are the major component responsible for pomegranate's antioxidant and health benefits. They not only lower cholesterol, but also lower blood pressure and increase the speed at which heart blockages (atherosclerosis) melt away.

Not only are pomegranates good for your heart and blood vessels but they have been shown to inhibit breast cancer, prostate cancer, colon cancer, leukemia and to prevent vascular changes that promote tumour growth in lab animals.

Pomegranate juice has also been found to contain substances that stimulate serotonin and oestrogen receptors, improving symptoms of depression and increasing bone mass in lab animals.

This recipe is a real winner.  It is quick and easy to make and can be used as a salad, starter or relish.  One word of warning - it is a good idea to wear an apron.


Recipe

Serves 6

Ingredients	Method
1 large juicy pomegranate	Cut the pomegranate in half with a sharp knife; hold each half upside down over a bowl and hit the back of the pomegranate with a wooden spoon until the seeds come out. Wash seeds in water and remove any remaining pith, which should float to the surface.
1 medium cucumber, finely diced 2-3 tomatoes, finely diced 1 green pepper, finely diced 1 red chilli, chopped (you can choose a mild or a hot one to taste) ½ bunch each of fresh mint and coriander, washed and chopped 1 small bunch spring onions, finely diced Drizzle of olive oil 1 fresh lime, juiced	Mix all these ingredients together with the pomegranate seeds, stir well, cover and chill. Serve as a salad, a starter or a relish.

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References


1. Aviram M, Rosenblat M, Gaitini D, et al. Pomegranate juice consumption for 3 years by patients with carotid artery stenosis reduces common carotid intima-media thickness, blood pressure and LDL oxidation. Clin Nutr 2004;23(3):423-33.

2. Aviram M, Dornfeld L, Rosenblat M, et al. Pomegranate juice consumption reduces oxidative stress, atherogenic modifications to LDL, and platelet aggregation:studies in humans and in atherosclerotic apolipoprotein E-deficient mice. Am J Clin Nutr 2000;71(5):1062-76. Aviram M, Dornfeld L. Pomeganate juice consumption inhibits serum angiotensin coverting enzyme activity and reduces systolic blood pressure. Atherosclerosis 2001;158(1):195-8.

3. Kim ND, Mehta R, Yu W, et al. Chemopreventive and adjuvant therapeutic potential of pomegranate (Punica granatum) for human breast cancer. Breast Cancer Res Treat 2002;71(3):203-17. Kohno H, Suzuki R, Yasui Y, et al. Pomegranate seed oil rich in conjugated linolenic acid suppresses chemically induced colon carcinogenesis in rats.Cancer Sci 2004;95(6):481-6.

Toi M, Bando H, Ramachandran C, et al. Preliminary studies on the anti-angiogenic potential of pomegranate fractions in vitro and in vivo. Angiogenesis 2003;6(2):121-8.
Kawaii S, Lansky EP. Differentiation-promoting activity of pomegranate (Punica granatum) fruit extracts in HL-60 human promyelocytic leukemia cells. J Med Food 2004;7(1):13-8.

4. Mori-Okamoto J, Otawara-Hamamoto Y, Yamato H, Yoshimura H. Pomegranate extract improves a depressive state and bone properties in menopausal syndrome model ovariectomized mice. J Ethnopharmacol 2004;92(1):93-101.

5. Seeram et al, J Nutr Biochemistry 2005: (16) 360-367.

Celery, cucumber, apple, parsley and lime juice

Green juices are a great way to include a wider variety of vegetables in your diet, are packed with nutrients and easy to digest.

Where possible try to use organic produce.

Wash all produce thoroughly.

If you don't have an expensive juicer, don't worry - a cheaper one will be fine.

For advice on different types of juicers and their pros and cons please check out Jason Vale - the Juice Master.

Here is a delicious recipe for a refreshing, cooling green juice, ideal for a warm day.

Ingredients
1 stick celery
1 piece cucumber (approx 10cm)
1 apple
2 sprigs parsley
1/2 fresh lime

Instructions
Put celery, cucumber, apple and parsley in a juicer and process.  Add juice of 1/2 lime at the end.

That's it.  Easy peasy and so good for you.  Do you know why?  What will you give your body by drinking this delicious juice?  Here are some of the magic ingredients in the ingredients:

Celery
Celery is an excellent source of vitamin C and fibre, as well as potassium, folic acid and vitamins B6 and B1. It is also a good source of calcium and vitamin B2.  Whilst celery does contain more sodium than many other vegetables, this is offset by very high levels of potassium.  Celery contains substances called coumarins which have anti-cancer properties.  A few animal studies suggest that celery seed extracts may help lower blood pressure and cholesterol, as well as protect the liver from damaging substances such as the pain reliever acetaminophen (Tylenol). But researchers don' t know whether these effects also occur in humans.

Cucumber
In addition to containing a large amount of water which keeps you well-hydrated, cucumbers are also a good source of vitamins C, A and folic acid.  The skin is rich in fibre and contains a variety of important minerals including silica, potassium, magnesium and molybdenum.  Silica contributes to the strength of our connective tissue and is important for bone health.

Apple
Apples are a good source of vitamin C, pectin and other fibres, and potassium.  Most of the apple's important nutrients are contained in its skin.  If apples are raw and unpeeled, they are also a great source of many phytonutrients, such as ellagic acid and flavonoids such as quercetin.  The old saying "an apple a day keeps the doctor away" has a great deal of truth in it.  In a review of various studies, apple consumption was shown consistently to be associated with a reduced risk of heart disease, cancer, asthma and type 2 diabetes, compared with other fruits and vegetables.

Parsley
Parsley is extremely rich in a large number of nutrients, chorophyll and carotenes.  It is a good source of vitamin C, vitamin K, folic acid and iron and also contains many minerals including magnesium, calcium and zinc.  Numerous health benefits have been ascribed to parsley, including use for urinary tract infections, kidney stones, constipation, flatulence, fluid retention, high blood pressure and prostate conditions, though clinical evidence for these effects is limited.  There is some evidence that parsley extracts have anti-oxidant activity.

Lime
Limes are an excellent source of vitamin C and provide good levels of vitamin B6, potassium, folic acid, flavonoids and the important phytochemical limonene.  Limes contain several phytonutrients that have anti-oxidant and anti-cancer properties.  In particular, research has demonstrated that lime juice can affect cell cycles: it can modulate the decision a cell takes to divide (mitosis) or die (apoptosis) or even influence activity of the immune system.  Lime also has an antibiotic effect and has been shown to protect against cholera.

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