Sometimes you just want to eat

Life has gotten pretty busy these days.  Working late, sometimes squeezing in a stop by the gym, and then crashing at home.  And when I get home, I usually am hungry and not ready to whip up an involved meal.  That's when I love leftovers.  But today, as I was getting all pumped out in the gym, I started craving some sushi rolls, or makizushi, and the idea came back to me after I got home tonight.  Well, I wasn't ready to start making rice and cooking eggs and arranging tons of filling options and condiments...I mean, after a long day, sometimes you just want to eat.

So I rummaged around and found some leftovers, which serendipitously all worked together for some tasty sushi tonight.  Nori wrappers, roasted sesame seeds, and one of my absolute favorite seasonings, furikake, were in the pantry.  Leftover rice, sauteed Swiss chard, and cooked ground beef were in the fridge.  And I had some fresh cucumber too!  Of course, some avocado and crab would've been stellar, but with my limited resources and time, my leftovers-maki wasn't too bad!

As you can see, I opted to make inside-out rolls (rice on the outside), coated with sesames.  First I spread my leftover rice (tossed with some rice vinegar, a pinch of superfine sugar, and a sprinkle of salt) over a half sheet of nori.  Then I sprinkled it with sesame seeds and turned the nori over (rice side down) on a piece of plastic wrap.  On the "inside" surface I spread together some mayonnaise and sriracha, and then I added a generous shake of furikake, strips of cucumber, a little ground beef, and sauteed Swiss chard.  I was so tickled to revamp what I already had on hand to get a new flavor profile.  Think outside the box: what do you have in your kitchen right now that might make some fun sushi?

Now, the secret to making inside-out rolls without having it all fall apart is to build the roll on plastic wrap and then use the wrap to tighten and tuck up the sushi as you roll it up, ending up with the whole roll wrapped tightly in the plastic wrap.  (For extra reinforcement as you roll and shape the sushi, place a sushi mat or aluminum foil under the plastic wrap.)  Slice the roll while it's still wrapped up, then carefully unroll each piece from the plastic.  And voila, you'll be making gorgeous sushi just like that.