Back to the Basics – The Sushi Rice/ Shari

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I still remember how I used to take for granted and ignore learning this very important skill earlier in my career. I thought that sushi rice is simple and involves only the vinegar and the rice. In this article I will explain the fundamentals of mastering the perfect shari.

The Rice

To make the perfect shari, you must have perfectly cooked rice. Basically the water ratio for cooking rice is 1:1, which is one cup of rice and one cup of water. But depending on the type of rice that you use, the water ratio may vary. This is especially true in the case of new crop “shinmai” rice. New crop rice have higher moisture content and is usually unsuitable for sushi but professional sushi chefs sometimes make their own rice blends by mixing old “komai” and new crop “shinmai” blends. High quality rice has a good balance of starches (amylose and amylopectin) for the right stickiness needed. Do keep in mind that you will be adding vinegar later so it’s advisable to cook the rice slightly hard.

Experiment with various brands and water ratio until you get the perfect texture for the next step. One point to remember when you cook rice is to let it sit for 20~30 minutes without opening the lid when it’s done.

The Vinegar Mixing

Never make the mistake of using a metal bowl to mix your shari. The reason is that steel conducts heat fast you won’t be left with enough heat for the proper blending of the vinegar to the rice not to mention that vinegar reacts with metals and it will alter the taste of your sushi rice. Always use a sushi barrel or “hangiri” as it is called in Japanese.

For every 1.8 kilos of rice use 360 cc of prepared sushi vinegar “sushisu”. To mix, empty the cooked rice into the hangiri and use the wooden paddle to guide the vinegar around the rice evenly while you pour the sushi vinegar. Then gently push the rice apart using the wooden paddle (shamoji). Using a cutting sideways motion to evenly incorporate the vinegar; be gentle to ensure that you do not to crush the rice. Continue the cutting motion until rice clumps are not visible.

Fanning as you go (a conventional electric fan will do the job); the air helps the rice absorb the vinegar and gives the rice a polished look. Let it cool a bit before overturning the rice for the final blow.

A perfect shari is 37.5 degrees Celsius and it’s the best and most comfortable temperature to work in so try to adjust the temperature to around 40++ Celsius before transferring it into a shari container for storage.

To transfer the remaining sushi rice that you can’t scoop with your wooden paddle, use a damp cloth to wipe off the remaining sushi rice at the bottom of the hangiri and also the wooden paddle. With the damp cloth, you can remove even the last grain of rice.

The Storage

Assuming that you’re working in a sushi restaurant, you will want the sushi rice be maintained at a certain optimal temperature until closing time. The optimum temperature to work with is 37.5 degrees Celsius. Back in the old days, sushi chefs used to wrap the wooden container with straw to provide insulation.

Nowadays we have specially manufactured sushi rice containers that are made of plastic, hygienic and will provide you with the insulation needed to maintain your sushi rice temperature. Also, to minimize wastage of the sushi rice and to ease the cleaning of the container after use, try to search for a product named “rice guard”. It’s basically a piece or disposal non stick paper that moulds into your container creating a barrier between the plastic container and your sushi rice. Since the sushi rice won’t stick to the paper, every last bit of the sushi rice can be used.

Sushi Vinegar Recipe

Ingredients

Rice vinegar (komesu) - 1200cc

Sugar - 1.080 grams

Salt - 250 grams

Mirin - 1 tablespoon

Konbu - 1 small piece (around 6×6 cm)

Method

l Heat over fire and stir well.

l Once the sugar and the salt have dissolved, turn off the fire.

l Do not bring to boil.

Happy cooking,