First:
Wash rice and drain in a sieve 30 minutes before cooking. Then tranfer rice to the rice cooker and place konbu kelp on top. Put sake and water following the machine’s standard measure for cooking sushi rice. Start cooking. When done, remove the kelp and let it sit for 15 minutes.
Combine the ingredients for in a saucepan and bring it to a boil.
Soak dried shiitake mushrooms in lukewarm water until soft. Remove the stems. (Keep the water that was used to soak the shiitake mushrooms. It will be used as stock for simmering shiitake later on.)
Quickly rinse the kanpyo (dried gourd strips), sprinkle pinch of salt (salt used here is not included in the ingredient list) and lightly massage.
Second:Evenly spread 1.5 tablespoon of inside the handai (large wooden sushi bowl). Transfer hot rice to handai. Pour the rest of the over rice and let stand for 1 minute. Then mix rice with a flat wooden spoon in a fast slicing motion. Spread rice flat and swiftly cool by fanning. When rice has cooled, take 1/6 of the portion and mix with sakura denbu (sweet pink fish powder).
Prepare . Combine the ingredients for simmering shiitake inside a pan and place softened shiitake inside. Simmer over low heat until the stock is almost all absorbed. Let it cool. Then cut into thin slices.
Prepare . Parboil kanpyo for about 10 min. in ample water. Then transfer to a saucepan with other ingredients and simmer for 10 minutes over medium heat. Let it cool and lightly squeeze to remove excess moisture. Cut the strips so that they are the same length as the width of the sheet of nori seaweed. Take just one sheet of nori and cut into half. Place the half sheet of nori on the makisu (bamboo rolling mat) with the shiny side facing down. Moisten your hands with hand vinegar (mixture of vinegar and water. not included in the ingredient list). Take 1/12 portion of the sushi rice and spread it flat over the sheet of nori, leaving 3cm(1.2 inch) wide space empty on the top end. Lightly press the center of rice to create a hollow line to place 1/2 portion of kampyo strips. Then roll up the mat to wrap the kampyo. Make another kanpyo roll in the same way.
Prepare . Beat eggs and place in heatproof container and mix with sake, sugar and salt. Microwave for 1 minute without covering with Saran Wrap. Take it out and mix with a whisk. Heat for 1 minute again, take it out and mix with a whisk. Repeat this 2-3 times to make scrambled eggs. Let it cool slightly.
Place a full sheet of nori seaweed on the makisu with the shiny side facing down. Spread the in the center. Moisten your hands with hand vinegar (not included in the ingredient list) and spread half of the remaining sushi rice over the nori, leaving 3cm(1.2 inch) wide space empty on both top and bottom ends. Mound the rice in the center to rise higher. Place the two thin rolls in the center with a little space in between. Slide in from an angle the slices of diagonally below the kanpyo rolls and spread the sweet pink sushi rice over it. Take the rest of the sushi rice and evenly cover the whole sheet. Then lay out the red pickled ginger across in the center.
Place the other sheet of nori on top to cover. While holding the ingredients in place with your fingers, roll up makisu all the way. With makisu entirely wrapping the roll, hold down the roll with both hands from over the makisu to shape evenly. Cut roll into slices and arrange on a serving dish.
Smile Sushi Roll