Weeknight Cooking

DIY Alaska Salmon Hand Rolls

by:
January 26, 2022
5
2 Ratings
Photo by PHOTO BY ROCKY LUTEN. PROP STYLIST: VERONICA OLSON. FOOD STYLIST: SAMANTHA SENEVIRATNE.
  • Prep time 25 minutes
  • Cook time 5 minutes
  • Serves 4
Author Notes

As much as I enjoy cooking and entertaining, I’ve realized that sometimes the best gatherings are those where guests make their own dinner. This cooking hack is a win-win situation: light prep for the host and an interactive, communal experience for diners. The next time you have people over, instead of a dumpling-making party or taco bar, consider laying out a colorful spread of hand roll fillings for guests to create their own seaweed-wrapped bites.

Canned salmon from Alaska is the star of the show in this recipe. Tossed in a spicy Kewpie mayo sauce flecked with scallions, the resulting fish is rich and flavorful—no cooking, roasting, or steaming required thanks to the shelf-stable canned Alaska salmon. The rest of the spread is just as easy to prepare: simply cook and season the rice, cut nori sheets into single-serve segments, and ready your choice of fillings. While the seasoned Alaska salmon is delicious on its own, it works well with a variety of accompaniments, like thinly sliced bell pepper or cucumber, creamy avocado, red pickled ginger, fried egg strips, or briny tobiko, for example. Whatever fillings you choose, I suggest offering different colors and textures to give guests enough diversity to create combos based on their preferences—plus, it makes for an enticing visual presentation. When it’s time to eat, invite diners to make their own hand rolls, then enjoy with a bit of soy sauce. —Joy Cho

Test Kitchen Notes

This recipe is shared in partnership with the Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute. —The Editors

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Ingredients
  • 2 cups warm cooked sushi rice
  • 2 teaspoons rice vinegar
  • 1/2 teaspoon granulated sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 2 (6-ounce) cans boneless, skinless Alaska salmon (liquid drained)
  • 1/4 cup Kewpie mayo
  • 5 teaspoons Sriracha
  • 1/2 teaspoon honey
  • 2 scallions, diced
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 large eggs
  • 6 to 8 sheets good-quality nori
  • 1 large avocado, sliced
  • 1/2 large red bell pepper, thinly sliced into 2- to 3-inch strips
  • 1/2 cucumber, thinly sliced into 2- to 3-inch strips
  • Red pickled ginger, for filling
  • Tobiko, for filling
  • Sesame seeds (black, white, or a combination), for filling
  • Soy sauce, for serving
Directions
  1. Season the rice: In a large bowl, mix the warm rice with vinegar, sugar, and salt. Taste and adjust the seasoning if needed. Cover and set aside.
  2. Season the Alaska salmon: In a medium bowl, break up the Alaska salmon using a fork. Add the mayo, sriracha, honey, scallions, and a few cranks of freshly ground black pepper and mix to combine. Cover the bowl and set aside.
  3. Make the egg strips: Whisk the eggs in a small bowl with a fork and season with salt and pepper. Grease a large nonstick pan with oil over medium-low heat. Pour in the eggs to coat the bottom of the pan in a thin layer, and cook until the edges are set. Gently flip the eggs using a large spatula and cook until the other side is set.
  4. Transfer the fried egg round to a cutting board. When cool enough to handle, cut the egg in thirds crosswise. Stack the pieces and thinly slice lengthwise into strips.
  5. Prepare nori: Stack the nori sheets a few at a time and cut in half lengthwise, then cut crosswise to make 4 smaller rectangles. Repeat until you’ve cut all nori sheets. This should produce 24 to 32 pieces.
  6. When ready to serve, arrange the fried egg strips, sliced vegetables, and other fillings of your choice (the options above are only suggestions; feel free to mix and match according to your preferences) on a large plate, along with the nori, rice, and seasoned Alaska salmon. Allow guests to make their own hand rolls by spreading a thin layer of rice on a piece of nori, topping it with their fillings of choice, and dipping it in a bit of soy sauce to enjoy.

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1 Review

Sharon G. February 18, 2022
My favorite of all time! Got recipe today n' tried today...yummo! I always make homemade Sushi...not too trusting of some establishments anymore...THIS FIT THE BILL 100%!