Spider Roll

By: Chef Andy Matsuda, excerpted from Let's Make Sushi

Spider Roll

By: Chef Andy Matsuda, excerpted from Let's Make Sushi

For this roll, I don’t use spiders but soft-shell crab, which is a unique kind of crab. The shell is soft and doesn't need to be removed to cook it. After frying the crab and rolling it up, I like to decorate the plate with a spider net drawn with sushi sauce. This is one of my personal favorite rolls because of its crunch and the nuanced flavor of the crab.

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Makes1 roll

Ingredients

1 soft-shell crab
2 tablespoons (16 g) tempura flour, plus more for dredging
2 tablespoons (30 ml) water
Vegetable oil, for frying
1/2 (7½ x 8” [19 x 20–cm]) sheet nori
3 ounces (85 g) sushi rice
Kaiware (daikon sprouts; optional)
1 piece cucumber
1 piece avocado
1 piece yamagobo (pickled burdock root; optional)
1 piece green leaf lettuce
2 teaspoons (10 g) orange tobiko (flying fish eggs; optional)
6 tablespoons (90 ml) sushi sauce, for decoration
1 teaspoon wasabi paste, for serving
1 tablespoon (15 g) pickled sushi ginger, for serving

DIRECTIONS

Dry the crab with paper towels. In a medium-sized bowl, make the tempura batter by mixing the tempura flour with the water. Dredge the crab with extra flour, shaking off the excess, then dip into the tempura batter. In a medium-sized skillet, heat 1 inch (2.5 cm) of the oil to 350°F (180°C). Fry the crab for 3 to 4 minutes. Drain on paper towels.
Place the nori vertically on a cutting board and spread the rice to cover 90 percent of it. Place the kaiware (if using) on the ends of the rice with the leaves hanging out. Place the cucumber, avocado and yamagobo (if using) on the rice. On top of this, place the lettuce leaf. Spread the tobiko (if using) in a line across the lettuce and place the crab on top. The crab should be in the center of the roll. Don’t worry if the legs hang out; this is part of the decoration. Roll up and shape with a makisu (bamboo mat). Cut the roll into six equal pieces.
Using your sushi sauce, draw a spiral on a round plate. Place a skewer or a chopstick in the center of your spiral, and with the tip of your skewer, draw straight lines going from the center outward. This will help you create a “web” pattern of the sauce on your plate. You can make six to eight lines. Place an end piece of the roll flat on the plate with the kaiware and crab standing up. Lean the four inside pieces against the first piece and place the last piece standing up. Add the wasabi and pickled sushi ginger to the plate.