It‘s fun and easy to make your own Japanese sushi hand rolls at home with my flexible Temaki Sushi recipe. Let your guests customize their own rolls with their choice of favorite fillings like vegetables and sashimi-grade fish. Perfect for a family dinner or DIY sushi party!
As sushi becomes more popular than ever, many people consider it a staple of Japanese home cooking. The truth is, we typically don’t make sushi at home, especially when it comes to nigiri or sushi rolls that require time and refined skills. We much prefer to enjoy them at a sushi restaurant.
But, we do make exceptions for the less fussy ones like Temaki Sushi (Hand-Rolled Sushi). Growing up, Temaki Sushi was our favorite party meal. My mom would make them once every couple of months because they’re very forgiving, and we all love this easy DIY sushi at home.
Table of Contents
What is Temaki Sushi?
Temaki Sushi (手巻き寿司) is sometimes called a ‘hand roll’ because it consists of a rolled cone of seaweed wrapped around rice and fillings. The best part, for me as a cook, is that this is a meal where everyone helps themselves. You just need to prepare a platter of sushi rice, nori (seaweed sheet), and fillings such as sashimi-grade fish and veggie sticks. Then, at the table, each person makes hand-rolled sushi based on their favorite mix of ingredients.
3 Main Ingredients for Temaki Sushi
1. Sushi Rice
To make Temaki Sushi, you need to prepare the seasoned rice called Sushi Rice or Sumeshi (酢飯). The rice should be white short-grain, making it stickier and better able to hold together when you wrap the seaweed cone around it. Sushi Rice is essentially steamed rice seasoned with rice vinegar, sugar, and salt. Japanese only make this rice when preparing sushi; for all other Japanese meals, we eat regular steamed rice.
To learn how to make sushi rice, see How To Make Sushi Rice.
Why not brown rice? Please read my post on why brown rice is not ideal for sushi.
2. Various Ingredients for Hand Roll Sushi
The world is your oyster when it comes to choosing the ingredients. Pick what you and your family enjoy! If you’re curious, here are some popular options in Japan:
Sashimi Choice (Raw Fish)
- Amaebi (sweet shrimp)
- Hamachi (yellowtail)
- Hotate (scallop)
- Ikura (salmon roe)
- Kanpachi (amberjack)
- Maguro (tuna)
- Salmon
- Tai (sea bream/red snapper)
- Tobiko (flying fish roe)
- Toro (fatty tuna) or Chutoro (medium fatty tuna)
- Uni (sea urchin)
How much sashimi do we need? We order sashimi at Suruki Supermarket in San Mateo. Our typical order for temaki (for 4) is the following: 3/4 lb salmon (we all love salmon), 1/3 lb. chutoro, 2 packages of amaebi, 2 packages of hotate, 1/4 lb. of hirame or other white fish, 1 box of uni, and 2 oz of ikura.
Veggies
- Avocado
- Cucumber
- Lettuce
- Radish sprout (kaiware daikon)
- Shiso leaves
- Yellow daikon pickles (takuan)
Cooked and Creative Ingredients
If you are vegetarian or do not eat raw fish, you can still make Temaki Sushi with vegetables and cooked items. It’s fun to make your fillings, so get creative!
- Chicken Teriyaki
- Chicken Kaarage
- Chicken Katsu
- Corn
- Ebi Fry
- Grilled Unagi
- Ground Chicken Soboro
- Imitation crab sticks (kanikama)
- Mango
- Natto (fermented soybean)
- Sausages
- Shrimp (boiled)
- Shrimp Tempura
- Sweet Rolled Omelet (Atsuyaki Tamago)
- Tuna mayo
- Umeboshi (pickled plums) or Neri Ume (pickled plum paste)
3. Nori (Seaweed)
You will need good quality nori (seaweed) for Temaki Sushi. Some of you have asked me why their nori is chewy and gummy. That’s a sign of poor quality nori.
High-quality nori has an amazing fragrance and taste to it. Unfortunately, it’s challenging to find good nori outside of Japan. My recommendation is to get nori harvested from Ariake Sea (有明海), known for its superior quality seaweed, and choose the most expensive nori available in the grocery store. Still, the quality tends to be less on par with the Japanese standard. If you get a chance to visit Japan, you must bring some back (It’s light and flat!!).
How to Roll the Temaki Sushi
- Cut a square nori sheet in half (restaurant-style) or quarter (more home-style) and place it, shiny side down, on your palm.
- Add a thin layer of sushi rice (about 2 tablespoons) to the left third of the nori sheet (if you‘re right-handed) and flatten/spread it evenly. Place some ingredients on the rice. Here, I put cucumber, takuwan, 1-2 types of sashimi, and radish sprouts.
- Roll the bottom left corner up to the middle of the top edge of the nori to form a triangle, and continue rolling until you form a cone shape.
- Put a piece of rice on the tip of the nori to secure the folds. Enjoy!
DIY Temaki Sushi Party Video
Whether it’s for a small gathering or a bigger crowd, Temaki Sushi is truly the best type of sushi to serve at home. In this video, you can see how we set up the table with sushi rice, ingredients, small plates, salad, and side dishes for a fun yet casual sushi party.
Also, check out our post on The Ultimate Sushi Party Guide: Tips, Recipes, and Ideas!
Learn More About Sushi
Read our Ultimate Sushi Guide to learn about the origin, sushi types, etiquette, and more.
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Temaki Sushi (Hand Roll)
Video
Ingredients
- 6⅔ cups sushi rice (cooked and seasoned) (made in advance with 3 rice cooker cups; follow my recipe How to Make Sushi Rice)
- 10 sheets nori (dried laver seaweed) (use a half sheet for each cone-shaped roll, or a quarter sheet for a folded taco-shaped roll)
For the Basic Temaki Fillings (see blog post for more ideas)
- sashimi-grade fish of your choice (¼–⅓ lb or 113–150 g per person; salmon, tuna, amberjack, yellowtail, fatty tuna, sea bream, salmon roe, uni, etc.)
- Japanese or Persian cucumbers (cut into sticks; see the blog post for other vegetable ideas and cooked options)
- shiso leaves (perilla/ooba)
- kaiware daikon radish sprouts
- takuan (pickled daikon radish) (cut into sticks)
For Serving
- condiments of your choice (I recommend pickled sushi ginger, wasabi, and soy sauce or sashimi soy sauce)
Instructions
- Before You Start: Please note that it takes at least 90 minutes to make sushi rice. For step-by-step instructions with video, see my recipe How to Make Sushi Rice. Note that 2¼ cups (450 g, 3 rice cooker cups) of uncooked Japanese short-grain rice yield 6⅔ cups (990 g) of cooked rice. You must use Japanese short-grain white rice; otherwise, your sushi will fall apart. Why not brown rice? Please read my post on why brown rice is not ideal for sushi.
To Prepare the Vegetables
- Let‘s prepare a tray of vegetable fillings.
- Remove the stems of shiso leaves (perilla/ooba). Cut off the root ends of the kaiware daikon radish sprouts and rinse thoroughly under water.
- Peel Japanese or Persian cucumbers to create a striped pattern. Then, cut off both ends. Cut them in half lengthwise.
- It‘s best to remove the cucumber seeds as they contain moisture. Cut the cucumber halves in half again lengthwise and remove the seeds with a knife.
- Alternatively, you can scoop out the seeds with a spoon. Cut the cucumbers into 3-inch (7.4-cm) lengths. Then, cut lengthwise into thin strips.
- Cut the takuan (pickled daikon radish) into 3-inch (7.4-cm) lengths. Cut the takuan into slabs, then thin sticks.
To Prepare the Sashimi
- Let‘s prepare a large platter of sashimi-grade fish. If you want to avoid cutting the sashimi yourself, ask a fishmonger at a Japanese grocery store to cut the raw fish for temaki sushi (into long sticks instead of sashimi-style slices).
- Remove the sashimi-grade fish of your choice from the refrigerator. Pat dry with a paper towel to remove excess moisture. If your sashimi block is long, cut it about 3 inches (7.4 cm) in length.
- Cut the sashimi block(s) lengthwise into slabs, then long sticks.
- Here, I‘m cutting tuna and hamachi (yellowtail) into long sticks.
To Prepare the Nori
- Right before you start eating, cut 10 sheets nori (dried laver seaweed) in half for 20 restaurant-style, cone-shaped rolls or in quarters for 40 home-style, taco-shaped rolls. Store the nori in the bag to keep it from turning stale.
To Set Up the Table
To Roll the Temaki Sushi
- Nori has a rough (dull) side and a shiny side; the shiny side is the presentation side. In the image below, I‘m pointing at the rough side. To make your sushi rolls, start with dry hands to keep the nori crispy. Place a half sheet of nori on the palm of your non-dominant hand, shiny side down. Add a thin layer of sushi rice to the left third of the nori sheet (if you‘re right-handed).
- Place the fillings (cucumber, daikon radish sprouts, takuan, and tuna) vertically along the middle of the rice. Fold the bottom left corner of the nori over and begin rolling it into a cone shape.
- Finish rolling the nori into a cone shape. Put a piece of rice at the bottom right corner to use as ”glue” and close tightly.
- If you‘re using a quarter sheet of nori, put the rice in the center and the fillings on top. Simply fold up the sides like a taco.
- For fatty fish, like salmon belly and chutoro (medium fatty tuna), sear and enhance the flavor with a kitchen butane torch at the table right before eating it.
To Serve
- Serve with pickled sushi ginger, wasabi, and soy sauce as condiments. You can also use a mild, lightly sweet, and umami-rich sashimi soy sauce. Enjoy!
To Store
- Sashimi-grade fish must be eaten within 24 hours. Keep the leftovers in an airtight container and store in the refrigerator for up to a day.
Nutrition
Editor’s Note: The post was originally published on May 16, 2013. It’s been republished on January 26, 2024 with a new video, images, and more helpful content.
You failed to mention 3 of my favorite ingredients. 1) Unagi 2) a piece of gobo [pickled burdock root] 3) tobiko “frosting”.
Regarding the tobiko, there is nothing like the first bite with this. Like a bunch of pop rocks going off in your mouth but better!
Hello Clint! Thank you for reading Nami’s post!
Temaki sushi may be made using a wide variety of ingredients. Unagi and Tobiko are already on the list. 😉 Thank you for sharing your favorite ingredients!💞
If I want to go all-out, this is it.
Everyone loves making their own hand rolls and its such a festive meal. It takes a lot of the pressure off the cook because there’s no need to go through the effort of rolling maki or (god forbid) forming nigiri.
Having a sushi party? MAKE TEMAKI!
Hi John! Thank you for your kind feedback!
Yes! This is a perfect party meal! Happy Cooking!
MYOSN (Make Your Own Sushi Night) is very popular with our kids. One thing we have not been able to replicate is keeping the balance of cool fish, warm rice, and crispy-crunchy nori! In fact, we’ve only eaten in two restaurants that achieve that as well! At Sugarfish in NYC (also on west coast, and I highly recommend it!) they tell you to eat it right away for that very reason. But even when we eat it right away at home, it’s never crispy. Is it the quality of the nori? Or are we too slow?! TIA!
Hi Katie! We are glad to hear you and your family enjoy making Temaki Sushi!
It depends on the quality of Nori, the crispiness is different. If you can, try fining Nori from Ariake-sea (有明 – You will see this letter on the package).
Also, add sushi vinegar to hot rice and let it cool immediately so that rice has less moisture when you make Temaki.
Tip #6 on this post: https://www.justonecookbook.com/how-to-make-sushi-rice/
We hope this is helpful!