California roll

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California roll served in Shanghai, China. Prepared inside-out and sprinkled with tobiko

The California roll is a maki-zushi (roll), a kind of sushi, usually made inside-out, containing cucumber, crab meat or imitation crab stick, and avocado. Sometimes crab salad is substituted for the crab stick, and often the outer layer of rice (in an inside-out roll) is sprinkled with toasted sesame seeds or tobiko.

The California roll has been influential in sushi's global popularity and in inspiring sushi chefs around the world in creating their non-traditional fusion cuisine.^[1]

[edit] History

The origin of the California roll is somewhat murky, but usually food historians credit Ichiro Mashita, sushi chef at the Tokyo Kaikan in Los Angeles with inventing the roll in the early 1970s. Mashita realized the oily texture of avocado was a perfect substitute for toro. He also eventually made the roll "inside-out", i.e. uramaki, because Americans did not like seeing and chewing the nori on the outside of the roll. ^[2] (Traditionally sushi rolls are wrapped with nori on the outside.)

After becoming the most popular in southern California it eventually became popular all across the United States by the 1980s. The roll contributed to sushi's growing popularity in the United States by easing diners into more exotic sushi options.^[3]American sushi chefs have created many variations with unique names such as Spider Roll, Philadelphia Roll, and Rainbow Roll. The roll is also widely known in Japan, where any roll containing avocado as an ingredient is informally referred to as a California roll^{[citation needed]}.

[edit] Footnotes

1. ^ Renton, Alex. "How Sushi ate the World", The Guardian, 2006-02-26. Retrieved on 2006-08-20. 
2. ^ Hunt, Maria. "East-West Fusion: nontraditional ingredients give sushi local flavor", San Diego Union-Tribune, 2005-08-24. Retrieved on 2006-08-20. 
3. ^ kestler, john. "The sushification of America", The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 2006-06-18. Retrieved on 2006-08-20. 

[edit] External links

• History of the California roll with various early recipes and references
• Some further info on Mashita and the original California roll
• Pictured guide on How to make California Roll
• Sushi Monsters - How To Make Uramaki
• California Rolls

[edit] References

"California Rolls ." California Rolls - American-Style Sushi Rolls. 1 ads by google. 5 Mar. 2008 <http://whatscookingamerica.net/Appetizers/CaliforniaRoll.htm>.

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