Of all the sushi rolls I’ve been trying to perfect since starting to roll my own sushi last year, the simple California roll has irritated me beyond belief. When I made mine, something never quite tasted right. I was missing something. I’ve derived my own version and it comes close to what I get at restaurants, but I think mine has a slightly different good flavor to it. I know I’ve been talking about writing this post for a while, so here it is.
First, start by making some wasabi. I use the reconstituted powder form. Be aware that the horseradish flavor of some wasabi may make this mayonnaise very bitter. Yes, I tried to add some extra kick in terms of heat with some horseradish and it did not taste good. Stick with the smoother flavored wasabi. 
Let the wasabi sit to potentiate. The heat comes while letting the wasabi sit. The heat isn’t there right away. If you’re using pre-made wasabi, then this isn’t going to be an issue. This is only a concern when using the powder forms.
Get yourself a couple spoons of mayonnaise. 
Add the wasabi to your mayo. 
Then mix it until the wasabi has been evenly distributed throughout the mixture. In this photo, you can see how the wasabi stays clumped. Whip the mayo up, sometimes pressing out clumps of wasabi with a spoon. 
Add a little bit of salt.
Add a little bit of sesame oil, again, to taste. It only takes a little bit of sesame oil to add flavor. Add too much sesame oil and that’s going to be all you end up tasting.
Mix the sesame oil into the mayo. You’ll notice the mayonnaise acquires a slight brown tinge. That’s what I go for. That’s how I judge just how mixed everything really is.
You can use this on a variety of sushi. I like it with my scallop rolls and some of my veggie rolls. The heat from the wasabi barely penetrates through the mayo. This is more about flavor than it is heat. If you want some more heat, add straight wasabi to your finished product.
On to the Cali roll.
Get yourself some imitation crab or some real crab meat. For one roll, I’d recommend using about four sticks, five if you are worried about losing some along the way or if you’re making a bigger roll.
With a very sharp knife, chop up each individual stick. This can be a rather tedious task, so I find that if I cut some and then turn the stick on each side as I go, I get a better result. 
Toss the meat into the mayo.
Mix the mayo and crab meat by hand, not with a spoon. For whatever reason, mixing with a spoon or a fork doesn’t coat the meat well enough. When mixing by hand, the end result has slightly better flavor.
Now it’s time to roll.
What’s in a California roll? Imitation crab, cucumber, and avocado. Throw on some sesame seeds and that’s about it. If you like to have roe on your Cali roll, you can add that later. I havent’ learned to manage capelin roe well enough to coat sushi the way I like.
The real trick with making it this way is to cram as much crab meat in the middle without having it thin out too much. A healthy helping of crab/mayo in the center that holds together firmly makes the roll taste great. If you use too much mayo, the roll will simply smoosh together and you won’t get much flavor out of what you’ve made. So, use less mayo than you think. What you want to do is coat the meat with the mayo, not drown it in the stuff.
Enjoy!
(c) Amateur Sushi Blog – Read entire story here.
