How to host your own sushi party
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Hosting your very own sushi party can actually be one of the easiest thing to do – as long as you have access to the sushi/sashimi-grade fish. Or, you can easily do a completely vegetarian sushi party without any fish. You don’t need any special tools, like the bamboo rolling matt or expensive kits to make the sushi for your party. As matter of fact YOU are not making them – your guests are! You just prepare all the ingredients!
This DIY Sushi Party is so fun and so easy that it’s my go-to dinner party idea for guests who I know love sushi. The only catch is that it may not be the cheapest party you can host for a large group of people because the retail price of quality raw fish can be quite expensive. But I’ll show you some creative and delicious ways to keep the cost down as much as possible!
Your shopping list
In addition to the ingredients you choose from below, there are a few key items that you need to have on hand for the party:
- Short-, medium-grain rice to make sticky rice. It does NOT need to be sushi rice.
- Roasted nori /seaweed sheets, unsalted and unflavored. One large sheet will make 4 servings. Assuming that each person would eat up to 8 servings, you should have enough for at least 2 sheets per person.
- Sushi vinegar
- Soy sauce
- Wasabi paste
- Extra smaller serving utensils (for each veggie ingredient)
- Small dipping sauce dishes
How to prepare sushi rice
You have to prepare the sushi rice at least a couple of hours in advance. Cook the rice following the normal directions on the package or using the rice cooker to make plain Japanese rice. Then follow the directions on the sushi vinegar bottle to make the sushi rice. If you are using Mizkan Vinegar Sushi Seasoning, for example, you add 5 tablespoons of sushi vinegar per 4 cups of cooked rice. I make about 6 cups of cooked rice (3 cups of uncooked) for 4 people. So, about 1.5 cups of cooked rice per person. You may need to adjust based on how hungry and how much your guests love sushi! Once the rice is cooked, while it’s hot, transfer the rice into a large serving bowl. The larger the better to make the mixing and cooling easier.
The trick is to add the vinegar while the rice is hot and mix it gently but thoroughly so that the rice is evenly coated with vinegar. Then, the rice must cool down to room temperature before serving. No need to cover it while it cools. Don’t put the vinegared rice in the fridge before you serve either as it will dry out and harden.
Sushi Ingredients: FISH
Don’t attempt this using the raw fish that isn’t sushi or sashimi grade. I only get my fish from a reputable Japanese grocery store in town. I went to the local Whole Foods store to check and they didn’t have any. Unless it is being sold specifically as such, you MUST ask if they have sushi- or sashimi- grade fish. If they don’t know, chances are, they don’t. Pick a few from these options or have all of them available if you want to try them all!
- Tuna, white tuna, salmon and/or yellowtail, cut it up in short strips about ¼ – ½ inch wide
- Imitation crab (which is made from fish paste and not from real crab) is a great option to include especially for people who don’t like raw fish and it’s inexpensive. Separated into strips.
- Fish roes – tobiko (small roes) or salmon (large roes)
- Spicy tuna mixture – This is usually the crowd favorite. Chop up raw tuna into small pieces and put it into a bowl. Add enough mayonnaise to completely cover the tuna. Add bit of Tobanjan chili paste or siracha sauce just to get a orange/pink tint when mixed. Cover and let it sit at least for an hour. You can always add more siracha later to make it spicier.
Sushi Ingredients: VEGGIES
Veggies are great fillers that can help keep the overall cost down but I think they make the sushi even better! I recommend having all these options available. Vegetarian guests can make their sushi just with these as well. Also see the ‘Vegetarian’ section below for more great vegetarian options.
- English cucumbers – peeled, seeded and cut into thin matchsticks
- White onion – sliced thin, put liberal amount of salt and massage into the onions. Let it sit for about 10 minutes. Rise off salt under running water and gently squeeze out the water.
- Green onions – chopped
- Avocado – sliced into about ¼ inch thick
- Spicy beets – Find the spicy beets recipe here
Sushi Ingredients: Optional condiments
- Japanese mayonnaise, optional but highly recommended!
- Siracha sauce
- Pink or neutral colored pickled ginger, as garnish
- Ume shiso paste
How to prepare for your sushi party
- Make the sushi rice few hours in advance and put it in large serving bowl.
- Cut up all the fish and arrange them on a large plate. This can be done in advance but just keep them covered and refrigerated. Roe and spicy tuna should be in small separate serving bowls.
- Prep all the veggies and put them in the individual serving bowls.
- Cut each large nori/seaweed sheet into 4 smaller square sheets
- Each person’s setting should include a dinner plate, a small dipping saucer for soy sauce and chopsticks/fork.
- When the guests arrive, put all the ingredients in the serving dishes/bowls on the table or line them up on a buffet table with nori/seaweed and rice first.
- Put a serving utensil per each serving plate/bowl.
How to make your own sushi
Essentially, it’s just like making your own taco/burrito and the guests can make their own combinations, as many different ways as they wish. To make the individual sushi:
- Get a cut nori sheet
- Spread about a tablespoon of sushi rice on nori
- Add a slice of fish (or a small scoop of roe or spicy tuna mix)
- Add a veggie or two
- Top it with a bit of condiment if desired
- Roll it like you are making a tiny bouquet of flowers
- Dip in soy sauce and wasabi, and enjoy
Best combinations
I’ve tried so many combinations but here are some of my favorites that you must try!
Nori + Rice then:
- Imitation crab + avocado + Japanese mayo (this the ‘California roll’)
- Salmon + white onion + Japanese mayo (seriously, I don’t know how I lived without this combo all my life!)
- Spicy tuna + cucumbers (or green onions)
- Salmon roe + green onions
Vegetarian sushi ingredients
The ingredients above are just the basic list of options for a sushi party. There are so many other less conventional and vegetarian options that you could add such as carrots, lettuce, cream cheese, tempura or oven roasted green beans, tempura or roasted sweet potato and roasted mushrooms… If you like beets, I just tried using canned beets cut into matchsticks, and turned out fantastic – almost as a replacement for tuna. I made mine with beets + cucumbers + ume shiso paste and now I’m thinking I need to coin this “Akiko Roll” as the creator for this!
Drinks to serve with sushi
To make it into an authentic experience, be sure to serve your sushi with some Japanese sake or Japanese hot tea!
What’s your favorite sushi?
Tell us your favorite sushi in the comment section below! Let us know if we are missing any great ingredients that we didn’t think of!
