Vegan Sushi?

Had lunch with friend Molly at Hama Sushi the other day. I was kind of worried about being able to stick to my animal-free 30 days...but no worries!


I had the cucumber roll and umeshisomaki. Ume is plum in Japanese (which is generally made into plum pickles...umeboshe, and is considered essential for good health)...and the green leaf (inside the roll) is shiso*. They both have very strong flavors, that you either really like...or not at all. I like them a lot...in small doses (about half this size, so I took the rest home).



Don't you love the wasabi "leaves"? It's all about the presentation.

We also shared some California rolls made with just veggies, but they were delivered later and I forgot to take a pic. All of it was yummy!

(Trivia: Until a few years ago, I thought that the word "sushi" referred to the raw fish. I thought that to be authentic, then...it had to be raw, therefore I referred to California rolls as "fake" sushi. Then I learned that sushi actually refers to the way the rice is prepared (with sugar and vinegar), so anything goes, and it's still sushi!)

*Shiso is grown as a crop and used in Japanese, Korean and Vietnamese cooking. It's a member of the mint family and has a strong, mediciney flavor. In North America, it's considered an invasive weed. Tomayto, tomahto, I guess!