You make your own sushi in a snap with this simple vegan sushi recipe. It is so delicious and easy to make!
Of course, you don’t have to be vegan to enjoy this recipe. I love that the ingredients are simple, and you don’t need expensive seafood to make this.
Plus, this vegan sushi is really delicious and rivals anything I have gotten in a restaurant.
How to make vegan sushi
First, gather your ingredients.
Ingredients
To make vegan sushi, you will need the following:
- nori sheets
- cooked rice (I use jasmine)
- rice vinegar
- avocado
- cucumber
- scallions/ green onion
- tofu
- dijon mustard
- Tamari (or soy sauce, coconut aminos)
- Sriracha
- sesame seeds (optional, for garnish)
- pickled ginger (optional, for serving)
You can totally use sushi rice, or any short grain rice. But just know: I make this every time with regular jasmine rice. It’s our favorite variety, and we just use it for everything.
Also, I get my nori on Amazon (Amazon affiliate link). It is way cheaper than at the grocery store, and it tastes the same.
Making sticky rice
You can also buy sticky rice already made at most grocery stores. To make your own sticky rice: cook 2 cups of jasmine rice according to package instructions. I have this cuckoo rice cooker (Amazon affiliate link) and LOVE it.
Once it is cooked, remove from heat, stir in 2 tablespoons of rice vinegar (or more, to taste). Fluff the rice and let it cool for a few more minutes. Set aside.
Cooking the tofu
Press the tofu. I got this tofu press (Amazon affiliate link), and it is by far the easiest method. If you don’t have/ want a tofu press, no worries.
Wrap the tofu block in a clean kitchen towel and place it onto a clean, flat surface like a baking sheet or large, rimmed plate. Place something heavy on top of the tofu like a heavy bottomed or cast iron pan and place a few heavy objects on the pan to even it out (canned goods work well). Let it press for 15-20 minutes.
Once the tofu is pressed, discard the liquid and use a sharp knife to cut the tofu into planks and then ½ inch thick strips. Mix up the marinade – tamari, dijon mustard and sriracha – in a small mixing bowl.
Place the tofu into a shallow baking dish, pour the marinade over the tofu and let it sit and mariante for 30 minutes covered in the fridge. You can also do this the day before and let it sit overnight in the refrigerator.
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F and line a small baking sheet with parchment paper. Arrange the tofu onto the baking sheet and discard the rest of the marinade.
Place the tofu into the oven and bake it for about 25 minutes until golden brown. Flip it over halfway through the cooking time to get it browned on all sides.
To air fry, preheat the air fryer to 400 degrees F and spray the air fryer basket with cooking spray. Place the tofu into the air fryer basket in a single layer and cook for 9 minutes. Flip the tofu and cook it for 3-4 more minutes until it is nice and crispy. You may need to do this in batches.
Assembling vegan sushi rolls
I made a TikTok of me assembling these vegan sushi rolls here.
To assemble the sushi, place 1 sheet of the nori onto a cutting board or plate. Spread 2/3 cup of the sushi rice over the nori sheet, leaving a border of about 1/4 to 1/2 inch around the edge of the nori.
This is important since the rice will be pushed to the edge as you roll it up. Place some of the sliced cucumber, 2 pieces of the cooked tofu, 2 slices of the avocado and a few strips of the green onion on top of the rice.
Roll the nori sheet over top of the fillings and continue to gently and tightly roll the sheet up until it is all the way rolled up, giving the roll a gentle squeeze.
The moisture from the rice should help easily seal the edge of the nori sheet together. If not, then dip your finger into some water and run it around the edge of the nori sheet to help seal it up. Repeat these steps with the remaining ingredients. You should get 4-6 sushi rolls that you can either leave whole or cut into 1-inch thick rounds of sushi.
To easily cut the vegan sushi roll, dip a sharp knife into some water before slicing the sushi. You will want to use more of a light sawing motion to slice it up rather than just trying to slice right through it.
Serve this vegan sushi with a sprinkle of sesame seeds over the top of each piece of sushi, pickled ginger and tamari or soy sauce for dipping.
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Vegan Sushi
You make your own sushi in a snap with this simple vegan sushi recipe. It is so delicious and easy to make!
Ingredients
- 2 cups uncooked jasmine rice
- 2 Tablespoons rice vinegar (or more, to taste, if desired)
- 1/2 block extra firm tofu – pressed and cut into strips
- ¼ cup low sodium Tamari or soy sauce, plus more for serving
- 1 Tablespoon dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon Sriracha
- 4-5 Nori Seaweed sheets
- 1 English Cucumber – medium, sliced into planks then thin strips
- 1 ripe avocado – peeled and sliced into strips
- 5-6 green onions – sliced into long strips
- Pickled ginger sesame seeds and tamari sauce – optional for serving
Instructions
Make the sushi rice:
-
You can buy sticky rice already made at most grocery stores. To make your own sticky rice: cook 2 cups of dry jasmine rice according to package instructions. (I prefer to use a rice cooker)
-
Once it is cooked, remove from heat, and then stir in 2 tablespoons of rice vinegar (or more, to taste). Fluff the rice and let it cool for a few more minutes. Set aside.
Cook the tofu:
- Wrap the tofu block in a clean kitchen towel and place it onto a clean, flat surface like a baking sheet or large, rimmed plate. Place something heavy on top of the tofu like a heavy bottomed or cast iron pan and place a few heavy objects on the pan to even it out (i like to use canned goods). Let it press for 15-20 minutes.
- Once the tofu is pressed, discard the liquid and use a sharp knife to cut the tofu into planks and then ½ inch thick strips. Mix up the tamari, dijon mustard and sriracha in a small mixing bowl. Place the tofu into a shallow baking dish, pour the marinade over the tofu and let it sit and mariante for 30 minutes covered in the fridge. You can also do this the day before and let it sit overnight in the refrigerator.
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F and line a small baking sheet with parchment paper. Assemble the tofu onto the baking sheet and discard the rest of the marinade. Place the tofu into the oven and bake it for 25-30 minutes until golden brown and crispy. Flip it over halfway through the cooking time to get it crispy on all sides.
- To air fry, preheat the air fryer to 400 degrees F and spray the air fryer basket with cooking spray. Place the tofu into the air fryer basket in a single layer and cook for 9 minutes. Flip the tofu and cook it for 3-4 more minutes until it is nice and crispy. You may need to do this in batches.
Make the sushi:
-
To assemble the sushi, place 1 sheet of the nori onto a cutting board or plate. Spread 2/3 cup of the sushi rice (more or less) over the nori sheet, leaving a border of about 1/4 to 1/2 inch around the edge of the nori. This is important since the rice will be pushed to the edge as you roll it up. Place some of the sliced cucumber, 2 pieces of the cooked tofu, 2 slices of the avocado and a few strips of the green onion on top of the rice.
-
Roll the nori sheet over top of the fillings and continue to gently and *tightly* roll the sheet up until it is all the way rolled up, giving the roll a gentle squeeze to bind the ingredients together. The moisture from the rice should help easily seal the edge of the nori sheet together. If not, then dip your finger into some water and run it around the edge of the nori sheet to help seal it up. Repeat these steps with the remaining ingredients. You should get 4-6 sushi rolls that you can either leave whole or cut into 1-inch thick rounds of sushi.
- To easily cut the sushi roll, dip a sharp knife into some water before slicing the sushi. You will want to use more of a light sawing motion to slice it up rather than just trying to slice right through it.
- Serve with a sprinkle of sesame seeds over the top of each piece of sushi, pickled ginger and tamari or soy sauce for dipping.
Recipe Notes
- Nutritional information is approximate and was calculated using a recipe nutrition label generator.
- I did a TikTok video making these sushi rolls here.
- To make this recipe even quicker and easier, you can use the Sriracha baked tofu from Trader Joes – straight out to the pack. Just slice it up into strips. No cooking needed.👌🏻
- I often bake enough tofu for multiple days of sushi. Once you have these ready, it works perfectly fine to roll them cold, for the next 2 to 3 days.
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