Taco Sushi

It never fails; every time I make tacos I have leftover taco meat. In the past I’d put it all in a save-for-later container, stick it in the fridge and usually have a taco salad the next night for dinner. Or, I’d just forget about it.
Not anymore!
So this recipe all started when I was rummaging through the refrigerator looking for some new sushi ideas, and using up some of my leftovers. When I came across the taco meat I thought to myself what a perfect combination this would be. When you go to a Mexican restaurant you are almost always served rice, and the rest of the ingredients easily fit into place. I grabbed a tomato, avocado, a block of colby-jack cheese, my taco meat and got down to business. And? The family loved it.

So lets get rolling!

What you’ll need
Ingredients

• 1/4 to 1lb taco seasoned hamburger meat (if you don’t have any on hand brown some up starting while you’re soaking your sushi rice, when it’s finished you shouldn’t need more than 1/4 of the full pound)
•  - note: To make sure the seasoning isn’t too spicy for kids I always use mild taco seasoning.
• 1 avocado
• 1 medium vine ripe tomato
• 1/2c (or more if you like) shredded cheese
• Prepared Sushi Rice
• Soy Wrappers (I love the Sushi Party wrappers)

Tools

• Sushi Mold (I used Sushi Master)
• A sharp knife

Make sure your beef is fully cooked and seasoned. If you are having to make it fresh (no leftovers) make it ahead of your rice so you can give it plenty of time to cool.
Next slice your tomatoes. Scrape out all the juicy guts of the tomato and give them a fine slice, almost julienne style. Lay your tomato slices on a paper towel to absorb some of the juice. Too much may cause the sushi to not hold together.
At this time, if you like, you can start slicing your avocados. If you are worried about them turning brown before you put your sushi together then just slice your ‘cados as needed.
Once cooled, mix your cheese into the beef. If you’re using leftover taco beef then you can mix your cheese at any time. Combining the two eliminates one of your ingredients for layering and makes the process a little easier.

Take a Soy Wrapper and line the inside of your mold with it. If you are having troubles keeping the wrapper still while adding rice, you can make your sushi roll first, and roll it in the wrapper when you’re finished.          
Take your prepared rice and press it into the sides and bottom of your mold. Make sure to get a good foundation, but don’t use up too much of the space for your fillings. Press gently now because you’ll be doing a firmer press once we put it all together.
Now it’s time to start layering. From one end to the other layer a row of tomatoes, on top of that add your avocados, and then on top of that you can add your taco meat.
Finish it off with a layer of rice. You want enough to completely cover your fillings, but not over-stuff.    
Next, if your soy wrapper was placed in the mold before filling, take the outer flap and lay it on top of your rice. Now you can take your mold press, and push down on your sushi pressing all of your ingredients together so that your roll stays together. Cut your sushi through the slats provided in the mold, wiping the knife with a wet paper towel or rag every 2 to 3 cuts. Turn out your sushi, break the pieces apart, and you’re ready to serve!

*If you did not place your soy wrapper in the mold before adding your ingredients, lay a sheet of wrapper out so that you can flip out your sushi onto the sheet. Very carefully pry the sushi out of the mold. Once it’s completely out, roll it up in the rest of the wrapper. Cut your sushi to your desired width, pull pieces apart, and serve.

    
You can make this in any mold you want. I made mine in both a half circle roll (to mimic the shape of a taco) and the square nigiri sushi (finger sushi) mold.
I always prefer to use fresh ingredients when it comes to the vegetables, that way if you make extra and want to save some leftovers you can.

I hope you’ve enjoyed this recipe for Taco Sushi! If you have any questions please comment or shoot me an email.
Happy Eats!