This Korean kimchi sushi roll is a healthy combo of fermented kimchi, paired with vegetables such as avocado, cucumber, and carrots. Step-by-step pics included!
Ingredients
- Brown sushi rice: Nutritious whole grain base for a hearty and satisfying sushi roll. If you don’t have brown sushi rice, use either:
- White sushi rice
- Half brown rice and half white sushi rice, similar to what I do in this AAC (Asparagus, Avocado, and Cucumber) Roll
- Brown rice
- This is what I did when I photographed this Korean sushi roll, thus also what you will see in the picture. Brown rice isn’t inherently sticky so if this is your first time making sushi, I recommend using brown sushi rice instead.
- Rice vinegar: Adds a tangy and traditional sushi flavor to the rice.
- Sugar: Balances the vinegar.
- Salt: A natural flavor enhancer.
- Nori sheets: The essential seaweed wrap for any sushi rolls.
And now, the vegetables!
- Kimchi: Adds a zesty and spicy kick to elevate your vegan sushi.
- And if you’re a fan of kimchi, you will love my Kimchi Loaded Fries recipe here!
- Cucumber: Fresh and crunchy element.
- Carrot: Adds a pop of color and crunchiness.
- Avocado: Kimchi & avocado pair really well!
- Sesame seeds (optional): A nutty crunch with slightly bitter flavor that rounds off the flavors well.
- This oil-free vegan mayo, or soy sauce: For dipping.
- Feel free to pair it with my black garlic mayo dip for a change!
Note that you can sub the vegetables with other veggies such as bell peppers, sweet potato, sprouts, or even spinach. You might even want to try adding mango, similar to my Mango Avocado Sushi Roll!
Step-by-step Instructions
Prepare the sushi rice: Cook your rice according to package instructions.
Then whisk together the rice vinegar, sugar, and sushi until they are dissolved.
Prepare the vegetables: Julienne the carrot and cucumber into thin strips. For the cucumber, remove the seedy, watery part. Slice the avocado into strips.
Drain the kimchi. We want as little water as possible as that will help the roll stick together better.
Mix the rice with the vinegar mixture, then wait to cool the rice: Spread the cooked rice onto a sheet pan, pour the vinegar mixture and mix well until every grain of rice is evenly coated.
Then leave it to cool for about 10-15 minutes. Do NOT skip this step as it is essential to make your sushi rice a bit stickier.
Be sure to check my Brown Rice Sushi post for the full tips & tricks on how to make a no-fail sticky brown rice every single time!
Assembly time! Place a nori sheet, its shiny side down on the sushi mat. Then spread the rice evenly with a spoon. Be sure that the rice covers the left and right sides, and that you leave about 1 inch (2.5cm) of space at the top.
Sprinkle: Sprinkle some sesame seeds over the rice, if using. Then press with the back of the spoon to make the rice stick better to the nori sheet.
Add vegetables: Arrange your vegetables on the lower part of the rice.
Rolling time! Lift the lower sides of the bamboo mat using your thumbs and index fingers. Then roll it up until the bottom part of the sushi covers just above the filling. Then press the sushi mat with your fingers, kind of like giving it a nice little massage to tighten all the fillings.
Roll further: Continue rolling and ‘massaging’ your sushi. To seal the roll, moisten the top edge of the nori sheet with water using your finger.
Cut: Cut each sushi roll in half, then cut each half into two again, and repeat until you have about 8-10 pieces of sushi from each roll.
Serve: Serve with soy sauce, this oil-free vegan mayo.
Top Tips
- Drain the kimchi well / squeeze – Excess juice makes your sushi rice wet and therefore less sticky.
- Don’t have a sushi mat? – You can still make this Korean sushi roll without a bamboo sushi mat! Simply use parchment paper or a cling wrap to roll your sushi, similar to this YouTube tutorial video by From Scratch Fast.
- Or try making a sushi hand roll (temaki) instead by following this maki vs temaki guide!
- Be patient – It took me a lot of tries and watching a lot of YouTube videos until I could roll sushi nicely so that it doesn’t fall apart when cut. So don’t give up!
- Leftover ingredients – Simply combing the leftovers and get yourself a delicious Rainbow Poke Bowl!
Serving Suggestions
For the dipping sauce, try making this 3-minute oil-free vegan mayo, sriracha mayo, sambal chili aioli, gochujang aioli, or even double down on the kimchi and serve it with this 5-minute Kimchi Aioli!
It’s also a great make-ahead food for parties and pairs well with this 5-Minute Korean Strawberry Oat Milk, which is a popular Korean drink.
Storage and Meal Prep Instructions
Storage: Sushi is best consumed fresh but will last up to 2-3 days in the fridge, when stored in an air-tight container. Note that your kimchi roll will dry out a little bit when stored.
Meal prep: If you want to meal prep, I recommend cooking and preparing everything (except slicing the avocados), but only assembling and rolling them just before you want to eat.
When you do this, the ingredients stay fresh for up to 5 days!
FAQ
Want More Recipes?
For more sushi recipes, check out my sushi series:
For more Korean dishes, check out:
Kimchi Sushi Roll (+ Step-by-Step Photos!)
Ingredients
Sushi Rice
- 1 cup brown sushi rice uncooked, 210 grams, or sub with regular white sushi rice (which is recommended if this is the first time you're making sushi)
- 1.5 to 2 cups of water 355 to 473ml, or according to package instructions
- ¼ cup of rice vinegar 60ml (see notes for substitutes)
- 2 Tablespoons of sugar 30 grams (see notes for substitutes)
- 1 teaspoon of salt 5 grams
Vegetables Fillings
- 4 nori sheets
- ½ cup of drained kimchi 100 grams
- ½ cucumber julienned
- 1 medium carrot julienned
- 1 medium avocado sliced
- 2 tablespoons of sesame seeds (optional)
- Soy sauce or vegan mayo for serving
Instructions
Preparation
- Cook the rice: Cook the rice according to package instructions.If the package instruction is missing, here is a general instruction. Add 1 cup of uncooked rice and 2 cups of water to a medium saucepan or pot. Bring to a boil.Once boiling, reduce the heat to low and simmer for 20-25 minutes, until all the water is absorbed and the rice is cooked.1 cup brown sushi rice, 1.5 to 2 cups of water
- Whisk: In a small bowl, whisk together the rice vinegar, sugar, and salt until they are mostly dissolved.If there are some lumps forming or if they are not dissolving well, you can microwave them in 15 seconds increment.1/4 cup of rice vinegar, 2 Tablespoons of sugar, 1 teaspoon of salt
- Cut: Prepare the carrot and cucumber by cutting them into thin strips. Slice the avocado.
- Slice and drain: For the cucumber, remove the seedy, watery part by slicing them. Then drain your kimchi (or keep the kimchi liquid to use as a dipping sauce). We want to remove as much water as possible as this will help us roll the kimchi so that everything holds together.1/2 cucumber, 1/2 cup of drained kimchi
- Cover: Do a taste test to check if the rice is cooked. Once it’s done, remove from heat and cover to let it steam for 5 more minutes so the rice won’t stick to the bottom of the saucepan or pot.
- Mix: Spread the cooked brown rice onto a large plate or sheet pan, and pour the vinegar mixture over the rice. Mix well until the rice is evenly coated.
- Cool: By now you probably cannot wait to start rolling your sushi, but first you have to let the rice cool down to room temperature for about 10-15 minutes, so it will become stickier. Do not skip this step since unlike the regular sushi rice, brown rice isn’t naturally sticky!
Rolling Time!
- Spread: Once your rice has cooled down, place a nori sheet shiny side down on a sushi mat. Using a (rice) spoon, spreading the rice thinly and evenly on the nori sheet, leaving about 1 inch (2.5 cm) of space at the top. Be sure that the rice also covers the sides.4 nori sheets
- (Optional) Sprinkle: Sprinkle half a Tablespoon of sesame seeds over the rice. Then press with the back of the spoon to ensure the rice sticks to the nori sheet.2 tablespoons of sesame seeds
- Add: In the lower part of the rice, arrange some cucumber, carrot, kimchi, and avocado.1/2 cup of drained kimchi, 1/2 cucumber, 1 medium carrot, 1 medium avocado
- Roll: With your thumbs lifting the lower side of the mat, and your other fingers pressing the filling gently so they stay in place, roll up so the bottom side is just above the filling. Press the sushi mat with your fingers (kind of like giving it a massage) to tighten them.
- Roll further: Continue rolling and ‘massaging’ with the sushi mat. To seal the roll, moisten the top edge of the nori sheet with water using your finger.
- Repeat: Repeat rolling the sushi with the remaining ingredients.
- Cut: Cut each sushi roll in half, then cut each half into two again, and repeat until you have about 8-10 pieces of sushi from each roll.
- Serve: Serve with soy sauce, sriracha mayo, or other dipping sauces of your choice.Soy sauce or vegan mayo for serving
Notes
- If this is your first time making sushi, I highly recommend using regular sushi rice instead of brown rice. White sushi rice is sticky, making it easier to roll the sushi later on.
- If you don’t have rice vinegar at home, you can use another type of vinegar, keeping in mind their flavor profile.
- So for example, you might taste that apple tone when you use apple cider vinegar. If you’re using white vinegar, you might want to mix it with a little bit of water to tone the tanginess down a little bit.
- I do not recommend substituting sugar with a natural sweetener but you can.
- Do not wash the uncooked rice so you don’t wash the starch away, keeping the stickier
- For storage instructions, tips, and other information, please see the post above.
- The calorie information is calculated based on using brown rice, excluding the serving/dipping sauce.
We had fun making this sushi! Lots of mess, but even those that didn’t hold up were still delicious. Thank you.
I used regular white sushi rice for this since it’s my first time making sushi. Rolling was a bit hard but after the fourth roll it got much better. Thank you!
The kimchi adds a nice tang to this one. Such a fun recipe!
Love the combo!
The kimchi adds such a nice zing to this sushi. Thanks!
Simpe, fresh ingredients for a quick recipe. Tastes is good and the process shots help me roll up the sushi successfully!