How to Make a Dragon Roll — Tokyo-Trained Sushi Master Hiroshi Tanaka's Step-by-Step Masterclass

Overview

This video provides a masterclass on creating the Dragon Roll, a beloved Japanese-American fusion sushi. A Tokyo-trained sushi master details its structure, ingredients, and precise rolling and plating techniques, alongside its Los Angeles origins and evolution. Viewers learn to prepare the signature inside-out roll with eel, avocado, and unagi tare, achieving its iconic dragon-scale appearance.

Ingredients

• 180 gram cooked 酢飯 sushi-meshi (Koshihikari short-grain rice, cooked 1:1 with water)
• 30 milliliter rice vinegar
• 12 gram sugar
• 6 gram salt
• 1 full sheet nori, 19 by 21 centimeter
• 80 gram broiled unagi fillet, sliced 1 centimeter stick
• 40 gram Japanese cucumber, 1 centimeter stick
• 1 just-ripe Hass avocado, sliced 2 millimeter thin on bias (approx. 24 slices)
• 60 milliliter mirin (for tare)
• 60 milliliter Japanese soy sauce (for tare)
• 30 grams sugar (for tare)
• 1 teaspoon toasted black and white sesame seeds (mixed)
• 1 teaspoon orange tobiko or masago flying-fish roe
• Fresh wasabi paste
• Pickled ginger gari
• 1 cup water (for tezu)
• 1 teaspoon rice vinegar (for tezu)

Instructions

1. Cook Koshihikari rice 1:1 with water, then while warm, season with 30ml rice vinegar, 12g sugar, and 6g salt, fanning to body temperature.
2. For the unagi tare, combine 60ml mirin, 60ml Japanese soy sauce, and 30g sugar in a small saucepan. Bring to a gentle simmer over medium heat and reduce uncovered for eight minutes, stirring occasionally, until glossy and syrupy (final volume about 90ml); let cool.
3. Prepare tezu (hand-water) by mixing 1 cup water and 1 teaspoon rice vinegar in a small bowl.
4. Wrap a bamboo makisu rolling mat entirely in plastic wrap to prevent rice sticking.
5. Place the nori sheet glossy-side down on the mat.
6. Wet fingertips in tezu, then take 180 grams of seasoned rice and spread it evenly over the entire nori, leaving no border, pressing gently without mashing.
7. Sprinkle toasted black and white sesame seeds over the rice.
8. Flip the entire nori sheet so the rice faces down on the mat and the nori faces up.
9. Place the 80g unagi stick and 40g cucumber stick in a line along the center of the nori, approximately one-third from the bottom edge.
10. Lift the bottom edge of the mat with your thumb, fold it over the filling, and tuck tightly with your fingertips.
11. Continue rolling away from you, applying gentle pressure through the mat, ending with the seam down to create the inside-out roll.
12. Arrange 24 bias-sliced avocado pieces flat in a single overlapping row on a cutting board, each covering the previous one by about a third, until the row is as long as the roll.
13. Gently fan the avocado row out so it stretches slightly longer than the roll, then slide a wide flat spatula or knife under it and lift as one connected sheet.
14. Drape the avocado sheet over the top of the roll, pressing very gently so the slices adhere to the rice.
15. Place the bamboo mat back over the avocado-draped roll and press gently along its length to seat the slices into the rice, ensuring continuous, overlapping "scales."
16. Dip a sharp knife blade in tezu hand-water, slice the roll into eight equal pieces, wiping the blade clean between each cut.
17. Arrange the eight pieces in a curving line on a long black slate plate or wooden board, like a dragon body.
18. Generously drizzle the cooled unagi tare across all eight pieces using a small porcelain pitcher.
19. Sprinkle any remaining sesame seeds, then place a tiny dab of orange tobiko on the head piece as the dragon's eye.
20. Add two tiny scallion slivers for whiskers.
21. Serve with a small mound of pink pickled ginger gari and a small dab of fresh wasabi paste.

In this video

• The Dragon Roll is a 裏巻き (uramaki) or inside-out roll, designed with rice outside and nori inside to appeal to American customers who initially disliked the visible black seaweed.
• The roll's structure includes broiled unagi (eel) and cucumber inside, with thin slices of Hass avocado arranged like dragon scales on top.
• The Dragon Roll originated in Los Angeles in the late 1980s, evolving from the California Roll, which was invented in 1966 by chef Ichiro Mashita.
• For one roll (eight pieces), use 180 grams of Koshihikari sushi-meshi, seasoned with a 5:2:1 ratio of rice vinegar, sugar, and salt (30ml vinegar, 12g sugar, 6g salt).
• Homemade unagi tare, a sweet glossy eel sauce, can be made by reducing 60ml mirin, 60ml Japanese soy sauce, and 30g sugar for eight minutes to achieve a 90ml syrupy volume.
• When preparing the roll, wrap the bamboo rolling mat in plastic, spread 180g rice evenly over a 19x21cm nori sheet, sprinkle sesame seeds, then flip it rice-side down.
• Place 80g unagi and 40g cucumber sticks along the nori's center, then roll tightly, tucking the filling with fingertips, to form the inside-out roll.
• To create the "dragon scales," arrange 24 paper-thin bias-sliced avocado pieces in an overlapping row, gently fan them out, then lift and drape them over the roll, pressing gently with a mat to adhere.
• After slicing the roll into eight equal pieces with a sharp, wet knife, drizzle generously with unagi tare, add tobiko for the dragon's eye and scallion slivers for whiskers, serving with ginger and wasabi.
• The Dragon Roll is already well-flavored with tare, so avoid drowning it in extra soy sauce when eating.

Frequently asked questions

What is a Dragon Roll?

The Dragon Roll is a popular Japanese-American fusion sushi, an inside-out roll featuring broiled unagi (eel) and cucumber, topped with thin slices of avocado resembling dragon scales, and drizzled with a sweet unagi tare.

Where did the Dragon Roll originate?

The Dragon Roll originated in Los Angeles in the late 1980s, evolving from the California Roll. It is considered a Japanese-American invention, popularized by chefs like Katsuya Uechi.

What are the main ingredients in a Dragon Roll?

Key ingredients include Koshihikari vinegar rice (sushi-meshi), nori, broiled unagi, Japanese cucumber, Hass avocado, and a sweet unagi tare (eel sauce). It's typically served with toasted sesame seeds, tobiko, wasabi, and pickled ginger.

How do you make homemade unagi tare (eel sauce)?

To make unagi tare, combine 60ml mirin, 60ml Japanese soy sauce, and 30g sugar in a small saucepan. Simmer uncovered over medium heat for eight minutes, stirring occasionally, until it reduces to about 90ml and becomes syrupy.

How do you slice and present a Dragon Roll?

Using a sharp, wet knife, slice the roll into eight equal pieces, wiping the blade between cuts. Arrange them in a curving line on a plate, drizzle with unagi tare, add a dab of tobiko as the dragon's eye, and two scallion slivers as whiskers.