A few months ago, I tried to make sushi rolls at home, and let me tell you—it was a FAIL. 

I had a blast prepping the ingredients, making different filling combinations, buying the cute little bamboo mat—everything up until the point where I actually had to roll the sushi. I couldn’t get the rice to stick on the seaweed, or the fillings to not spill out onto the counter. And slicing the rolls? Forget it. What I ended up with was more like sushi clumps than sushi rolls. Sure, it still tasted great, but throughout the entire process all I could think was “there’s got to be an easier way”. 

And then, a few weeks ago, my at-home sushi dreams were realized when I stumbled upon the most genius idea on Pinterest: sushi stacks. After giving them a try, I don’t think I could ever go back to homemade sushi rolls. Now, I’m definitely late to the sushi stack bandwagon (apparently they’ve been a thing for years!), but I’m honestly surprised they’re not more popular. 

Sushi stacks provide all the excitement of making sushi at home, with none of the roll-induced anxiety. I had so much fun making these, and I think you will, too. 

These would be awesome for a party or at-home date night because they’re colorful, simple, and super fun to make. And because you assemble them yourself, everyone can customize theirs with whichever ingredients they like. I made two varieties: a vegan-friendly vegetable stack with brown rice and edamame, and a ‘spicy tuna’ stack with of canned tuna because we’re lazy like that. 

Easy Sushi Stacks: Vegetable and Spicy Tuna

Makes about 8 (1-cup) sushi stacks

Ingredients:

For the rice:

• 2 cups cooked brown rice or sushi rice

• 3 tbsp rice vinegar

• 1/2 tsp sugar

• 1/2 tsp sea salt

For the quick pickled carrots:

• 4 large carrots, shredded

• 1/2 cup boiling water

• 1/2 cup rice vinegar

• 1/2 tsp sugar

• 1/2 tsp salt

For the quick pickled radishes:

• 1 bunch of radishes, thinly sliced

• 1/2 cup boiling water

• 1/2 cup rice vinegar

• 1/2 tsp sugar

• 1/2 tsp salt

• 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes

• Pinch ground black pepper

For the spicy tuna:

• 2 (5 oz) cans tuna, drained well

• 2 tbsp mayonaise

• 1 tsp sriracha (feel free to add less or more, depending on how spicy you want it!)

• Pinch of salt 

Other ingredients:

• 1 cup cucumber, finely diced

• 1 avocado, diced

• 1 cup edamame, shells removed

• 6-8 sheets nori seaweed, thinly sliced

• Sesame seeds

• Sriracha

• Soy sauce 

• Wasabi 

To make:

1. Prep the sushi rice. In a large bowl, combine the vinegar, sugar, and sea salt. Stir well to combine. Add the rice and stir gently to combine. 

2. Make the pickled carrots. In a medium bowl or mason jar, combine the boiling water, rice vinegar, sugar, and salt. Stir well to combine, then add the shredded carrots and mix to submerge completely. Let the mixture cool (about 45 minutes to an hour), then drain well. Use a cheesecloth or mesh sieve to squeeze the excess water from the carrots (since these are going to be stacked, removing the excess moisture will keep them from falling apart).

3. Make the pickled radishes. In a medium bowl or mason jar, combine the boiling water, rice vinegar, sugar, salt, red pepper flakes, and black pepper. Stir well to combine. Add the sliced radishes and mix to submerge completely. Let the mixture cool (about 45 minutes to an hour), then drain well. 

4. Make the spicy tuna. Drain as much excess water as possible from the tuna, then stir in the mayo, sriracha, and salt. Mix well to combine. 

5. Prep the other ingredients. Chop the cucumber, avocado, and seaweed. Shell the edamame if needed. 

6. Assemble the sushi stacks. You’ll use a one cup dry measuring cup as your mold to make the sushi stacks. Before making each sushi stack, you’ll either want to spray it thoroughly with olive oil or line it with plastic wrap to keep the sushi from sticking. 

   Then, begin stacking your ingredients in thin layers, pressing firmly after adding each layer. Here are the ingredients I used in each stack (vegetable and spicy tuna), in order of how I layered them. 

Vegetable Sushi Stack

• sprinkle of sesame seeds

• pinch of seaweed

• brown rice (about 1/4 cup)

• carrots

• radishes

• avocado

• cucumber

• edamame 

Spicy Tuna

• sprinkle of sesame seeds

• pinch of seaweed

• sushi rice (about 1/4 cup)

• carrots

• spicy tuna (about 1/4 cup)

• radishes

• avocado

• cucumber

7. Plate and garnish. Once your sushi stacks are firmly pressed into your measuring cup, quickly flip them onto a plate to serve. Drizzle with sriracha and serve with soy sauce and wasabi. Enjoy!