Homemade Philadelphia Sushi Roll

This Philadelphia Sushi Roll has creamy cream cheese, salty cold smoked salmon and crispy cucumbers rolled in sticky sushi rice.

Philly Sushi Rolls are one of our favorite date night meals to make. It is so much fun to make sushi from scratch and even though it may seem intimidating, it is surprisingly pretty easy to do!

This recipe was inspired by my Spicy Tuna Roll on this site, and pairs well with this Seared Tuna with an Asian Marinade.

Ingredients

Only a few ingredients are needed to make these Philly rolls!

• sushi rice
• rice vinegar
• sugar
• seaweed paper
• lox salmon
• cream cheese
• cucumber

See recipe card for quantities.

Instructions

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Cook the rice in the rice cooker according to the directions on your rice cooker or boil the rice by following the directions on the package. Place a sheet of seaweed paper on top of the sushi mat.  Spread the rice in a thin, even layer on the seaweed paper. 

Place the salmon, sliced cream cheese and sliced cucumber on top of the rice near the end of the sushi closest to you. Using the sushi mat, roll the rice layer over the salmon, cream cheese and cucumber.  Roll away from you keeping the sushi roll tight. Slice with a sharp knife and serve immediately with sesame seeds.

Hint: make sure you let the rice cool before placing it on the seaweed mats. If the rice is too hot, it will cause the seaweeds mats to start to crinkle.

Substitutions

• salmon - instead of smoked salmon, you can also use raw sushi grade salmon.

Variations

As with any classic sushi roll, there are definitely some ways you can spice it up!

• Spicy - add a hot sauce drizzle on top of the sushi roll or some spicy mayo. This can add a nice kick that is cooled down by the cream cheese.

Equipment

You will need a sushi mat to make this recipe. We also love to use a rice cooker to cook our rice. We find that it consistently cooks our rice perfectly and is also much easier than boiling the rice on the stove!

Storage

Store leftovers in an air tight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.

Top tip

Always add sesame seeds! I love the extra crisp and slight nuttiness. You can also dip them in soy sauce and add wasabi if desired.

📖 Recipe

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