Chicken Hand Roll Recipe

The chicken hand roll is a classic street food in Chile and, although it is also sold in sushi establishments, its consumption has become popular in subway stations, on street corners and in general, since it is cheap and easy to eat it is usually wrapped with kraft or absorbent paper and eaten as a patty. Its preparation is quite cumbersome because it is done in several parts, but it is totally worth it, since the flavor is exquisite; this will also depend on the ingredients you use for this appetizer.

The key to making a good chicken hand roll is the ingredients. Normally, the hand roll is wrapped in a layer of sushi rice, that is, a short and wide grain rice (although any rice will do) washed very well and several times to almost completely remove the starch that the grains bring. To this rice, once cooked, rice vinegar (or apple cider vinegar), salt and sugar are added. We recommend getting a bamboo sushi mat, this will make it easier to roll the rolls.

The fillings are simple, a pan-seared chicken breast, chopped chives, and cream cheese, sometimes with versions with mushrooms, kanikama (crab), corn kernels, and vegetable-only options. They are usually eaten with soy sauce or sweet and sour sauce

Ingredients to make Chicken Hand Roll:

• For the rice:
• 1 cup of rice
• 4 tablespoons of rice or apple vinegar
• 2 tablespoons of sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• For the filling:
• 1 chicken breast
• 4 sheets of nori seaweed
• 1 handful of chives
• 250 grams of cream cheese
• 1 pinch of salt
• 1 pinch of pepper
• For the cover:
• 1 cup of flour (140 grams)
• 3 eggs
• 250 grams of panko or breadcrumbs
• 250 milliliters of oil for frying

How to make chicken hand roll:

1. Wash the rice very well until the water comes out translucent.
2. You can leave the grains in a strainer and submerge them in a bowl of water, rinse them and change the water until they are very clean
3. In a pot over medium heat, add the rice with the same amount of water.
4. So, to cook sushi and hand roll rice, you’ll need to stick to this ratio: 1 cup of rice = 1 cup of water.
5. When the water has dried, remove the pot from the heat, transfer the rice to a bowl and add the vinegar, sugar and salt, mix everything very well and reserve covered.
6. Cut the breasts into thick strips, season with salt and pepper and heat a tablespoon of oil in a frying pan.
7. Sauté the chicken until it is well cooked, you can add butter and garlic to enhance the flavor.
8. Take advantage and cut the cream cheese into thick strips; if it is not so solid, leave it in the freezer for a few minutes or use a pastry bag.
9. Lay out the mat and leave a bowl of water nearby to wet your hands, this helps the rice not stick. Spread a thin layer of rice on top of a nori seaweed, leaving a 3-centimeter space on the top edge.
10. Flip the seaweed over, leaving the rice underneath, and place the chicken, cream cheese, and chives on the non-rice side of the seaweed.
11. Start rolling up the chicken hand roll by wrapping the ingredients with the seaweed.
12. Shape it into a cylinder with the help of the mat or whatever you are using.
13. Make sure to press well each time you roll the hand roll so it sticks well and doesn’t come apart.
14. Once you have the rice rolls made, prepare some dishes with the flour, another with the beaten eggs and another with the panko.
15. And pass each roll through the 3 ingredients.
16. Heat oil in a frying pan and fry each chicken hand roll for approximately 3 minutes on each side, or until golden brown
17. Serve the hand rolls while they are still warm, with paper around them and soy sauce or sweet and sour sauce.
18. As you can see, the chicken hand roll recipe is a bit laborious, but the result is totally worth it.