California roll

California roll

California roll served in Shanghai, China. Prepared inside-out and sprinkled with tobiko
Alternative names	カリフォルニアロール (kariforunia rōru?)
Place of origin	United States
Region or state	Los Angeles
Main ingredients	Rice, cucumber, crab meat or imitation crab, and avocado
Food energy (per serving)	1 serving (2 pieces), 129 kcal

A California roll or California maki is a makizushi sushi roll, usually made inside-out, containing cucumber, crab meat or imitation crab, and avocado. Sometimes crab salad is substituted for the crab stick, and often the outer layer of rice in an inside-out roll (uramaki ) is sprinkled with toasted sesame seeds, tobiko or masago (capelin roe).

As one of the most popular styles of sushi in the US market, the California roll has been influential in sushi's global popularity and in inspiring sushi chefs around the world in creating their non-traditional fusion cuisine.

The most widely accepted view by food historians attributes the invention to Ichiro Mashita, sushi chef at the Tokyo Kaikan in Little Tokyo, Los Angeles. According to this account, Mashita began substituting avocado for toro (fatty tuna) in the off-season, and after further experimentation, developed the prototype, back in the 1960s (or early 1970s).

The early recipe used only frozen king crab legs, since surimi imitation crab was not yet available. Cucumber, mayonnaise, and sesame seed were missing; these ingredients were all added later.The original California roll was wrapped traditional style, with the nori seaweed on the outside, which American customers tended to peel off. So eventually the roll "inside-out", i.e. uramaki version was developed. This adaptation has also been credited to Mashita by figures associated with the restaurant.