【Reading】あらすかろーる

【English Name】Alaska roll

The Alaska roll is a type of Western-style rolled sushi widely enjoyed at sushi restaurants in North America. It is basically based on the California roll, with the most common composition being thin slices of raw salmon placed on top.

The inside is filled with crab (or imitation crab), avocado, and cucumber, and it is finished in an uramaki (inside-out roll) style with vinegared rice on the outside. It is characterized by a flavor in which the fatty umami of salmon, the creaminess of avocado, and the texture of cucumber harmonize.

The name is said to derive from the state of Alaska, known as a producing area of high-quality salmon. Whereas the California roll was devised in Vancouver in the 1970s, the time of birth and the inventor of the Alaska roll are not clearly recorded. It is thought to have been born on the U.S. West Coast, especially the Pacific Northwest.

It is rich in variations by shop, with diverse derivatives such as those using smoked salmon, those coated with panko and deep-fried, and those with spicy mayonnaise added. For the salmon, fresh sushi-grade fish such as coho (gin-zake) and king salmon (masunosuke) is recommended.