Cauli-Rice Rainbow Sushi Rolls

Sushi rolls, being rice-based, can be tricky to make on a keto diet. Here, I replace the traditional rice with cauliflower rice and hemp hearts bound together with gelled chia seeds. Both the chia seeds and the hemp hearts make this a protein-rich meal that is also soy-free -- great for those with allergies or trying to diversify their plant-based protein sources. I haven't added any sauces to the recipe, so feel free to add your favorite low-carb options for additional flavor and texture. Enjoy!
Yield: 2 servings of 2 rolls each, totaling 4 rolls
​Macros (per serving): 445 calories | 24g protein | 31g fat | 7.5g net carbs ​
Prep: 30 minutes
Storage: best eaten soon after constructing.
Ingredients:
  • 3 Tbsp (30g) chia seeds
  • 3 Tbsp (45ml) water
  • 1 Tbsp (15ml) unseasoned rice vinegar
  • 1 Tbsp allulose or equivalent in sweetener of choice (optional)
  • ⅛ tsp ​salt
  • 2½ cups (325g) cooked and cooled cauliflower rice, patted dry if watery
  • ½ cup (80g) hemp hearts
  • ½ medium (68g) avocado, sliced
  • 2 inches | 5cm (60g) English cucumber, thinly sliced
  • ¼ cup (36g) shredded beet (about half of a 2-inch [5cm] beet) ✎
  • ¼ cup (32g) shredded carrot (about half medium carrot) ✎
  • 8 sheets sushi nori
Directions:
  1. In a small bowl, combine the chia seeds, water, vinegar, allulose, and salt. Set aside to gel for at least 10 minutes.
  2. While chia mixture gels, you can prepare the avocado, cucumber, beet, and carrot.
  3. In a small mixing bowl, combine the cauliflower rice, hemp hearts, and chia gel mixture.
  4. Divide the rice mixture into 4 equal-sized portions. This will prevent you from using too much “rice” for any one roll and being left short for your final roll.
  5. Lay the nori sheets out on a clean countertop in 4 stacks of 2 sheets each with the longer edges towards you. Because our “rice” is slightly wet compared to a starchy sushi rice, a single sheet of nori will become a bit soggy. To account for this, these rolls are “double-walled.”
  6. Spread the top nori sheet in each stack with a portion of the rice. The layer of rice will be quite thin. Spread the “rice” edge to edge from the left to right, but leave about ½ inch (13mm) of blank nori at the front and back edge for ease of rolling.
  7. Put the avocado and veggies, one on top of the other, in a line from left to right, about 1¼ inches (3cm) in from the nori edges nearest you. I put a line of the cucumber down first, then an avocado layer atop the cucumber, and then a thin line of the beet and the carrot.
  8. Fold the front edge over the veggies and tuck it under/towards the veggies tightly with your fingertips to form the heart of the roll. Firmly roll up the remainder of the roll. If you have a sushi rolling mat, you could use that instead of rolling by hand. I don't have one and have always just rolled mine by hand. I find that if you start with a firmly tucked "heart," rolling them firmly isn't too challenging. 
  9. Using a very sharp kitchen knife, slice the rolls into approx. 5/8-inch (16mm) pieces.
  10. Enjoy soon after constructing.​
​Optional toppings/dips: sesame seeds, sriracha mayo, tamari, soy sauce, or aminos, and wasabi paste.
✎ Notes:​
  • Beet and carrot have similar macros if you'd like to use just one of these instead of both.
  • Macros for this recipes are calculated with American national nutritional data (i.e. NCCDB & USDA entries in Cronometer) for all ingredients apart from the chia seeds (Bob's Redmill) and hemp hearts (Manitoba Harvest).
  • Macro numbers are rounded. Numbers equal to or greater than 10g are rounded to the nearest whole number (e.g. 10g, 11g, 12g, etc.) and numbers below 10g are rounded to the nearest 0.5g (0.5g, 1g, 1.5g ... 9g, 9.5g). Any numbers below 0.5g are given as is (e.g. 0.1g, 0.2g, etc.). Calories are rounded to the nearest multiple of 5.